Podcasts · The Intelligence from The Economist
Pump and circumstance: is China the new OPEC?
· 20 min
Episode Pump and circumstance: is China the new OPEC?
The Iran war triggered the largest supply shock in the history of petroleum, yet prices never rose as high as feared. Our correspondent explains how action taken by China steadied global oil flows. Why Brazil has such strict laws on racist language. And the legendary lager of Laos.
Guests and host:
• Matthieu Favas, commodities editor • Ana Lankes, Brazil bureau chief • Vishnu Padmanabhan, Asia correspondent • Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence” • Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Topics covered:
• China, Iran, oil supplies, OPEC, crude • Brazil, hate speech, racism • Laos, Beerlao, beer, lager
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Links in the notes 5
- https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2026/08/09/china-is-now-the-worlds-great-oil-power?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners
- https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2026/07/27/brazil-has-the-worlds-strictest-laws-against-racist-speech?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners
- https://www.economist.com/asia/2026/07/30/beerlao-probably-the-most-important-lager-in-the-world?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners
- https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus
- https://acast.com/privacy
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