You are at: Home > News and Analysis > Page 3 > Page 4 of 83 Posted: 22-26 Jun 09 M Ayhan Kose & E Prasad: Financial markets & emerging econo- mies -- The decoupling debate is back: But what on Earth does it really mean? As the global financial crisis persists, some believe that emerging markets have become less reliant on advanced econ- omies. IMF senior economist and Cornell U prof-Brookings senior fellow examine aspects of the decoupling hypothesis to see what they indicate for the future of the world economy, Foreign Policy Mag, Jun '09 Coffers: Are frontier markets the 'new' emerging markets?--In '88, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index was launched, and it has since beome one of the most widely used emerging markets benchmarks for institutional and retail funds worldwide. The index has evolved, w/ the inclusion of nations as they opened up their capital markets to intl investors. While it initially consisted of 8 nations (Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Jordan, Malaysia,Thailand & Philippines), it now comprises 25, MSCI Barra, 17 Sep 08 [pdf] Agriculture more resilient to global crisis than other sectors, report says: Because food is a basic necessity, the agri sector is showing more resilience to the global econ crisis than other industries, acc to a new report. But the risks could increase if the econ downturn deepens, OECD-FAO, 17 Jun 09 (Exec sum [pdf] | Global Forum on Agri) Global foreign direct investment flows halve in 1st quarter, report says: Global foreign direct invest. (FDI) inflows and cross-border mergers and acquisitions - the main mode of FDI - drastically de- clined in the last qtr of '08,and the fall has continued into '09. Pros- pects for FDI will remain gloomy for the rest of '09,say staff econ- omists, Unctad, 24 Jun 09 Still the bottom billion: In an interview, Oxford economist Paul Collier talks about how to help low-income countries during the current crisis, Finance & Development, Jun '09 Playing field: Iran bans election protest footballers--Their gesture attracted worldwide comment and drew the attention of football fans to Iran's political turmoil. Now the nation's authorities have taken revenge by imposing life bans on players who sported green wristbands in a recent World Cup match in protest vs Ahmadine- jad's disputed re-election, Guardian/UK, 23 Jun 09 Edward Glaeser: Clean water first--Econ planning in India: Why do govts that cannot manage the basics of public hygiene think that they can micro-manage an economy? I have a moderate, and only somewhat facetious, libertarian progressive proposal. Unless a govt manages to provide clean water to its poorest citizens, it should refrain from any new barrier to intl trade, complex nationalization scheme or draconian zoning laws, says Harvard economist, New York Times, 2 Jun 09 Michael Spence: Catching a glimpse of the 'new economic normal' -- What can we expect as the world economy emerges from its most serious downturn in almost a century? The current crisis has come to be called a 'balance-sheet recession' of global scope, tre- mendous depth, and destructive power because of its origins in the balance sheets of the financial and household sectors. Extreme bal- ance sheet destruction is what made it distinctive, says Nobel laure- ate '01, Proj Syndicate (courtesy Taipei Times), 24 Jun 09 Joseph Stiglitz: Wall Street and the Third World -- Every crisis comes to an end - & bleak as things seem now, the current one too shall pass. But no crisis, esp one of this severity, recedes w/o leav- ing a legacy. When this one is over, the reputation of US-style cap- italism will have taken a beating - not least because of the gap bet. what Washington practices & what it preaches. Disillusioned devel- oping nations may well turn their backs on the free market, warns Nobel laureate '01, posing new threats to global stability and US security, Vanity Fair, July '09 High-level officials to convene at UN to tackle global economic crisis: A major high-level UN gathering aimed at tackling the global downturn and its effects on the developing world is set to kick off on Wed (24 Jun) at its headquarters in NY, UN News, 23 Jun 09 (UN conf on financ and econ crisis and its impact on development) Charting a global recovery from the