Insights

President Denis Sassou-Nguesso is firmly in control following the predictable landslide victory of the governing PCT and its various legislative allies at elections held in 2017. The impotence of the divided opposition has been compounded by government repression that has resulted in the detention Read Entire Entry

The recent annual convening of the so-called “two sessions” of China’s legislative bodies, the rubber-stamping NPC and the advisory CPPCC, resulted in the approval of a revised foreign investment law that will take effect in 2020.  Details have not yet been published, but Premier Li Keqiang Read Entire Entry

The death of President Tran Dai Quang in September 2018 delivered an opportunity for Nguyen Phu Trong, the secretary-general of the ruling CPV, to consolidate his position of authority in the command structure of the single-party state. Trong had previously won a power struggle with former Prime Read Entire Entry

Voters will go to the polls to elect members of the national Parliament in late April, more than a year ahead of schedule, after Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s minority government failed to secure support for its 2019 budget. The impasse is partly attributable to the ideological incompatibility Read Entire Entry

In addition to fresh analyses of Guatemala, Trinidad & Tobago, and Suriname, PRS’ coverage of the Americas this month includes an update on Haiti, where the cautious optimism that accompanied the inauguration of President Jovenel Moïse a little more than two years ago has evaporated, amid Read Entire Entry

Dear Clients, With overall levels of political risk expected to rise in the US as the presidential cycle kicks into gear this fall, PRS’ eyes are fixed firmly on parts of Europe. Despite some blips of higher consumer confidence showing up in our models in February, the outlook for the mainstay of Read Entire Entry

President Vladimir Putin won a six-year extension of his tenure as president by a landslide at an election held in March 2018, and his allies in United Russia control a comfortable majority in the national legislature. However, Putin’s stock has diminished in recent months, amid rumblings of Read Entire Entry

The Beijing government’s further encroachment on the autonomy that Hong Kong enjoys as a special administrative region of China will continue to have a mildly negative effect on political risk in what is otherwise one of the most attractive business climates in the world. Chinese President Xi Read Entire Entry

In addition to fresh analyses of Colombia and Costa Rica, PRS’ coverage of the Americas this month includes a fully revised report on Argentina, where President Mauricio Macri is running out of time to rebuild public trust before seeking a renewal of his mandate.  The painful austerity measures Read Entire Entry

Dear Clients, The next stage in the Venezuelan power crisis continues to unfold in line with our model forecasts. Given that PRS has factored a 75% likelihood of a civilian-military regime in place within the next year, and that – as I mentioned last month – what we are seeing unfold is the Read Entire Entry