Encroaching Tides: Recent Episodes
Michael Schroeder
Michael has been following current affairs and emerging trends in Asia for years. On this podcast, he speaks with business leaders, policymakers, and academics with lived experience in Asia to bring you inside Asia's rise.
The growth of East Asian economies has been nothing short of astonishing. In a few decades, we have seen rapid industrialization at a seemingly unprecedented speed. However, not without setbacks along the way.
In this episode, I speak with somebody who has seen it all: Chris Galati of China Renaissance. Chris looks back on a long career in finance with a focus on East Asian Equities. We reflect on major milestones along the way, post-Covid growth, and what's next for the world's most economically vibrant region.
A lot has been written on China’s complex relationship with Africa. Africa has been an important source of raw materials for China’s industrial development for decades, but concerns about the sustainability of Chinese lending to African countries abound. In this episode, Michael and Noah talk with Leon Wang, a Chinese banking executive in Kenya. Leon is Group Head for Chinese Business Coverage at Equity Group Holding Limited in Nairobi, Kenya. They speak about the recent history of Chinese lending in Africa, the strategic importance of the Belt and Road Initiative to Sino-African investment, and what sectors Chinese businesses think are appealing for future investment.
Noah and Michael continue their discussion on Chinese FDI in the US with Bruce Zou. They focus on the media attention Chinese investment has received overseas, the differences between Chinese M&A and greenfield investment, and how US-China trade might change in the post-Trump era.
*All FDI metrics can be found at the US-China Investment Hub FDI Dashboard:
https://www.us-china-investment.org/fdi-data
Noah and Michael speak with Bruce Zou, one of the few young professionals with first-hand experience facilitating foreign direct investment from China into the US. Bruce started his career with the Kentucky Cabinet of Economic Development as an intern in 2016, just as US-China tensions were on the rise, and in 2018 he took on full-time responsibilities for Asia-related initiatives. The three discuss the historical trends that have shaped capital flows between the US and China, and Bruce shares what tactics individual states, like Kentucky, use to attract Chinese FDI and offers insight into how they can improve their practices in this period of heightened tensions.
*All FDI metrics can be found at the US-China Investment Hub FDI Dashboard:
https://www.us-china-investment.org/fdi-data
A German and an American meet on the Great Wall of China. No, it's not the start to a corny joke. It’s how co-hosts Michael and Noah met in 2018 while studying at Peking University. In this episode, Michael and Noah share some of their personal experience living, studying and working in China and explore the tough choices China’s universities will need to make to become global leaders.