Singapore has long served as a bellwether for how small, open economies navigate big geopolitical storms. In this wide-ranging conversation, Foreign Minister Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan shares his perspective on the shifting balance of power among the U.S., China, and Europe—and what it means for Asia’s stability and global growth.

Today, a convergence of geostrategic priorities, technological advances, supply chain constraints and national-security imperatives is redefining the macroeconomic landscape. While the outcome isn’t yet clear, a fundamental reordering of world power and prosperity may be underway, with a range of potential consequences and responses. Are we witnessing a structural shift in centers of gravity? Is the future one of economic stress and further dislocation, or an uneven path towards a new era of growth, productivity and abundance? And is that a recipe for more inequality and political polarization, or less?

Could the conditions for global trade be any trickier? Tariffs have added hurdles to a system that was still recovering from pandemic-era disruptions and reeling from the impact of geopolitical conflicts. The dilemma now for countries and companies is whether to accept protectionism as a new normal or wait to see if conditions ease as time passes. Some considerations: How can importers and exporters influence the policy debate? What distinct trade patterns are emerging? Do new alliances (or dependencies) make sense? Could AI play a role helping to navigate a constantly changing set of norms?

After decades of foreign efforts to undermine dollar hegemony, the balance may finally have been tipped by the US itself. With the US federal debt set to increase by trillions more in coming years, a growing number of investors is questioning the integrity of Treasuries and looking for alternative stores of value. If the balance really has been tipped, what happens to the rules, conventions and institutions that govern the international monetary system? And what replaces the established norms for dollar-based credits and payments? How would a weaker dollar change the outlook for global trade and investment? Which currencies and/or instruments are likely to benefit? Who else stands to gain and lose?

Every year, trillions of dollars in institutional, family and sovereign capital is mobilized in search of attractive and stable returns. Yet too often, market structures and regulatory impediments keep this capital from funding the kinds of investments economies need to build out infrastructure, meet the growing demand for energy and improve competitiveness. What structural changes in the financial system would improve capital-flow efficiency and help address the risk/return disparity across global markets? Do prudential rules need to evolve to facilitate new types of capital? What instruments could effectively de-risk transition finance and development projects in emerging markets? Can commercial returns be aligned with verifiable societal and stability outcomes?

What if the era of American Exceptionalism really is over? Where do global investors find the next durable sources of outperformance? What asset classes, sectors or geographies are poised to become the new anchors of value? Will a new exceptionalism (or exceptionalisms) emerge amid re-globalization, strategic rivalries, and the scramble for critical resources? What chapters of the old playbook still apply and which ones are obsolete?

With its recent embrace of industrial policy and protectionism, its re-evaluation of long-standing alliances and multilateral agreements, and its defunding of overseas programs, the US government’s role on the global stage has shifted dramatically. What we don’t know is what happens next. How will erstwhile allies, faced with the loss of a reliable partner in trade and security, respond? Will multinationals, confronted by new tariff and non-tariff barriers, invest in the US or prioritize other markets? Can America retain its geopolitical, technological and cultural influence? Which rising powers try to fill the vacuum?

AI could be the most transformative technology in history. What if only a fraction of humanity enjoyed its benefits? Currently, only 16 of the world’s 195 countries host data centers powerful enough to drive the most complex AI systems. Many simply can’t underwrite the cost. Others don’t have the necessary resources or supporting infrastructure. This imbalance presents many challenges, some more obvious than others. But the central questions are: What happens to economies and societies that can’t keep up, and what incentives would motivate the haves to close the gap with the have-nots?

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In Conversation With Mr Lawrence Wong, Prime Minister & Minister for Finance, Republic of Singapore

Drawing on a legacy of pragmatic statecraft and leadership in a country built on globalization, Singapore’s prime minister shares his views on adapting economically and politically to a future likely defined not by convergence but by strategic decoupling and regional realignment.

Capitalism has never been perfect. But after 250 years of evolution, the version we know today is a complex and heavily layered construct that bears little resemblance to Adam Smith’s invisible hand. Governments in advanced economies play a huge role allocating resources and, often, picking winners and losers. Increasingly, that structure has its critics, who complain it stifles innovation, slows productivity and strands resources. What’s the optimal balance between state action and market forces to achieve both economic efficiency and social stability? Is there merit to the argument that overburdensome regulation is creating barriers to competition and entrenching incumbents rather than fostering dynamism?