financial crisis: A new analysis of the world economy paints an unprecedented picture - global out- put falling by 2.9% & world trade by nearly 10%, accompanied by plummeting private capital flows, acc to the latest annual Global Development Finance.GDP growth in developing nations is expect- ed to slow sharply from 5.9% in '08 to 1.2% in '09. But next year, global GDP growth is expected to rebound to 2%, with developing nations growth expected to be at 4.4%, World Bank, 22 June 09 Cost of living in Asia becomes more expensive as Europe, America bear brunt of recession: Luanda, Angola is the most expensive city in a twice-yearly cost of living survey. Tokyo is no.2, followed by Nagoya, Yokohama and Kobe. Copenhagen is no.6, w/ Oslo, Gen- eva, Zurich & Basel in the top 10.Strong currencies are pushing up the cost of living in these locations. Maseru, Lesotho is the cheap- est. The survey compares a basket of 125 consumer goods & ser- vices commonly purchased by intl assignees in over 370 locations worldwide, ECA Intl, 10 June 09 Posted: 15-19 Jun 09 Elizabeth Ferris: Pakistani displacement -- Lessons learned from other situations: One of my colleagues jokes that it makes for eas- ier headline-writing: 'refugees flee Swat' is easier to fit into a head- line banner than 'internally displaced persons flee Swat.' But intern- ally displaced persons are not refugees. They are citizens of their countries, says proj co-dir, Brookings-U Bern Project, 11 Jun 09 (UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador's appeal | Behind the headlines) Economic crisis in the West creates opportunity for emerging mar- kets: The financial crisis may create a huge opportunity for emerg- ing markets such as India, says special advisor to India's PM & fin prof. For many years to come, industrial nations will be hampered by slow demand growth due to the crisis. As the world rebalances, demand will have to shift to emerging markets.There will be a huge need for services, marketing, research & development in emerging markets, U Chicago, 16 May 09 Mouse & wo/man: Iran clamps down on Twitter in attempt to control images of election protests--The Web became more impor- tant after the govt barred foreign media from leaving their offices to cover Tehran's street protests. Blogs & Web sites incl Facebook and Twitter have been vital conduits for Iranians to inform the world about the election protests, Telegraph/UK, 17 Jun 09 (paid- Content.org--Twitter serves as lifeline for Iranians) Nations eye stable reserve system: The world's newest econ group has ended its 1st summit by calling for a more diversified intl mon- etary system.But the final statement issued by the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) made no reference to developing new reserve currencies to challenge the dollar. They also reiterated calls for greater representation at major institutions, such as the IMF & World Bank, BBC News, 16 Jun 09 (Summit info) Brazil joins Russia, China in eyeing IMF bonds: Brazil is looking to buy $10B in IMF bonds, joining China and Russia in seeking to use the new instruments to diversify dollar-heavy currency re- serves. The bonds, which have yet to be issued, will be denomin- ated in special drawing rights (SDR), a 'basket' of major currencies used by the IMF, AP (courtesy Taiwan News), 11 Jun 09 (IMF chief welcomes intention to invest by Russia | China | Brazil); and Eswar Prasad: IMF bonds--Structure and implications: With the announcement of Russis, China, and Brazil of plans to invest in these bonds, Cornell U economist/fmr IMF division chief discusses how the bonds might be structured, and its implications for the US and world economy, Brookings Inst, 4 May 09 Big four emerging economies meet for first summit: Leaders from emerging giants Brazil, Russia, India and China are set to meet for the 1st summit of their informal BRIC grouping in a show of unity in the face of a sharp global slowdown.They meet in Yekaterinburg in Russia's Ural Mountains, Ag. France-Presse (courtesy Jakarta Globe), 16 Jun 09 (RFE/RL--Growing economic clout | Deutsche Welle--Latest shift in world order) E Berglof, A Plekhanov & A Rousso: A tale of two crises--The re- versal of fortune is striking. Just before the global crisis hit it with full force in late '08, Russia