The BRICS Expansion Is A New World Order Of Strategic Multialignment

When Goldman Sachs Chief Economist Jim O’Neill coined the term BRICs in 2001 to describe the future growth economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China as consequential new actors on the global stage, he captured the early mood of that era: the rise of those countries was just beginning, and the emerging world was on the move.

The BRIC nations embraced the term, invited South Africa to join them in 2010 (hence, the BRICS with a capital “S”), kicked off a round of summits over the next decade and the world seemed ready to be shaken by this acronym of new powers. Then reality kicked in. The 2010s were not as good for the BRICS. China saw its world-beating growth temper and, according to a BRICS Investment Report published by the United Nations this year, only South Africa saw FDI inflows grow robustly in this period.