The Business Times

Sarah O'Connor

The entire shape of Ukraine's economy has changed rapidly, as sectors such as defence have expanded and others like tourism have contracted.

The secret to Ukraine’s remarkably resilient labour market

Flexibility, financial support and remote work have offset some of the economic upheaval of war

The illusion of human control can be more dangerous than its clear absence, says the writer.

Why it’s hard for humans to have the final say over AI

We need to learn from the mistakes we have made in the past

A quarter of the people in the world live in countries where populations have already peaked.

A shrinking world will turn our problems upside down

The political and economic priorities of a depopulating society could be very different from today’s

With the help of gadgets and subscriptions from technology companies, we are increasingly turning our gaze on each other.

Are we on course to become a Little Brother society?

Trust in our peers could be the casualty as surveillance technology becomes smaller, smarter and cheaper

People ride their bikes down the street in Dokkum, the Netherlands. It has become increasingly common for full-time workers in the country to compress their hours into four days rather than spread them over five.
THE BOTTOM LINE

The Dutch are quietly shifting towards a four-day work week

The Netherlands serves as a case study for the advantages and trade-offs of reduced hours in the workplace

Deliveroo tells riders that “the fee for each order is unique” and is based on estimates of time, distance, the rider’s location, time of day, day of the week, the busyness of the restaurant and a number of other factors.

Dynamic wages make work a gamble

Ride-hailing and food delivery companies’ new pay models use algorithms to decide bespoke fees

Being a second-mover is particularly useful when the benefits of a new technology are uncertain and the risks are high – because what you lose in speed, you gain in information.
THE BOTTOM LINE

In defence of the second-mover advantage

In AI, the message ‘act now or miss out’ has more in common with high-pressure sales than business strategy

When Northvolt filed for bankruptcy last week, it was a blow to the story that the road to net zero will be paved with secure "green jobs" in places that need them.

Why the public doesn’t buy the idea of a ‘green jobs’ bonanza

People understand that transitions are hard – politicians need to as well

One reason that workers put up with bad jobs is fear: that the next job will be worse, or that it won't last.
THE BOTTOM LINE

Why don’t people leave bad jobs?

Giving workers a bit more security might make the labour market more flexible, not less

What might it look like if politicians compare life expectancy statistics as obsessively and anxiously as they do their GDP trends?

There is more to life and death than GDP

Economic growth is not the only way to compare how well countries are doing

Latest T-bills Treasury Bills Results & Interest NewsLatest SSB Singapore Savings Bonds NewsLatest COE Certificate of Entitlement News
Latest Johor-Singapore SEZ NewsLatest BTO Build To Order & Sales of Balance NewsLatest STI Straits Times Index NewsLatest SGX Dividends, Share Price NewsLatest Bonds Market NewsLatest Singapore Stocks To Buy NewsLatest Singapore Economy News
View More