Tariffs are a Money Launderer’s Best Friend
August 21, 2025 | The Hill
U.S. trade policy is now synonymous with tariff policy. President Trump’s latest round of higher taxes on imports went into effect on Aug. 7, and the 40 countries that the U.S. runs a trade deficit with now face a 15 percent rate. Some will be hit with even steeper rates, such as Brazil, which faces a 50 percent total tariff... more
The US- Brazil Trade Conundrum
July 13, 2025 | Latin Trade
Turning to the US-Brazil trade relationship and potential impacts of the announced 50% tariff on Brazil, one should note that the relationship is an extensive and diversified one. Moreover, felicitously for the U.S., given America’s obsession with trade deficits, it is relevant to note that the U.S. enjoys a $74 billion trade surplus with Brazil... more
Geopolitical Hedging—The New Mantra of Globalization
June 20, 2025 | The World Financial Review
Corporations typically employ three geopolitical hedging approaches. The first is operational repositioning, relocating supply chains or manufacturing bases to leverage trade agreements and cost advantages. A North American medical-devices firm saved 15-25% in operating costs by shifting production to Mexico while enhancing resilience through nearshoring. Semiconductor companies are increasingly targeting the Taiwan-Singapore corridor, with one firm gaining $47 billion in market share through strategic sales realignment... more
Central Europe Looks to Latin America
June 17, 2025 | Latin Trade
As U.S. attention to Latin America recedes--understandably given the number of crises elsewhere on the globe--Europe is filling the void in part. The relationship between the European Union and Latin America has evolved into one of the most significant economic partnerships globally, with trade and investment flows reaching unprecedented levels today... more
American Manufacturing is Alive and Well
June 10, 2025 | The National Interest
Examining U.S. manufacturing competitiveness today, one finds that the United States maintains a formidable position in global manufacturing despite facing intensifying international competition. The American manufacturing industry is the fifth largest employer in the U.S. and accounts for 53% of R&D spending and 17.1% of U.S. GDP . The technology sector, including semiconductors and computer electronics, aerospace, medical devices and defense-related industries represents a major driver of manufacturing competitiveness... more
Tariffs are Bad---So Are Non-tariff Barriers
April 4, 2025 | The National Interest
Tariffs, which Donald Trump once called “the most beautiful word in the dictionary,” constitute the centerpiece of his administration’s trade and economic policies. The tariff theme featured prominently in the president’s State of the Union address on March 4 and represents a clear article of faith for him. The April 2 “Liberation Day” announcement of new sweeping tariffs makes it crystal clear that the president means business... more
Canada Leads in AI policy. What the U.S. Should Learn From Its Neighbor
April 1, 2025 | Barron's
In late January, OpenAI and SoftBank announced Stargate, a four-year U.S. artificial intelligence infrastructure project worth hundreds of billions of dollars. The new joint venture will spend its first $100 billion—with large funding by Oracle and Abu-Dhabi’s AI-focused state-fund, MGX—on constructing an AI data center in Texas... more
AI—a Game-Changer for the Mining Industry
March 31, 2025 | Latin Trade
Artificial intelligence (AI), the capability of computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, is without question one of the most far-reaching and impactful technological developments of the 21st century. From chatbots, online shopping recommendations and financial risk assessment to analysis of customer data, artificial intelligence is a game-changer for industries large and small... more
Can Sovereign Wealth Funds be the Answer to US Economic Strength?
March 2025 | The European Business Review | View article online
In February of this year, President Trump called for the creation of a national Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) with more than $2 trillion in assets. An SWF is a state-owned investment fund that focuses on economic development. This type of fund may offer the U.S. several strategic advantages, particularly in stabilizing government finances, enhancing long-term economic competitiveness, and generating returns on national wealth, with the promise of fiscal stability and deficit reduction... more
How Trump Can Make DOGE Work
February 20, 2025 | The Baltimore Sun
Efforts to reform the federal government since earliest times have been akin to Sisyphus trying to push a huge boulder up a hill. Most recently, in its quest to institute sweeping changes—rooting out fraud, corruption, waste and inefficiency--the Trump administration created DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency. From fraud alone, the government loses over half a billion dollars annually... more
Latin American Country Risk—An Update
February 13, 2025 | Latin Trade | View article online
Widespread and growing trade conflicts--a world-wide development--has deflected attention away from foreign direct investment, a $1.3 trillion enterprise. Latin America is no exception. And while trade flows—imports and exports—may ebb and flow, foreign direct investment is the “long game”. Recognizably, it is also an economic activity that produces these tradable products, be they manufactured goods, agricultural and natural resource products, or services... more
H1-B Visas Are a Key to U.S. Competitiveness
January 13, 2025 | The Baltimore Sun
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Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, are coordinators of the incoming administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE, have recently advised the president-elect to increase the number of H-1B visas that bring thousands of foreign engineers and other skilled workers into the U.S. to bolster the competitiveness of the American economy. Donald Trump himself has one-upped the game by advocating an automatic green card for any foreign student who graduates from college... more