looked invincible. Nearly 10 years of impressive econ performance, prudent macroecon management, fiscal & current account surpluses, the 3rd-largest forex reserves in the world, & a growing middle class were just some of its achieve- ments. But now the picture has changed dramatically. Where have we heard this story before?, ask chief economist, analyst and dir at Eur. Bank Reconst. Dev, Finance & Dev, Jun-Aug '09 [pdf] Dani Rodrik: The bumpy road ahead--If the stock market and in- terest-rate spreads are to be believed, the US economy has seen the worst and may be on its way to a slow recovery. But the troub- les for the world economy are just starting, says Harvard econo- mist, Proj Syndicate (courtesy Korea Times), 14 Jun 09 Downturn has increased emerging market opportunities for global retailers, study says: Emerging markets continue to represent at- tractive investment opportunities for global retailers and the down- turn has made entry to these markets more relevant, acc to the latest annual Global Retail Development Index, a study of retail investment attractiveness among 30 nations. India is the most at- tractive for investment, followed by Russia, China, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, AT Kearney, Jun �09 (Rankings) Understanding Iran -- Guidelines for opening a dialogue: Iran re- mains among the most poorly understood nations in the world. While Ahmadinejad grabs the headlines, it is Ayatollah Khamenei who is its most powerful figure, acc to a new report on its politics, strategy, econ policy & diplomacy. And understanding its oil econ- omy is critical to gauging the regime's stability. Its oil exports make up 35% of the nation's output; however, this reliance on a natural resource hinders growth in the rest of the economy. Its citizenry, esp the middle class, is hit hard through fuel rationing, electricity blackouts and high inflation, all of which have provoked a backlash vs Ahmadinejad, Rand, 8 Jan 09 Posted: 8-12 Jun 09 As global slump is set to continue, poor countries need more help: The world economy is set to contract this year by more than prev- iously estimated, & poor nation will continue to be hit hard by mul- tiple waves of econ stress, says Bank pres. Acc to the latest Bank estimates, the global economy will decline this year by close to 3%, significantly more than its previous estimate of 1.7%, World Bank, 11 Jun 09 As financial leaders meet, low levels of capital flows seen for emerging markets in '09, but upswing in '10: A new report from a group of 370 fin services firms worldwide says there will be a dra- matic decline in capital flows to emerging markets in '09 to less than half that of '08. Yet, a modest revival of flows is starting to appear. It also noted that govts are taking measures that are leading to the global financ system's fragmentation, which could increase costs to consumers & biz and raise barriers to global capital and li- quidity flows, Inst Intl Finance, 10 Jun 09 (incl link to: Capital flows to emerging economies) Step aside, Sartre: this is the new face of French intellectualism-- Everyone knows what a world-renowned French intellectual looks like. He has a squint, smokes cigarettes and haunts the caf�s of the Paris Left Bank. Wrong. The new face is a brisk 36-yr-old woman with the pleasant but no-nonsense look of a primary school teach- er. She is Esther Duflo, a 'development economist', the youngest woman ever to be asked to lecture at the Coll�ge de France, the Everest of Fr. intellectual life. Her talk was the hottest (free) ticket. Why is she attracting such attention?, Independent/ UK, 13 Jan 09 Consulting group releases report addressing solutions to global pov- erty: An advisory group has released 'Emerging Markets, Emerg- ing Models', which explores 'market-based solutions' - financially sustainable & scalable enterprises that serve the poor as customers or engage them as suppliers, based on field research in India and 19 other nations, Monitor Group, 26 Mar 09 (Exec sum [pdf]) Steven Pearlstein: An economist, an academic puzzle and a lot of promise -- Early in his career, Paul Romer helped solve one of the great puzzles of economics: What makes some economies grow faster than others? His 'new growth theory' might one day earn him a Nobel prize. Then a