The escalation in the U.S.-China trade war Friday – with each country slapping new tariffs on the other – is part of a larger fight that will decide which nation will shape the economic and geopolitical future of the 21st century. President Trumpis right to refuse to raise the white flag of surrender. Thankfully, few expect a shooting war to erupt between Chinaand the U.S. Instead, our two countries are waging economic warfare, with trade policy being central to the battle. And like escalation in a shooting war, hostile actions taken by one side in our trade war with China…

Just in case you missed this frightening and scary story. It was one that set the airs on every patriot’s skin on the edge during the upper week. It provoked eerie goose pimples that instantly colonized the pores of their skins. The celebratory mood of the country during the Sallahfestivity notwithstanding, that event would have polluted national joy. The First Family was also prepared to join in the celebration. Pronto, words had gone to the Protocol department of the Villa to make ready necessary logistics as President Muhammadu Buhari would be celebrating the Islamic festival with his kith and kin…

Nationalism comes in many flavors — the ethnic and the civic, the religious and the secular, the right and the left. A century ago, Theodore Roosevelt’s New Nationalismcalled for inheritance taxes, a ban on corporate money in politics, workers’ compensation and a living wage. By contrast, the recent National Conservative Conferenceoutlined a “new American and British nationalism” that featured balanced budgets, strong national borders and a return to Anglo-American national traditions: “constitutionalism, the common law, the English language, and Christian scripture.” There are so many varieties of nationalism that it may be time to pause and ask: What is a…

Banks market capitalisation drops by N657bn —August 12, 2019. Investors lose N157.7bn as 43 stocks decline —August 13, 2019. When in 2016 the forecast of a continuous decline in stock prices was made, a friend asked me when it will end and a recovery get underway. The answers provided were simple. The bad news for investors, whether in the capital market or elsewhere, will continue as long as Nigeria has a Federal Government whose leaders don’t understand how modern economies work. The unceasing competition among nations of the world for advantage will always work in favour of countries blessed with…