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Brics

Brics
Brics (an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) refers to an association of 10 leading emerging markets. The other member states are Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
Vessels transit the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran on Monday. Photo: AFP
India

Can India and China rally Brics to ease Strait of Hormuz tensions?

Analysts say a unified Brics could support Oman-led talks for a resolution and provide an alternative to US diplomacy.

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China-Latin America relations

Brazil turns to China trade deal after Trump tariffs, as years of resistance end

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China-Latin America relations

China vows to defend Brazil’s sovereignty as Trump’s 25% tariff bites

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Diplomacy

Opinion | What the Iran war has revealed about Brics+

Those arguing that the conflict has exposed the grouping as a failure misunderstand its role.

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Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (second left) speaks during a plenary session of the Brics summit in Rio de Janeiro on July 7, 2025. Photo: AFP
Diplomacy

Opinion | How Asia can benefit from a Russia-India-China dialogue revival

Far from acting as another bloc, such a grouping could help ensure that regional competition is managed rather than reproduced.

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Diplomacy

Outside In | Xi-Trump summit aside, 2 meetings in Asia matter for global trade

As Trump travelled to Beijing for the kind of bilateral dealmaking he prefers, two groups have continued their multilateral efforts.

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Trade

Opinion | Brics is less a structure than a sentiment

Despite lacking geopolitical alignment, Brics captures a prevailing mood among emerging economies that won’t fade away any time soon.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (left) and President Xi Jinping attend the 2023 Brics Summit at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 24, 2023. Photo: AFP
India

Iran’s ‘anti-American’ rhetoric tests India’s balancing act at Brics meeting

Foreign Minister Araghchi seeks the bloc’s backing against US pressure in New Delhi, but India likely to prioritise de-escalation and trade.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Just because Brics isn’t a coherent bloc doesn’t mean it’s impotent

The grouping has a future, not as a binding structure demanding policy alignment but as a tool for members to enhance leverage and maximise options.

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US, Israel war on Iran

Iran war tests India’s Brics leadership as ‘political relevance’ questions mount

With Brics members Iran and the UAE as belligerents, the bloc has failed to reach a common position on the Middle East conflict.

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India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi chats with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva during the 2025 Brics summit in Rio de Janeiro last July. Photo: AP
Banking & finance

Brics to push for intra-currency payments as ‘immunity’ against Western clout

New Delhi has to be wary of any move to challenge the US dollar as it seeks to sign an interim trade deal with Washington, analysts say.

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Leaders from Brics member and partner countries gather in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 7, 2025. Photo: Xinhua
China-India relations

Opinion | India’s reopening to Chinese investment reflects strategic pragmatism

Concerns about signalling weakness misread India’s careful policy design. Foreign investment rules have not been abolished, only recalibrated.

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Hong Kong economy

Opinion | Hong Kong can play vital part in boosting crucial China-India relations

India is a vibrant, emerging and complex power with much to offer the city and China as a whole.

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US, Israel war on Iran

Why has the US-Israeli war on Iran left Brics speechless?

As Tehran retaliates against its Gulf neighbours, the newly expanded bloc built for trade is discovering the limits of its own unity.

A plume of black smoke rises from the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday last week following a suspected Iranian strike. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

Open Questions | Iran war’s impact on China limited, scholar Pan Guang says

China’s Middle East position ‘relatively favourable’, professor says, and regional spillover from US-Israeli attacks likely to be limited to Tehran’s Shia militia allies.

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Illustration: Victor Sanjinez
Currencies

Why Brics can’t do away with US dollar even as currency cooperation rises

Brazil says there has been no proposal or talks within Brics to create a common currency across the bloc.

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India

India and Brazil set sights on US$30 billion trade milestone by 2030

The two founding Brics members are deepening links on rare earths, innovation and AI to diversify growth beyond the West.

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Africa

African Union: youth anger mounts over corruption, lack of accountability

Africa has the youngest population in the world, with more than 400 million people aged 15 to 35 years old – set to double by 2050.

A general view of flags of African Union member states inside the African Union Headquarters ahead of the opening of the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union, at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Saturday. Photo: AFP
China-India relations

China and India seek reset in talks, but old fault lines remain

Beijing stresses partnership and multilateralism; New Delhi underscores border stability, caution and gradual steps after years of strain.

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US-China relations

Trump’s ‘vacillating’ China policy causing confidence crisis in allies: report

‘Sweeping destruction – rather than careful reforms and policy corrections – is the order of the day’, Munich Security Report 2026 says.

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India

India’s trade blitz seeks to keep afloat a sinking global order

‘Jolted out of its slumber’ by US tariffs, New Delhi is aggressively diversifying trade alliances to act as a bridge in a polarised world.

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (centre) with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (right) and European Council President Antonio Costa at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on January 27. Photo: European Council/dpa
India

Opinion | Why the new US-India trade agreement is a big deal

The warming of New Delhi’s ties with Washington has implications for Russia, China and the global dynamics of trade and geopolitical power.

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US President Donald Trump meets Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House in Washington on February 13, 2025. Photo: Reuters
Banking & finance

Opinion | Central banks are propelling a 21st century global gold rush

The world must choose between believing in the authority of central banks to decide the worth of fiat currencies or trusting in gold as a store of value.

Indonesia

‘Resilience’ is Indonesia’s new foreign policy buzzword, but is it just rhetoric?

Analysts warn the vague concept lacks a long-term strategy and risks Jakarta drifting from its non-aligned values into transactional deals.

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Mainland China

Did China, Russia, Iran joint naval drills in South Africa signal a Brics shift?

Observers describe high-profile exercise involving economic grouping as largely symbolic rather than step towards military alliance.

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South African and Chinese flags fly aboard the Chinese guided-missile destroyer Tangshan, moored at port in Cape Town for joint naval drills involving Brics members, on January 10. Photo: AFP
Diplomacy

Testing the waters: is Brics evolving into a security alliance?

The first naval exercises under the ‘Brics plus’ banner saw Brazil, Egypt, China, Russia and South Africa take part. India did not.

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A Russian corvette ship is seen near Cape Town, South Africa, on January 9. The Will For Peace exercise brings together navies from Brics-plus countries. Photo: AFP
SCO

Could the Iran crisis push Global South blocs to deepen security ties?

A lack of response from the SCO and Brics could have a negative impact on the groups – but the crisis could also bring them closer.

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China’s military drills

China to lead joint naval drills with Brics nations in South African waters

It is the first defence cooperation under the Brics framework, with the Russian and Iranian navies reportedly taking part.

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