THE ESPACIO LEJANO STATION

In a recent report, Helsinki-based NATO-affiliated group Hybrid CoE details the commercialization of Beijing’s space sector. China’s rapid development of satellite technologies prioritizes what is known as the “military-civil fusion” model—the development of dual-use technology that can support both military and economic expansion.

In a 2023 report, SAMANTHA LU, BRIANA BOLAND, and LILY MCELWEE investigate Chinese commercial and state-backed investments in Argentina’s space sector:

“China currently has three deep space ground stations: two within China (in Kashgar and Jiamusi) and one abroad (in Neuquén Province, Argentina). The Espacio Lejano Station thus fills a temporal gap in China’s global coverage. Adding a ground station on the other side of the globe allows China to improve the frequency of communication with its satellites. Since ground stations most easily communicate with satellites when they pass overhead, the additional deep space ground station in Neuquén gives China more continued access to them. Notably, ground stations can also gather information from other satellites that pass overhead, not just Chinese ones. Thus, more deep space ground stations allow for faster and more frequent gathering of data, which can help China understand the behavior of other countries’ satellites. The Espacio Lejano Station reveals two observations about the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) position in the CCP Inc. ecosystem. The station agreement and its construction were facilitated by Chinese officials, state owned construction firms, and a PLA-linked organization (CLTC) that now runs the station. Through one lens, this could be seen as a case study of how the PLA rallied other parts of the CCP Inc. ecosystem to advance China’s military interests abroad. At the same time, throughout the process, these military ties featured as key reasons for pushback against the Espacio Lejano Station and setbacks to Chinese investments in Argentina’s space sector.”

+  “Repaying Argentina’s debt to the IMF depends on continued exports to China, which is pressing Milei to confirm that his administration will maintain Chinese interest in Argentina.” In PW, Maria Haro Sly on how China functions as an investor, trading partner, and creditor to debt-strapped Argentina. Link. And see Rodolfo Chisleanschi on Chinese investments in Argentina’s conflictive hydroelectric projects. Link.

+  “US firms already provide commercial Space Situational Awareness services from various international locations. Chinese start-ups may follow suit.” By Matthew P. Funaiole, Dana Kim, Brian Hart, and Joseph S. Bermudez. Link. And for more on the commercialization of space, see Matthew Weinzierl. Link.

+  “The term ‘hybrid threats’ has proliferated in recent years throughout Euro-Atlantic security strategy documents in particular. The European Countering Hybrid Threats Centre of Excellence was launched in Helsinki in 2017.” By Sean Monaghan. Link. And see a RAND Corporation report on the PLA’s operational concepts regarding modern warfare. Link.

NEW RESEARCHERS

Bank Antitrust Regulations

RENPING LI a PhD Candidate in Finance at Washington University in St. Louis. In a 2024 paper, he measures the effects of investment bank consolidation on municipal finance.

From the abstract:

“Antitrust regulations in banking have historically targeted deposit-taking and lending activities. Does the consolidation of investment banks have anti-competitive effects? Using the geographically fragmented municipal bond underwriting market as a natural laboratory and employing a stacked difference-in-differences specification, I find that the underwriting spread increases by 4.8 percent relative to the sample mean following within-market M&As. The effects double for larger M&As or in more concentrated markets and do not dissipate over time. These M&As do not yield efficiency gains that benefit issuers. The findings remain robust when examining M&As less likely to be subject to endogeneity concerns and are absent in placebo tests of cross-market M&As, commercial bank M&As, or withdrawn M&As. Further, census data confirm that investment bank consolidation raises financing costs and suggest a reduction in new issuance. My findings offer a novel perspective on bank antitrust regulations, which are currently in the spotlight for revision and modernization.”

+++

+  “The IMF succeeded in extracting obligations from Sri Lanka’s weak negotiating position before its own political process could reflect public opinion.” New on PW, Ahilan Kadirgamar, Shafiya Rafaithu, and Yathursha Ulakentheran on Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s historic victory in Sri Lanka. Link.

+  “Prolonged economic downturns, civil unrest, and sharp increases in poverty are the norm among IMF borrowers. The IMF’s climate policy cannot be separated from this track record.” Also new on PW, Lara Merling on the IMF’s role in the global energy transition. Link.

+  “The TN government’s actions appear to echo the management position, sidestepping any tripartite resolution so central to industrial relations in India.” Rohan Dominic Mathews on the Samsung India Workers’ Union 37-day strike in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Link. 

+  “To lock middle-income countries out of global value chains with protectionist measures is to deny firms and industries in those countries the benefits of learning-by-doing spillovers.” The World Development Report 2024 on the limitations of investment-driven strategies for lower-middle-income countries. Link.

+  Caroline Freund, Aaditya Mattoo, Alen Mulabdic, and Michele Ruta explore whether US trade policy interventions have significantly influenced the reshuffling of global supply chains or the US dependence on imports from China. Link. And for the Polycrisis, see Tim Sahay and Kate Mackenzie on increasing bilateral trade despite rising trade restrictions, and on the deepening bipartisan consensus on tariffs in Washington. Link, link.

+  “While the monetary architecture’s capacity to provide emergency elasticity from firefighter balance sheets to combat financial instability has increased since 1999, the capacity to manage the financing cycle’s final contraction is underdeveloped.” By Andrei Guter-Sandu, Armin Haas, and Steffen Murau. Link.

+  See the State Climate Policy Dashboard, an interactive state-by-state map of climate policy progress in the US. Link. And see The Big Green Machine’s interactive dashboard, tracking North American projects in wind, solar, battery, and electric vehicle industries since 2010. Link.

+  “Something about mining between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries announced a change with feudal mining. The word argentifodana, or silver mine, appeared in the text of a grant by Emperor Frederick I in A.D. 1189: cum omnis argentifodina ad jura pertinent imperii et inter regalia nostra sit computata. Decades earlier, in A.D. 1158, the word argentifodina appeared in a decree pertaining to imperial rights to mines, cum omnis argentifodina ad iura pertineat imperii et inter regalia nostra. The word was included in a statement by Frederick II in A.D. 1193: argenti fodinae et omnes venae metallorum. A bishop in Volterra claimed jurisdiction over argentifodina latentibus & apertis in A.D. 1217. The words argentifodina, argentifodinae, argentifodinis, argentifodio, and argentifodii were written in mining law enacted by Premsyl Ottakar I King of Bohemia in A.D. 1227. Thereafter, the word appeared in the Chart of Jihlava or Iglau in A.D. 1247 and 1249 and Bohemia’s mining law of A.D. 1300.” By Jeannette Graulau. Link.

Each week we highlight research from a graduate student, postdoc, or early-career professor. Send us recommendations: editorial@jainfamilyinstitute.org