Insights

Global Counsel convened a webinar, bringing together senior investment professionals across three continents to reflect on the critical issues shaping investment post-covid. The session was chaired by Ying Staton, GC’s advisor in Singapore and our previous Head of Asia, and featured:

ASIA: Global Counsel Head of Asia, Ying Staton, and Senior Associate, Brigitta Kinadi, sit down in GC's Singapore office to discuss recent economic developments in China and the implications of the two sessions.

Recent years have seen important global shifts in both the policy frameworks for screening inward foreign investment and the way in which they are applied. These shifts come against a backdrop of protectionist political rhetoric and anxieties about the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) in traditionally open economies. The new landscape is exemplified by the…

Last week Dyson announced the opening of a new £330 million R&D centre in Singapore. The focus of the centre, home to Dyson’s new Global Technology Centre of Excellence, is on commercialising Dyson’s technology for global markets, including, for example, for use in smart homes. Dyson has grand ambitions to expand beyond household devices into technologies that will…

At the end of November, the Chinese government indicated that it intended to exert greater scrutiny over Chinese outbound investment. Draft policy papers released online outlined a new policy whereby government approval would be required for foreign acquisitions valued over US$10 billion, or US$1 billion if the target was considered to be outside of the acquirer’s core…

In the months since Brexit there have been murmurings about whether, post-Brexit, Britain could adopt a ‘Singapore model’. A number of Brexiteers in the financial sector have suggested that Britain could become a “super-duper Singapore” through deregulation and focusing on new markets in Asia.

ASEAN policymakers have always watched their European counterparts closely – both for good and bad examples. The European Commission’s landmark decision last month instructing Ireland to claw back €13 billion of unpaid corporate tax from Apple is no exception.

Last week marked one year since Joko Widodo took up office as President of Indonesia. Jokowi’s rise to power was swift and many doubted the ability of an outsider to effectively manage Indonesia’s acutely insider brand of politics; at the same time, he enjoyed an almost unprecedented popular mandate and support from the international community, and expectations when he…

The price of palm oil tumbled to a 6 year low in August, dragging with it shares in major palm oil producers and traders including Wilmar, Olam and Golden Agri Resources. Some analysts argue that palm oil is merely going through a standard commodity cycle, with a temporary glut causing a short-term fall in the price. However, two intrinsic problems with palm oil – its…

The inauguration of Joko Widodo as President of Indonesia in October 2014 was a landmark event in Indonesian politics. The subsequent hundred days have fulfilled some of the huge expectations of Jokowi and frustrated others. The reasonable prediction that Jokowi would quickly find himself dealing with the messy compromises and obstacles of minority government have so far…

Strikes by taxi drivers against disruptive taxi apps such as Uber have become a common occurrence around the world in recent months, including last week across a number of major cities in China. However in China, striking taxi drivers were not protesting against but for a freer market. Their main target was not Uber – as in other countries - but the government, which has…

This week saw Joko Widodo officially confirmed as Indonesia’s next president. With his humble background and demeanour, popular appeal and reputation for probity, the coming to power of this political superstar has been hailed as a new dawn for the world’s third largest democracy. Yet when he is inaugurated in October, for a range of political and structural reasons…

Late last month, Indonesian Trade minister Gita Wirjawan stood down to concentrate on his long-anticipated campaign for the Indonesian Presidency. Wirjawan has set the tone for Indonesian inward investment and trade policy for half a decade, and that tone has been a pragmatic mix of openness and intervention. Under Wirjawan, Jakarta has taken a series of measures designed…