Rethinking stability: investing in a multipolar world
key takeaways.
- The post-Cold War unipolar order is long gone – the tussle between the US and China is coming to define our age
- Trade relationships are reshaping – goods and commodities are now travelling along shorter geopolitical lines
- Fearing weakening US defence commitment and an increasingly muscular China, Asian nations are building a web of bilateral security ties
- Artificial intelligence has become a new frontier of international competition – this is driving new economic growth across Asia
- In a multipolar world of unpredictable trade policies, geopolitical tensions, and evolving alliances, investors should take an active approach, seeking out the opportunities arising as nations invest to build domestic security.
Asia stands at the heart of a new global order. Explore how US-China rivalry, the rise of BRICS, and shifting trade and technology alliances…
Watch our manifesto video: rethink stability
Weaponised interdependence
related content.
rethink everything®.
learn moreTrade landscape reshapes along geopolitical lines
US unpredictability fosters web of defence alliances
AI investment stimulates new growth
New global order takes shape
Balance in an unstable world
1 Chinese Economic Coercion during the THAAD Dispute - The Asan Forum
2 Weaponized Interdependence: How Global Economic Networks Shape State Coercion | International Security | MIT Press
3 WTO | 2025 News items - Large increase in new tariffs but also measures to ease global trade, WTO report shows
4 WTO | 2026 News items - Updated WTO-IMF TPA Index shows continued rise in global trade policy activity
5 Ibid
6 The future of global trade in 2026 | McKinsey
7 BRICS is an international organisation formed initially by China, India, Brazil, and Russia. Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the UAE have all since joined as full members. There are a further ten partner nations.
8 Quad Critical Minerals Initiative Framework Among the United States, Japan, Australia, and India - United States Department of State; Past failures haunt Quad’s US$20 billion critical minerals push | South China Morning Post
9 Trump orders Pentagon to cut back military exercises with South Korea | Reuters; US, South Korea to cut length, scope of military drills after Trump order | Reuters
10 Japan Fears It's Next as Trump Squeezes Allies After Pressuring Korea - Seoul Economic Daily
11 Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2025
12 Ibid
13 Ibid;
14 Southeast Asia boost defense ties but avoids firm alliances
15 Ibid
16 Japan unveils $2.3 trillion investment plan for next 14 years - The Japan Times
17 Taiwan reports record monthly exports in March - Focus Taiwan
18 Malaysia poised to gain from AI chip upcycle | The Star
19 (As measured by purchasing power parity) About Us – BRICS
20 EXCLUSIVE: India's central bank proposes linking BRICS' digital currencies, sources say | Reuters; BRICS nations discuss linking payment systems and CBDCs, RBI chief says | Reuters
21 India's Brics payment pitch falls short of leaders' declaration | World News - Business Standard
22 China, Kimi K3 and WAICO: Can Beijing win the AI race and make the rules too? | Chatham House – International Affairs Think Tank
23 ESCAP Asia-Pacific Quarterly Economic Update, February 2026
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