What next? | Bridging political fault-lines

Loading player...
Gillian Tett and Professor Bob Eccles discuss how anti-ESG sentiment and political tensions, particularly stemming from USA, are reshaping climate policy, corporate behaviour, and markets. These two globally respected interpreters of political economy and corporate purpose examine what this means for global action, and how leaders can navigate the fragmented landscape.

00:00 - 12:30 Understanding the Pendulum: How We Arrived at Today’s Polarised Landscape
12:30 - 23:30 The Political Realignment: ESG Backlash, Cultural Fractures & the New “Stakeholders”
23:30 - 37:00 What’s Happening on the Ground: The Reality of Corporate Adaptation
37:00 - end Pathways Forward: Language, Consensus-Building & the Leadership Mandate
Chapters
  • 00:00 Introduction
  • 02:00 How we arrived at today's polarised landscape
  • 12:30 ESG backlash, cultural fracture and new stakeholders
  • 23:30 The reality of corporate adaption
  • 37:00 Consensus building and the leadership mandate
11 Dec 2025 English South Africa Business · Investing

Other recent episodes

Macro Monday Ep124: AI capex and competition concerns weigh on stock markets

Increased competition among LLMs and uncertainty about the return on investment on AI capex are all weighing on the market performance on momentum stocks, such as semiconductor firms. Chris Holdsworth, Global Chief Investment Officer, Investec Investment Management, looks at some of the dynamics in global stock markets.
20 Jul 8 min

NOW Ep 131: South Africa’s consumer crunch

Are South African consumers past the worst of the fuel shock? Household budgets have been hit by higher fuel prices, rising inflation and pressure on real wages. But fuel prices are starting to fall. The risk is timing. Will relief arrive before households are forced to cut back further? Host…
14 Jul 24 min

Everything Counts | Episode 51: Managing global travel disruption

In this episode of Everything Counts, we unpack the real-world impact of geopolitical tension on global travel, from grounded flights and closed airspace to the human stories behind stranded passengers. What happens behind the scenes when airlines, advisors, and entire systems are forced to respond in real time? Host Motheo…
14 Jul 29 min

Macro Monday Ep123: Headwinds and tailwinds for global growth

Global GDP growth looks set to be around 3% this year, as the global economy deals with headwinds from a supply shock because of the war with Iran and tailwinds from artificial intelligence spending, says Chris Holdsworth, Chief Investment Strategist, at Investec Wealth & Investment International. While US and Chinese…
13 Jul 9 min

Macro Monday Ep122: Markets have a good first half of the year

Despite the war in the Gulf, the last six months have been good for global equities. While the US market’s performance has been in line with the overall global performance, the standout has been South Korea, which, says Chris Holdsworth, Chief Investment Strategist, at Investec Wealth & Investment International, has…
6 Jul 9 min