Section

Asia Trade & Geopolitics

Asia-Pacific is the main stage of US-China rivalry – over trade, tariffs, technology, Taiwan and the sea lanes that carry global commerce. The Rio Times covers the trade fights, alliances and great-power maneuvering across the region, and how each turn reshapes the terms of trade for the Global South, Latin America included.

Browse by themeAsia Markets & Currencies · Asia Supply Chains & Critical Minerals · Asia Tech & Semiconductors · Asia & Latin America

A vast open-pit rare earth mine in South America, symbolising the region's critical role in the global scramble for minerals essential to the energy transition and advanced manufacturing.

Analysis

US–China Decoupling Redraws Latin America’s Strategic Map

As G7 nations move to decouple from China and the US weighs tariffs on Brazil over Pix and deforestation, Latin...

July 20, 2026

An oil tanker navigates the narrow Strait of Hormuz with Iranian naval vessels visible in the distance, as the global energy map tilts toward Latin American alternatives.

Analysis

The Strait and the Salt Flats: How a Hormuz Crisis Is Redrawing Latin America’s Energy Map

Hormuz crisis fallout: as Iran squeezes the Strait of Hormuz and Asia scrambles for energy, the shock is rewiring Latin...

July 18, 2026

An oil tanker navigating the narrow Strait of Hormuz, the choke-point whose 2026 closure rewired Latin America's trade and security.

Analysis

How the 2026 Energy Shock Is Rewiring Trade, Security and Opportunity for Latin America

From oil price surges to fertiliser crunches and a new Monroe Doctrine, the Iran war's shockwaves are rewiring Latin America's...

July 17, 2026

A Chinese-built container terminal at Chancay, Peru, the new physical gateway binding South American commodities to Asian markets amid global trade disruption.

Analysis

The Shock Absorber: Why Latin America Is Now the Fulcrum of a Shaken World Order

From a war in the Persian Gulf to a stalled fight against inflation and a three-way great-power contest, Latin America...

July 17, 2026

The Brazilian Congress in Brasília stands silhouetted against a twilight sky, symbolising Latin America's position at the centre of a new Cold War being fought over critical minerals, food and strategic allegiance.

Africa

Latin America Caught in the New Cold War Over Trade and Minerals

As great-power competition intensifies into a 'new Cold War', Latin America emerges as a critical swing region where US, Chinese...

July 16, 2026

An oil tanker navigating the tense waters of the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint whose volatility is sending shockwaves through Latin American fuel prices and central-bank decision-making.

Analysis

Latin America Caught Between Energy Shocks and a Fragmenting World

Brent crude surges on Strait of Hormuz tensions as the Fed holds rates steady. We analyse how energy shocks, a...

July 16, 2026

A supertanker navigating the narrow Strait of Hormuz, the focal point of an energy shock that has triggered fuel rationing across Asia and sent ripple effects to Latin American fuel markets.

Analysis

The Day Asia’s Floor Gave Way: How a Continental Crisis Reaches Latin America’s Shores

A Strait of Hormuz closure, India-Pakistan airstrikes and nuclear threats from North Korea are not just Asia's crisis. They signal...

July 15, 2026

An oil tanker navigating the narrow Strait of Hormuz, the global chokepoint whose security directly shapes fuel prices at a São Paulo petrol station.

Analysis

How Chokepoint Chaos From Hormuz to Asia Raises Prices in Latin America

Brent crude near US$79 on fresh Hormuz strikes is not a distant story. For Latin America, it means fuel inflation,...

July 13, 2026

Brazil's Supreme Federal Court in Brasília, where a coup-plot conviction now echoes cases unfolding in Seoul and Washington.

Analysis

Democracy on Trial: How Seoul, Washington and Brasília Are Fighting the Same Battle

South Korea jails a martial-law aide, the US guts its election board and Brazil keeps an ex-president jailed - a...

July 11, 2026