Middle powers are running the most coherent industrial strategies
Constraint, not ambition, is producing sharper prioritisation than in the largest economies.
Geopolitics DeskPublished yesterday
Large economies can afford to pursue every strategic sector simultaneously, and generally do. Middle powers cannot, and the resulting discipline is producing better outcomes per unit of subsidy.
The pattern among the more successful — a small number of sectors, chosen for existing comparative advantage, supported for a decade rather than an electoral cycle — is not novel. It is simply rarely followed.
For multinationals, the implication is that the most stable industrial policy environments are no longer the largest markets.
Drafted with AI assistance and reviewed by the Leaders & Impact editorial desk. Sourcing and factual assertion remain human-owned.