Author: HeraldStar

By Qaiser Nawab In a global economic landscape characterized by fragmentation, protectionist headwinds, and sluggish recovery, China’s economic performance for the fiscal year 2025 has once again defied the more pessimistic forecasts emanating from overseas observatories. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released its official data on Monday, confirming that the world’s second-largest economy expanded by 5 per cent in 2025, successfully hitting the official target set by Beijing earlier in the year. Perhaps the most significant revelation in the 2025 dossier is the definitive rebuttal of the long-standing perception that China’s economic engine is solely fueled by external demand.…

President Ilham Aliyev’s interview with Euronews in Davos essentially reveals Azerbaijan’s position within the current international order, its claim to regional leadership, and the pragmatic course it has adopted in foreign policy. This interview is not limited solely to energy issues; it presents Azerbaijan’s broader model of behavior within a wider geopolitical framework. International Order: The Azerbaijan Model in the Transition from Law to Power “International legal norms no longer appear absolute for all members of the global community.” This quotation reflects the President’s core assessment of the global system. Aliyev openly states that the world has entered a new…

By Qaiser Nawab The European Union is mobilising its most potent economic weaponry in preparation for a historic trade war with the United States, following President Donald Trump’s unprecedented ultimatum regarding the purchase of Greenland. In a move that threatens to fracture the Western alliance, Brussels is finalizing a retaliatory package targeting €93 billion ($107bn) of American exports, while simultaneously preparing to bar US corporations from lucrative public tenders across the continent. The standoff, which has escalated with remarkable speed since the weekend, centers on Washington’s demand to acquire the autonomous Danish territory of Greenland a strategic Arctic asset the…

By Qaiser Nawab, Chairman BRISD In 2025, China’s imports hit a record value of 18.48 trillion yuan. For decades, the orthodox view of the Chinese economy focused almost exclusively on its export prowess. However, the granular breakdown of the 2025 data reveals that this operating model has been fundamentally superseded. The resilience of China’s imports now reflects a sophisticated industrial upgrading and a domestic market that has become indispensable to global growth. The Anatomy of Demand To understand the significance of the 18.48 trillion yuan import figure, one must examine the industrial engine it feeds. The import record is inextricably…

By Wania Tahir On January 12, a collective sigh of relief was audible across the Eurasian manufacturing landscape. After months of simmering tensions that threatened to boil over into a debilitating trade war, China and the European Union announced a breakthrough consensus on the vexing issue of electric vehicles (EVs). By agreeing to a mechanism of “price undertakings” essentially a minimum import price instead of proceeding with punitive tariffs that were set to reach as high as 45 percent, both powers have chosen the path of economic pragmatism over geopolitical polarization. Under this arrangement, Chinese exporters including industry titans like…

By Wania Tahir The post-1945 economic order, predicated on the free movement of goods and the sanctity of alliances, may well have breathed its last this Wednesday. In a move that has sent shockwaves from the polder lands of Veldhoven to the industrial clusters of Gyeonggi-do, the White House has announced a sweeping 25 per cent tariff on select semiconductors, manufacturing equipment, and derivative products. The executive order signed on January 14, 2026, by President Trump pivots the crosshairs of American economic artillery away from strategic rivals and squarely onto Washington’s oldest partners: Japan, South Korea, and the Netherlands. The…

By Dr. Muhammad Shahbaz, President of China Pakistan Medical Association The China-Pakistan International Neurosurgery Forum was held at Zhongnan (Central South) Hospital of Wuhan University, marking an important step forward in strengthening bilateral medical cooperation between China and Pakistan. The forum brought together leading neurosurgeons, medical scholars, administrators and international students from China and Pakistan, creating a high-level platform for academic dialogue and practical cooperation. Its core focus was on neurosurgery clinical practice, joint training, scientific research collaboration and the broader vision of building a China-Pakistan health corridor under the framework of international medical cooperation. The opening session was chaired…

Ilham Aliyev’s recent interview with local television channels goes far beyond assessments of Azerbaijan’s domestic and regional agenda. It also offers a tough, realistic, and ideologically unembellished diagnosis of how the international system actually functions. The President’s remarks on the concept of “international law,” in particular, provide a fundamental framework for understanding 21st-century geopolitics. Aliyev states the issue plainly: “Today, there is no such thing as international law in the world. Everyone should forget about it. There is power, there is cooperation, there are alliances, and there is mutual support.” These words are not a pessimistic rejection but a definition…

By Wania Tahir The dust is yet to settle on the streets of Caracas, but on the trading floors of New York, London, and Singapore, the verdict—at least superficially—seems to be one of euphoric relief. The dramatic ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro following a swift, unilateral U.S. military operation earlier this week has sent global equities soaring to record highs. The narrative being peddled by Wall Street is one of “optimism”: a belief that the reopening of the world’s largest proven oil reserves will lubricate the gears of the global economy and that the removal of a geopolitical thorn…

By Wania Tahir In a decision that marks the most dramatic contraction of American diplomatic engagement since the isolationist era of the 1930s, the United States has formally initiated its withdrawal from 66 international bodies. The move, codified in a presidential memorandum signed on January 7, 2026, targets a vast array of United Nations and non-UN entities focused on climate change, social policy, migration, and development. For the corridors of power in Islamabad, Brussels, and Beijing, the announcement was not unexpected, yet the sheer scale of the exodus has sent tremors through the edifice of global diplomacy. The White House…