America

Central bank-backed instant payment systems have rapidly brought millions of unbanked residents across Latin America into the formal financial system, with small businesses among the fastest adopters.

Canada’s push to expand critical mineral mining for batteries faces its usual obstacle: permitting timelines that can stretch a decade, even as global demand for these minerals accelerates.

Brazil has become one of the world’s fastest adopters of genetically modified crops, crediting the technology for its agricultural export growth even as land-use and environmental concerns remain unresolved.

Nearshoring has turned several Mexican states into fast-growing manufacturing hubs, and the pace of investment is now outstripping available electricity and water infrastructure in the most in-demand regions.

New semiconductor and battery plants funded by industrial policy are beginning production, with mixed early results — and a skilled workforce shortage proving just as hard to solve as the construction itself.