decade ago, by then a Stanford prof, he decided to tackle what may be an even tougher puzzle: Why were many of his students coming to class unprepared and disengaged?, Washington Post, 8 May 09 Venture capitalists shift strategy in response to new global environ- ment: Acc to the '09 Global VC Survey,which drew 725 responses from VCs (44% based in US, 28% in EU, 16% in Asia-Pac, 10% in Americas, & 2% in Israel), the clean tech sector is poised to be- come the leading investment sector. When asked which nation has the most to gain from the global crisis, 38% cited China, with US 18%. And when asked which one has the most to lose, 51% cited US, UK 14%, China 10% & Russia 6%, Deloitte, 10 Jun 09 (incl link to the survey results) Reality check--Will cellphones really solve Africa's problems?: A no. of experts applaud the technological leapfrogging - Africa still has relatively few landlines - and the potential for mobile telephony to bring its widely dispersed people in closer contact with one an- other. But is this optimism justified? Will these technologies draw Africa to and beyond the tipping point where development be- comes self-sustainable?, Intl Dev Res Ctr Bulletin/Can., Mar '09 Coffers: Argentine stocks get 'fresh eyes' in MSCI demotion to 'frontier market'--Argentina lost its position in the benchmark emerging-market stock index & joined MSCI's so-called frontier in- dex, a switch investors say may lure funds to the nation and extend a 3-mo. equity rally. MSCI, which estimates its indexes are tracked by funds with $3T, classifies its markets based on size, liquidity & econ development, Bloomberg, 1 Jun 09 (Morgan Stanley--MSCI Barra to reclassify Argentina and Pakistan | Nations in the Emerg- ing Markets and Frontier Markets indexes) [pdf] World Bank, UN release guide to recover looted funds: The Bank and the UN Office against Drugs and Crime released a new guide to help nations recover looted funds even when there has not been a conviction for the crime, World Bank, 4 May 09 ('08--WB, UN renew commitment to stolen asset recovery | Stolen Asset Recov- ery Initiative) Globalization and emerging economies: The rapid integration into world markets by 6 of the largest non-OECD nations (Brazil, Rus- sia, India, Indonesia, China & SAfrica, or BRIICS) was an import- ant component of globalization during the past 2 decades. The mu- tually beneficial econ relationships bet. the OECD, the BRIICS and other nations now need further nurturing, OECD, 19 Mar 09 [pdf] (Full text of publication--Click on the 'Browse-it' icon to the right of 'Add to basket') World airline industry loss forecast increases to $9B: Recession is the most significant factor impacting the industry's bottom line. Asia-Pac carriers will post the largest losses at $3.3B, while Middle East carriers, despite strong traffic growth, will see losses deepen to $1.5B. LatAm carriers are expected to post a loss of $900m and African carriers a loss of $500m, Intl Air Transp Assn, 8 Jun 09 Michael Boskin: US economy is becoming ever more reliant on a govt fix -- It is still too soon to gauge the full econ impact of Pres Obama's implemented & proposed policies, but a preliminary read indicates limited short-term benefit at large long-term cost,says fmr Coun Econ Adv chair, Proj Syndicate (courtesy Daily Star/Leba- non), 29 May 09 Posted: 1-5 Jun 09 Americas' states lift 47-year ban as Cuba comes in from the cold: In a turning point for the region, the Org. of Amer States' foreign ministers have agreed to lift a rule dating back to Pres Kennedy & the Cold War.The decision was taken by acclamation at a meeting in Honduras, Independent/UK, 5 Jun 09 (AP--Cuba happy with OAS vote, but won't return [courtesy Taiwan News]) Jeffrey Sachs: Moyo's confused attack on aid for Africa -- She seems to believe that sub-Saharan Africa was economically pros- perous and then was pushed into poverty by aid, but does not offer a reasoned or evidence-based case. Everybody that deals with aid wants to promote financial transparency & market-led growth, not aid dependency, says Columbia Earth Inst dir, VoxEU, 29 May 09 (incl link to: Moyo--Aid ironies: A response to Sachs) Olive Room: In Cairo, Obama vows to personally pursue 2-state solution--In his long-anticipated Cairo address to the Muslim world, Pres