How Would a Chinese Blockade of Taiwan Affect Global Business?

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A Chinese blockade of Taiwan would cripple global supply chains and raise freight prices in Asia and potentially beyond, because of the outsize role that the island of roughly 23 million people plays in global business.

Here are some questions and answers about the tensions across the Taiwan Strait and the possible fallout on global business should China attempt to blockade the island.

German Global Lending Platform

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The first German regulated global lending platform for small business loans and the first German company to receive a regulatory license for doing a Security Token Offering (STO), Bitbond, is launching an STO to fund small businesses in Asia with loans.

“Small businesses are an incredibly important part of the economy, and hire the majority of all employed people worldwide,” says Radoslav Albrecht, Founder and CEO of Bitbond. “We see this STO as a way to help small businesses create more jobs, and supercharge their own growth.”

Discover more about Bitbond's global lending platform.

Who's Leading the Pack on Digital Engagement?

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Which country is leading the pack on digital engagement? According to consulting firm Deloitte, and  the release of the second edition of their Voice of Asia series, it's Asian economies relative to to their global peers in similar stages of development. The report says:

The global economic centre of gravity has shifted towards Asia. The Asian region is the fastest growing in the world and has been a significant driver of global economic growth.

Download the full report here.

The race is on to harness technology and power the next generation of growth.

Is Asia's Export-Oriented Model Dead?

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Stephen S. Roach, non-executive Chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, lecturer at Yale University's School of Management and Jackson Institute for Global Affairs and author of "The Next Asia" has  word or two to say about whether Asia's export-oriented model is dead or not.

Asia's Wake-Up Call:  Is The Export-Oriented Model Dead?

Posted by:  The Global Small Business Blog

Guess Who's Leading the World Out of a Downturn?

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If you immediately thought Asia is leading us out of the downturn, you're right. Specifically, Hong Kong shows a burst of activity in consumer consumption.

An excerpt from the WSJ article, "Consumers Spend Asia Out of a Downturn."

"Chinese consumers are buying," says Dong Tao, regional Asia economist for Credit Suisse in Hong Kong. "Job prospects are good." Add what he calls "the spice of asset appreciation" in property and stocks, and folks feel richer.
All of that is good news for the world economy, which has relied on Asia to pull the world out of recession. The International Monetary Fund forecasts inflation adjusted growth in developing Asia will be 7.3% in 2010, compared to 3.1% globally. China has accounted for more than half of the world's economic growth the past three years, according to the IMF.

Still, Asia must rely on its exports to not just survive but to really thrive. More here.

Note: In observance of Christmas tomorrow, be sure to watch for our special holiday post.

U.S. and Asia Have An Enormous Stake In Each Others' Prosperity

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Read the latest by Marcus Noland, Peterson Institute for International Economics:

American Economic Relations with Asia [immediate download of PDF file]