Dairy Price Surge Hits UN Food Price Index

A sharp surge in the price of dairy products pushed the overall costs of food one percentage point higher in March, the United Nations reported today, while world wheat production remained on track to reach its second highest level ever,

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The IMF on Low Income Country Bounce Backs

Low-income countries have bounced back in the past two decades. Analysis in the International Monetary Fund’s latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) suggests that dynamic low-income countries are on a stronger economic footing today than before the 1990s, and therefore better

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IDB Approves US$ 617 Million in Development Funding

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) recently approved US$ 617 million towards funding development projects including  important projects in the areas of education (US$ 174 million for Indonesia), electricity (US$ 319.6 million for Iran, Uganda and Bangladesh), agriculture (US$ 80 million

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China: The Big Spenders

Thanks to rapid urbanization and rising disposable incomes in their country, Chinese tourists spent $102 billion during their travels in 2012, more than any other nationality, making the Asian nation the world’s number one tourism source market, the United Nations

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IMF Statement on Cyprus

Statement on Cyprus by Olli Rehn, European Commission Vice-President and Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund. The Cypriot authorities have put forward a multi-annual reform programme to address the economic challenges facing the country. Its goals are

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WTO: China’s Role in Global Economic Governance

By WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy Extracts from his Speech delivered at the China Development Forum in Beijing, 24 March 2013 Few could possibly disagree that China’s economic performance since 1979 has been miraculous. A poor and inward-looking economy with a

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UNCTAD on Emerging Markets FDI Trends

Foreign direct investment (FDI) going into and out of the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – collectively known as BRICS – is mounting in global influence, according to a United Nations report released on March

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Arab Countries In Transition: Where are they Heading?

By Masood Ahmed Director of the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia Department “You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.­” — Egyptian Nobel Prize–winning author

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Pinpointing the Value in CSR

By Thomas Lys, James Naughton and Clare Wang The Unexpected Link between CSR Spending and Financial Performance Proponents of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives tend to justify their position by arguing that these expenditures improve a company’s economic performance―allowing it

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Financial Stability in the European Union: IMF Assessment

In its first ever European Union-wide assessment of the soundness and stability of the financial sector, the International Monetary Fund this month pointed to the need to step up regional efforts to manage financial crises and risks to keep the

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