{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/d556eb54-6160-4c85-95f4-47d9f5216c49/6790caf622302f87e183023e?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"A tax or attacks: how the Houthis fund themselves","thumbnail_width":200,"thumbnail_height":200,"thumbnail_url":"https://open-images.acast.com/shows/62e286a934d4d93d6587424a/1737542231656-7b999166-26dc-4b8c-81e8-5482de865394.jpeg?height=200","description":"<p>The procedure is simple—genial, even. Contact Houthi rebels in Yemen and pay up, and your freight can pass into the Red Sea unmolested. We examine how this extortion <a href=\"https://www.economist.com/interactive/international/2025/01/18/inside-the-houthis-moneymaking-machine?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">affects world trade</a>. China is fast <a href=\"https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/09/19/chinas-ai-firms-are-cleverly-innovating-around-chip-bans?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">closing its gap</a> with America on AI innovation, and doing so far more cheaply (7:22). And a trip to a Ghanaian rum distillery reveals <a href=\"https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/01/16/west-african-booze-is-becoming-a-luxury-product?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">a regional trend</a> (15:44).&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href=\"https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href=\"https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p>","author_name":"The Economist"}