The Bottom Line

South-east Asia’s responsible AI ambition hinges on talent readiness

Ensuring sustainable innovation will depend less on how advanced our systems become and more on how well we prepare our people to guide them

Family businesses produce about two-thirds of all economic output and employ more than half of all workers.
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Why do so many family companies exist?

They know how to win without fighting

By sector, more than 20% of these undervalued, high-quality class are industrials, followed by financials and consumer discretionary.
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The best time to buy quality stocks is now

It is a generational opportunity in otherwise bubbly markets

Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s boss, does not seem especially worried about Google's TPUs. He is betting on flexibility – and while Nvidia no longer looks as invulnerable as it once did, its strength should not be underestimated.
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Google has pierced Nvidia’s aura of invulnerability

But the search giant’s custom chips may prove tricky for others to adopt

Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang reported the company's record-high quarterly revenues on Nov 19. The next day, its share price fell 3%.
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Why investors are increasingly fatalistic

Everyone knows share prices have a long way to fall. Even so, getting out now might be a mistake

There is no sign that we should expect a major twist in the labour picture when official jobs data is finally released.
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Case for Fed pause mounts

Unless there is a major surprise in the delayed data about to be released, the case for the third interest rate cut of the year is weakening fast

China has deliberately avoided military overcommitments and nation-building ventures in the region.
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China in the Gulf: stakeholder or hegemon?

Beijing’s transactional approach to the Middle East presents a new strategic reality which Asean nations must navigate

On average, the 27 EU members’ ageing-related costs will rise by just over 1% of gross domestic product over the next 45 years, a Bruegel report shows.
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Europe’s ageing burden far less than in the US or China

The most remarkable takeaway in a new Bruegel report is how relatively contained Europe’s fiscal burden appears in aggregate

About 750,000 US federal employees are expected to be furloughed each day, with hundreds of thousands more required to work without immediate pay.
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Economic effects of the US government shutdown: A self-inflicted wound

This political impasse does not resolve underlying policy disagreements, but instead creates costs ultimately borne by taxpayers

US payroll growth has softened considerably, to an average of only 29,000 jobs per month in the three months through August, compared with 82,000 during the same period in 2024.
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How to explain 4% growth and no jobs

The answer may lie in artificial intelligence, but proving that will be a challenge