The businesses that adapt early to engage China, India and Asean will help draft Asia’s next chapter and profit from it Kishore MahbubaniandSteven Okun Published: 4:30pm, 15 Sep 2026Updated: 5:21pm, 15 Sep 2026 The ending of the American century is coinciding with an Asian renaissance. America remains the world’s largest economy and will stay that way for another decade or two. But its economy no longer dominates the world. And its “America first” policy has partners and alli

President Donald Trump offered voters a quid pro quo, saying elect Republicans and get a $5,000 payout, which he called the Trump dividend. Trump's announcement was met with skepticism, with some seeing it as a desperate attempt to motivate voters and others predicting it will backfire, particularly given the US debt at record levels. “Independents and swing voters will see this as a ploy and not a solution to the their affordability problems. That’s why this will backfire,”

Artificial Intelligence’s environmental, workforce, consumer and governance risks already belong in existing risk and disclosure systems. Companies waiting on a Responsible AI policy are ignoring the obvious. By Steven Okun and Megan Willis, Noemie Viterale Companies exempting artificial intelligence (AI) from their existing governance system take a great and unnecessary risk in doing so. As companies race to integrate AI across their operations, they do so with the twin goal

The most credible messengers are the companies and investors who profit from the Republic’s success every day For decades, the US prized partners that upheld the rule of law, kept markets open and met high standards on trade and investment – making Singapore the natural choice for its first Asian free trade agreement partner. Singapore’s values and commitments to the US have not changed.\ For the US, that calculus has shifted as those values are not priorities of an “America

Trade, once central to Donald Trump’s political rise, could turn against him and the Republican Party in the 2026 midterms. Tariffs, the war with Iran, and uncertainty over USMCA are moving trade front and center this year, especially in trade-exposed states, potentially helping Democrats reclaim the House and possibly the Senate. Steven Okun and Noemie Viterale “It’s the economy, stupid,” a phrase from Bill Clinton’s winning 1992 Presidential campaign, epitomizes how economi

International Feature: Trump's Family Wealth Soars During His Second Term, Raising Concerns About Using Public Power for Private Gain President Trump's wealth has skyrocketed during his second term, with his companies making numerous overseas investments, sparking a storm of speculation. Although he claims his businesses are now managed by his son, the overlap between policy-making and family interests renders the US's political recusal mechanisms ineffective. When public pow

The Democratic Party bench is deep and an answer to who its nominee is won’t emerge until much later. Steven R. Okun and Thurgood Marshall Jr Published Jun 27, 2026, 05:00 AM Last week, former US first lady Michelle Obama took the stage at the Obama Presidential Library – and within hours, speculation began once more about whether she might finally enter the race for US president. It is a ritual by now. Each rare occasion she gives a speech, Democrats swoon. Few people connec

As featured in Eco-Business, June 24, 2026 AI governance is no longer a technology department problem. It's a boardroom imperative — and most companies aren't treating it that way. That's the view Steve Okun, Founder and CEO of APAC Advisors, shared in a recent Eco-Business feature on AI's mounting societal risks in Singapore. His core argument: the risks AI brings cut across every geography, sector, and stakeholder group, and nearly every business now plays a role in shaping

Why does this matter so much for Asian economies? The closure of the strait of Hormuz provided a “stark wake-up call” exposing the region’s vulnerability, according to a report released by the International Energy Agency (IEA) last week. Before the crisis, 60% of south-east Asia’s imports of crude oil and a third of its imports of gas came from the Middle East, according to the IEA. The region’s energy import bill is projected to reach $160bn this year – double the $80bn bill

While the US and Chinese markets are essential, other countries are making deals with each other in search of more diversified trade Steven Okun and Kellie Meiman Hock Published: 8:30pm, 18 Jun 2026 As US President Donald Trump rebuilds the tariff wall the country’s Supreme Court knocked down, the headlines fixate on each individual block. With the global 10 per cent tariff initially levied in response expiring on July 24, the Trump administration is preparing to replace it b

“People think AI is going to be like air, available for as long as they want and affordable enough for them to consume as much as they need," Steven Okun told Tim Burroughs as part of his deep dive on how private equity firms approach AI adoption. Many PE firms and their portfolio companies go all in on AI but with no budget, no risk plan, and no idea what happens if it gets expensive. What if AI costs 5x more in three years? Do you still hire that many fewer analysts? Becau

Private equity firms can no longer treat government as a regulatory afterthought Steven Okun and Derek Grossman Steven Okun is CEO of APAC Advisors, a geostrategic consultancy based in Singapore. Derek Grossman is a professor of political science and international relations at the University of Southern California. Private equity and venture capital firms operating in Asia had one fewer significant constraint than counterparts in the U.S. -- they didn't need to worry about de

Steve Okun, chief executive of APAC Advisors (Singapore), predicted the Trump administration would soon raise tariffs on China, potentially to 35 percent or more. Mr. Trump, he said, “will need to be careful not to commit to taking 301 off the table at the coming summit.” Why? As the US prepares to raise tariffs on much of the world through ARTs or Section 301 tariffs for forced labor or industrial capacity, China must be included. For example, Vietnam's tariffs will soon be

AI will mostly benefit those already well positioned to leverage it – men. Businesses and governments cannot afford to overlook gender as they invest in talent policies for the AI age. As Singapore celebrates early productivity gains from artificial intelligence, there’s a conversation about trade-offs that should also be taking place: who benefits, who falls behind, and what new divides may form. Without that discussion, women will bear the brunt of the costs of AI’s adoptio

A US Supreme Court ruling has fundamentally shifted the economics of Trump-era tariff deals. With a uniform tariff rate now set at 15%, countries that agreed to higher rates — often alongside large investment commitments — now find themselves at a clear disadvantage. As reported by The New York Times , governments across Asia are reassessing whether moving quickly to secure deals was a strategic misstep, and whether those agreements will ultimately hold. As APAC Advisors CEO

The star of America’s 250th anniversary celebrations in Asia should be its most enduring export – its founding principles Steven Okun Published: 5:30am, 27 Feb 2026 In his farewell address, then US president Ronald Reagan advocated for the United States to do “a better job of getting across that America is freedom: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of enterprise. And freedom is special and rare”. The Trump administration should follow Reagan’s advice as it desig

AI promises productivity gains, but without corporate and investor commitment, Singapore risks deeper inequality, higher emissions, and growing social strain as jobs are lost. By Steven Okun, Megan Willis, Noemie Viterale Feb. 20, 2026 Artificial Intelligence (AI) empowers businesses to do more with less people. Many businesses are racing ahead to take full advantage. DBS Bank’s announcement that AI will eliminate 4,000 jobs across 19 markets provides both a proof point and

A Hedge Against an Unpredictable United States Western middle powers like Britain, feeling increasingly alienated by the United States, are now looking to hedge their economic interests by rebalancing toward China, analysts said. “For the past few years, companies were diversifying and de-risking from China. Now, they are doing so from the United States,” said Steve Okun, head of APAC Advisors, a geopolitical consulting firm. Mr. Xi offered a thinly veiled critique of the cur

The World Economic Forum meeting at Davos shows that the room for manoeuvre is narrowing for middle powers, says US politics observer Steven Okun. SINGAPORE: The end of this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos should not bring relief to anyone. Stocks rallied when United States President Donald Trump announced he would not use force to seize Greenland . However, the global economic order governments spent decades building, which markets benefited from, no longer exists. Sin