As the US presidential elections draw closer, at Monocle we’ve been turning our attention to who we’d like to see in the Cabinet. From CEOs to hip hop moguls, we’ve found a team who could change America’s image around the world.

Founded 32 years ago, Nigerian capital Abuja was a utopian dream. But it became marred by corruption and few could afford to live there. Today, as the cranes return, its new minister is attempting to forge a truly African city.

During the conflict in South Ossetia, western media were given free access by the Georgian government, while on the Russian side, foreign journalists were being either arrested or herded around by the military. In both cases, however, the true picture of what was happening was hard to come by. Monocle’s correspondents reported from both sides, and have revealed the maze of misinformation and media management.

This month in our series on emerging business hubs, we visit Kansas City, Missouri, where big companies and small start-ups are investing in America’s heartland. Meanwhile the region’s low prices are also luring in new residents. But if the city really wants to rebrand itself, some of those small-town attitudes need to be addressed.

Spanish shipbuilders have seen out the storms and now, thanks to booming global demand, their order books are full. But as the yards launch ships for the Australian navy and the world’s biggest dredgers, could the tide turn again?

A London October used to be known for falling leaves, drizzle and an uneventful art sales calendar. Auction house Sotheby’s saved its strength – and its best lots – for New York’s crucial sales in November. But then, in 2003, Frieze arrived.

Four young countries hold autumn elections, Finland's celebrity priests cause consternation, and Italy's drivers have a death wish.

The Brazilian president's choice of transport, crimefighting in El Salvador and why brows are furrowed over a new three-wheeler in the US.

China's negative image and we scrutinise the stuffy wardrobe of its president, Hu Jintao.

A postcard from Mauritania, which has just had its fifth coup since the 1970s; the rise of Lebanon's Green Party and boar-hunting, Algerian style.

Australia tackles tax evasion on Vanuatu, New Zealand uses music to fight antisocial behaviour and the tiny state of Timor-Leste gets its own airline.

Iraq's military shopping list, Israel's luxury blowholes, plus a global army update.

Can fair-trade Colombian coffee chain Juan Valdez slay Starbucks? Plus Sydney's push to become a global financial hub, and Cartier bedazzles India.

The world's highest hotel opens in Shanghai, a Q&A with Priya Paul of India's Park Hotels, plus essential Lisbon addresses.

Film: Beat the encroaching winter blues with our international film-festival round-up Books: China's internal migrants, displaced Metro announcers and a sideways glance at the art of presidential races Art: Jeremy Deller is handed a curatorial carte blanche in Paris, and Toronto caters for wanderlust-stricken art-lovers Music: Offerings from ambient's elder statesman and London-fixated Balearica collections go under the knife.

A flick through the paperbacks on the shelves of Lahore's oldest bookshop.

Hip-hop's money folders sell their rocks in New York and modern art titans get hammered in Japan.

Briefing: A Danish bag designer goes back to school, a pair of Japanese brothers fall in love with Bolivia, and a Swedish and an American shoe company cosy up for a collaboration.

A Danish bag designer goes back to school, a pair of Japanese brothers fall in love with Bolivia, and a Swedish and an American shoe company cosy up for a collaboration.

To round off our series on the foreign media’s coverage of the US presidential campaigns, we talk to Armando Guzmán of Mexico’s TV Azteca about crossed wires and counter immigration.

Unlike many other Russian dissidents, veteran broadcaster Irena Lesnevskaya has never considered emigration and, as editor-in-chief since 2007 of opposition weekly news magazine The New Times, has dared to speak out against Kremlin corruption.

From fashion through to toys, outsourced production lines are closing down and the spotlight is being placed firmly back on local industries and economies. As well as the individual benefits companies stand to gain from bringing manufacturing back to their own countries, the wider implication is that not every western nation has to be a service economy.

It owns 70 stores, supplies countless more, and runs a hotel and a restaurant. But the family behind the quirky, creative Spanish shoe brand Camper is still committed to its native roots and long tradition of quality.

New guide books from Le Cool, retro Portuguese soaps, elegant Japanese disposable plates, Swiss wooden toys, plus a special round-up of chewing gum brands from around the world.

In the second of a monthly series of international street profiles, we hotfoot it to Carrer del Rec, in Barcelona’s El Born district, for mid-century furniture, cocktails and the best burgers in town.

In 1997, four former DJs and vinyl enthusiasts managed to get hold of a record pressing machine. Today, small independent studios and big record companies alike are queueing up for Vinylium’s services.

Toss the MP3 player and turn your living room into a sonorific salon with the following hardware.

Montserrat, the original heart of Buenos Aires, blends architectural elegance with the bustle of a small town where the shopkeepers know your name. Close to the centre but far from the tourist crush, it’s ideal for a pied-à-terre in one of the world’s most vibrant capitals.

As president of the International Tennis Federation, Francesco Ricci Bitti spends much of his time travelling, courting oligarchs to invest in tennis. Wherever he pitches up, however, he opts for simple fare such as that found at Parisian trattoria Convivium, where he goes for his imaginary "last meal".

The American Forces Network has the largest geographical coverage of any media network in the world. Its 1,100 staff serve 800,000 overseas troops in even the remotest locations with a mix of entertainment, film, sport and homemade news and advertisements. capitals.