The days of hyper-optimized, just-in-time global supply chains are largely behind us. Now, redundancy, strategic diversification, and secure sourcing have replaced efficiency as the priorities. Yet that demands a fundamental redesign of global commerce. What early lessons can be drawn from experiences under this new regime? How confidently can businesses safeguard their logistics networks from the shocks of tomorrow? Are the trade-offs between cost and resilience unavoidable or manageable? Which nations are poised to win in the shift to strategic autonomy from frictionless flow

It’s easy to forget how little time has passed since ChatGPT burst onto the scene. In just three years, AI has evolved from object of curiosity and fascination to a disruptive force that’s reshaping business models, balance sheets and employment. Widespread adoption has, as many predicted, introduced new complexities that are reshaping the business ecosystem and driving the need for enterprise-level reinvention. It’s time to assess the impacts and results. What tangible economic benefits has AI generated so far? Is the technology fundamentally altering energy and sustainability strategy, labor demand and skill requirements? Are human-AI collaboration tools unleashing the promised wave of productivity gains? Are the small handful of companies with control over AI resources being good stewards of their immense power?

The world has borrowed its way into a reckoning. With global public debt at record levels and economic growth at risk, the rising cost of interest poses a real threat to governments’ ability to deliver on fundamental social promises. While the reasons range from tax cuts to military spending, many countries, with the US out front, continue to run up fiscal deficits. And soon it could no longer be a question of “if” but rather “when” the bill comes due. What if anything drives leaders to confront the debt spiral? Who ultimately pays the price when unchecked borrowing collides with the unbreakable math of interest rates? How will disorderly events in global debt markets reverberate through other assets and the broader economy?

Climate change may have lost its momentum as a political priority in some places, yet the drive to decarbonize global industry, transition to renewable energy and adapt ecosystems to harsher conditions is very much alive. And what’s behind those efforts now–market forces, sub-national actors and corporate conviction–could make them more durable. So which initiatives in this quiet fight to save the planet have proven most successful so far? What key enabling technologies are (or close to) delivering results at scale? How strong is the investment case for climate-conscious projects? Where do the biggest obstacles lie?

As the US redefines its global priorities, Asia is recalibrating. Governments and businesses across the region are trying to read Washington’s intentions – and hedge against outcomes. Still unclear are America’s commitment to alliances, its appetite for economic engagement and its reliability as a partner. How is the Trump administration reshaping perceptions of US reliability and leadership? Will its pivot to transactional diplomacy cost it goodwill and support? What do regional media and policymakers think of the shifting US narrative on security, on “de-risking” from China, and on strategic competition?

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Donald Trump’s plan to bring manufacturing back to America is running into reality. For companies, capitalizing on a protected market by moving production to the US also means confronting high costs, skilled-labor shortages, aging infrastructure and policy uncertainty. Then there’s the challenge of decoupling from China’s dense, efficient and cost-effective ecosystem of suppliers. If critical parts are still sourced from abroad, US industry can’t be insulated from shifts in global trade dynamics. What conclusions have CEOs drawn after weighing the trade-offs? When does relocating output to the US make sense (or not)?

Bitdeer founder and CEO Jihan Wu speaks about the shift from using computing power for bitcoin mining to powering AI, where the next gigawatt-scale capacity will be built and how energy politics, chip supply, and digital-asset cycles will shape growth over the next decade.

Most leading AI developers are predicting some version of the same future, one in which AI not only surpasses human intelligence but the intelligence of all humanity. Even if such forecasts prove grandiose, there’s no doubt that the stunning advances in AI’s capabilities will redefine our lives, societies and economies. What should we be prepared for? Is there a single path forward or many possible outcomes?

By 2030, estimates show, data centers worldwide will consume as much power as the entire economy of Japan–twice the amount they do today. And beyond the AI revolution, demand for energy is growing so fast in emerging markets, the risk of a global shortage is increasingly real. How will countries balance the strategic imperative of AI against the needs of consumers and industry? Can technology-driven efficiencies offset the growth in demand? Will the national-security interest be critical enough to overcome the financial and regulatory barriers to energy development? Does it all make climate change more inevitable?

America’s lead in most areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics is in question after multibillion-dollar cuts in federal funding to universities and government agencies. With no relief in sight, how will these changes alter the landscape of scientific discovery in the US and beyond? What implications do they have for future generations of scientists and the entrepreneurs who exploit their innovations? If the US loses competitiveness as a result, who stands to gain? Which countries and/or institutions are successfully seizing the opportunity?