In a brilliant book, ‘Sapiens’, the author, Yuval Noah Harari, defines culture as the instinctive ability of strangers to cooperate effectively. Cultures, due to their internal dynamics and because of their man-made nature, constantly undergo changes and they are tempted to become the dominant force over other cultures
Markets are feeling a corrective shock to a complacent idea that all the bluster emanating from the White House have been transactional feints. Yesterday’s reduction in tolerance on allowing negotiations appears to have been triggered by the current administration’s border analysis showing little change in the illegal flows of fentanyl entering the United States.
Vladimir Putin’s hero and his namesake, Vladimir Lenin, once said that there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks when decades happen. This is, indeed, the zeitgeist of 2025, when investors, politicians, partners, and foes are all desperate to decipher how the US administration’s moves and announcements might affect economies and relationships.
Copyright © 2025 TP ICAP