At the start of 2000, a reputable economic magazine referred to Africa as the ‘hopeless’ continent – a comment that may not have seemed controversial at the time. However, more than a decade later, the picture couldn’t be more different. ‘Africa Rising’ was the new message of the day.

Large international investors continue to closely monitor Russian issuers and are ready to invest if their requirements are met, as demonstrated by two recent deals successfully brought to the market.

EU policymakers need to speak directly to the Greek people – and those of Spain, Portugal and Ireland – and convince them that they have a vision for the eurozone that includes them as equals, not serfs.

The remarkable rise and rise of Beijing ETOWN over the past two decades mirrors China’s transformation from the world’s workshop to a globally competitive hub for innovation, technology and high-end industry.

Beijing ETOWN is home to some of China’s most progressive new IT companies. Their growth over the past decade has been a result of an unusual level of cooperation between different companies and with the local government in the hi-tech zone.

Beijing ETOWN is a greenhouse for innovative domestic Chinese companies to flourish and reach out to a global marketplace – even though sometimes their products are much more visible than their names.

Beijing ETOWN is an ideal home from home for an impressive A-list of global brand-name companies that use the hi-tech zone as a base for their China and Asia operations. Executives at GE Healthcare explain why being there gives them a competitive advantage.

Finding a location in the capital of the world’s fastest-growing economy is only one of the challenges in creating a successful hi-tech industry zone. Having the infrastructure to take advantage of that location and make it a place to live – as well as a place to work – is a far greater challenge.

The end of 2014 has seen considerable turbulence in many emerging market (EM) economies, particularly those most reliant on oil – directly or indirectly. This is a reminder that the secular rise of EMs is not a linear phenomenon.

There is an elevated risk of a global recession in 2015 given eurozone stagflation, setbacks in Japan, a debt-ridden China, the risk of the oil-price collapse triggering geopolitical risk and diminishing returns from G7 monetary stimulus.