IN THE MARKETS: “Islamic Banking Moves Into Singapore: City-State Stakes Claim in Growing Sector; DBS, Mideast Investors Capitalize New Firm,” by Patricia Kowsmann and Karen Lane, Wall Street Journal, 8 May 2007, p. C7.

When big international banks start moving assets into micro-lending, then it becomes interesting. Give the Nobel to Grameen, but give the momentum to a Citibank, because then the niche becomes the mainstream. Singapore becoming a nascent hub for Islamic banking is a big deal. Singapore is the natural flow-through point for all foreign direct investment, so its only natural it will become the big flow-through for Islamic banking that links the Mideast’s oil surplus to Asia’s infrastructure boom, while simultaneously linking Asian finance to the GCC’s internal investment boom. In short, the East-East ties are growing, and Islam--to the surprise only of the economic know-nothings--is proving to be an answer, not solely the problem. Soon enough, Islamic “values” will prove no more difficult for capitalism to mold in its image than Asian “values” were. Inconceivable until time makes it inevitable. Marx was right about capitalism. In the end, every wall falls to this tidal wave we now call globalization.