Japanese investment in South-East Asia Outward bound A weak domestic economy is spurring Japanese firms to expand abroad IT IS not every day that the opening of a shopping centre attracts a prime minister, but then Aeon Mall in Phnom Penh is not any...
London embassies Envoy envy Embassies in London are worth a lot of money IN 2009 America sold its embassy in fashionable Grosvenor Square for a reported ￡500m ($800m) to Qatar's sovereign wealth fund. By 2017 its new embassy should be ready in grit...
Pingyao In banking's shadow A former financial hub now begs for the patronage of tourists The town Mao forgot ITALIAN cities such as Florence and Venice have long made a mint from the architectural wonders built when they were financial centres. Chin...
French local government Slimming down France tells local governments to cut the fat WHEN Claude Monet lived near the Seine at Argenteuil, he painted white canvas sails and river banks. Today, Argenteuil is part of the suburban sprawl west of Paris, a...
Minority languages Cookies, caches and cows Translating technological terms throws up some peculiar challenges Speaking the customer's language OUSMANE sweats under a tin roof as he thumbs through a Chinese smartphone that he is selling at the techno...
Cheaper oil Winners and losers America and its friends benefit from falling oil prices; its most strident critics don't IN EARLY October the IMF looked at what might happen to the world economy if conflict in Iraq caused an oil-price shock. Fighters...
Poland's government Flashes of competence Poland's new prime minister is matter-of-fact to a fault Ewa Kopacz AS A chain-smoking doctor, Ewa Kopacz clearly has a certain appetite for personal risk. In her case, it also seems to exhaust any appetite f...
The queen's knickers Victorias secret What do you buy the monarchist who has everything? One auction bidder has the answer: knickers that belonged to Queen Victoria. The buyer paid 6,200 ($9,900) for them on October 12th at an auction in Kent. At her...
Lexington How to win 99.6% of the vote Too many members of Congress are running unopposed DAYS before he seeks re-election to Congress for an eighth time, Representative Mike Capuano of Massachusetts has yet to order a single bumper sticker or I Like...
Pensions in Nigeria Fewer ghosts, more savings After an unpromising start,Nigeria is beginning to encourage local saving and investment FEW people in Africa are fortunate enough to have savings to fall back on in their old age. Having enrolled in a v...
