Pump and circumstance: is China the new OPEC?

<p>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 <a href="economist.com/finance-and-economics/2026/08/09…; rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">taken by China</a> steadied global oil flows. Why Brazil has such strict laws on <a href="economist.com/the-americas/2026/07/27/brazil-h…; rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">racist language</a>. And the legendary <a href="economist.com/asia/2026/07/30/beerlao-probably…; rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lager of Laos</a>. </p><br><p>Guests and host:</p><p><br></p><ul><li>Matthieu Favas, commodities editor</li><li>Ana Lankes, Brazil bureau chief</li><li>Vishnu Padmanabhan, Asia correspondent </li><li>Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”</li><li>Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”</li></ul><p><br></p><p>Topics covered: </p><p><br></p><ul><li>China, Iran, oil supplies, OPEC, crude</li><li>Brazil, hate speech, racism</li><li>Laos, Beerlao, beer, lager</li></ul><p><br></p><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus"; rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to The Economist</em></a><em>.</em></p><p><br></p>

<hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a>; for more information.</p>