Obama reaffirmed US's strong backing for a Palestinian state, highlighting his admin's commitment to follow through on a 2-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,while reiterating US's "un- breakable bond" with Israel, Haaretz/Israel, 4 Jun 09; and From our archive: Michael Rich--Vision for a successful Palestine: Creating a successful state poses a wide range of polit., econ, social & environmental challenges, says Corp exec vice-pres, Washing- ton Times (courtesy Rand site), 14 Dec 05 (Rand Palestine Initia- tive | News release) Raghuram Rajan: Protectionism and global dialogue -- As govts do more, the danger of protectionism is becoming more real. It is emerging in ways that were unforeseen by those who founded our existing global institutions. Unfortunately, the dialogue bet. nations is very much the dialogue of the deaf, says fmr IMF chief econo- mist, U Chicago, 3 Jun 09 [pdf] Alan Blinder: Crazy compensation and the crisis--We're all paying now because skewed financial incentives led to too many big bets, says fmr Fed vice-chair, Wall Street Journal, 28 May 09 General Assembly postpones economic summit: The UNGA has postponed the high-level gathering aimed at assessing the global cri- sis and seeking solutions which take the interests of all nations into account. Originally scheduled for 1-3 June, it will be held in NY from 24-26 June. Delegates had voiced concern that they needed more time to negotiate the draft outcome document to be adopted at the gathering, UN News, 26 May 09 (UN downgrades '09 econ f'cast) Coffee/tea room: May we have this dance?--Cha-cha: It is a Lat- Am dance of Cuban origin, a fairly recent dance that is a combina- tion of the Rumba & the Mambo.With its 2 slow steps (on the beat 1 & 2) and 3 quick steps (triple step or cha cha cha), this sensual, energetic dance is extraordinarily popular. The name of this dance is said to arise from the sound of sandals slapping vs the floor in the cha cha 'chass�' (side-close-side step), Fred Astaire Studios Can.| WikiBooks | DancesportInfo (Times Union--Politicians dance around issue) Pittsburgh to host Sept G20 summit: The White House announced that the city would host the Group of 20 econ summit this Sept. The event follows an April London meeting; it will serve as an up- date on the world econ crisis & will highlight the benefits of envir- onmentally friendly practices, Philadephia Inquirer, 29 May 09 2 research groups release first annual report on sovereign wealth funds: A new report (Weathering the storm - Sovereign wealth funds in the global economic crisis) analyzes the effects of the global crisis on the behavior and financial transactions of sovereign wealth funds. One key finding is that during the crisis, SWFs lost at least $66.8B on paper from their initial investments, Monitor Grp, 20 May 09 Boutros-Ghali's developing vision for the IMF: His storied surname sits lightly on the shoulders of Egypt's finance minister, a name which acquired intl renown when his uncle was elected UN Sec-Gen. Last Oct, he too was elected chair of the IMF's policymaking cmte, giving him a powerful voice in determining the Fund's role in the global crisis.It's the 1st time a non-Westerner has held the job, & he knows he carries the developing world's expectations, Time, 28 May 09 (Asia ed.) Martin Feldstein: Has the US recovery begun? -- Although the US economy is continuing to decline, it is no longer falling as fast as it was at the beginning of the year or in the weeks after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in Sep '08. In that sense,it is reasonable to say that the worst of the downturn is now probably behind us, says fmr Coun Econ Adv chair, Proj Syndicate (courtesy Business Standard/India), 29 May 09 2009 The year of outsourcing dangerously--Assessing offshore lo- cations for the 'safest 25' & the 'riskiest 25': This report utilized online surveys & interviews, with 3,010 corp dev leaders surveyed in Oct-Nov '08. 448 ballots from outsourcing users were confirmed & included in this analysis, with 125 offshore locations selected for the survey, Black Book of Outsourcing, May '09 [pdf, go to p6] << Previous Home Next >> Copyright (c) 2001-2009 Leonardo L. Sta. Romana All rights reserved. |
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