CONTRIBUTORS

Stephen Olson

Stephen Olson is a Visiting Senior Fellow at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and a Non-Resident Fellow and Visiting Lecturer at the Yeutter Institute of International Trade. Olson is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Futures Council on Trade and co-leads a joint workstream on geopolitics and trade. He began his career in Washington DC as a US trade negotiator.

Articles by Stephen Olson (19)

How Should Southeast Asia Respond to Carney’s Davos Clarion Call?

Stephen Olson

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney posited that the world order was not experiencing a “transition” but rather a “rupture” from the global system established in the aftermath of the Second World War. For Southeast Asia, and its primary institutional forum – ASEAN – this means recognising that some of its most cherished principles might no longer be entirely valid and reassessing traditional assumptions about regional cohesion and commonality of interests.

A Very Stable Summit: Southeast Asia’s Best Hope for the Trump-Xi Meeting

Stephen Olson

The US and China will prioritise stability amid internal economic pressures and global volatility — presenting more opportunity for Southeast Asia to diversify trade and investment beyond the superpowers.

A room in the O’Smach Casino used for scam operations is raided by authorities in Oddar Meanchey, Cambodia, on 12 March 2026. (Photo by GETTY IMAGES / GETTY IMAGES ASIAPAC / Getty Images via AFP)

Cyberfraud in Southeast Asia: A New Battleground for the US and China?

Stephen Olson

China and the US have reasons to work together to tackle the scourge of cyberfraud in Southeast Asia. The problem, however, is that their geopolitical rivalry gets in the way.

Iran War Holds Trade Implications for Southeast Asia

Stephen Olson

The economic fallout of the war, coupled with Trump’s self-preservation instincts, could induce a partial climbdown on tariffs—but Section 301 and other tariffs are under way and might endure.

The Supreme Court and Trump’s Tariffs: Restrained or Resurgent?

Stephen Olson

Fulcrum editor Lee Hwok-Aun speaks with Stephen Olson, Visiting Senior Fellow at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, on the implications of the US Supreme Court declaring Trump’s IEEPA-based tariffs illegal.