Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

A proposal to grant €1,793,710 in EU aid to Sweden to help find new jobs for 500 workers made redundant by Volvo Trucks, mainly at the Umeå plant, and by four of its suppliers and downstream producers, was approved by the European Parliament on Wednesday.

As Latin America and the Caribbean enters its fifth year of economic slowdown and its second year of contraction due to an external environment particularly adverse to commodity exporters in South America, countries are struggling to find a balance between reducing spending and minimizing its effects on economic activity and hard-won social gains.

Taxes on labour income for the average worker across the OECD remained stable at 35.9% in 2015, ending a series of steady annual increases dating to 2011, according to a new report.

The EU must come up with more decisive actions to deliver relief fast to farmers in the worst-hit sectors, such as dairy and livestock, MEPs told EU Agriculture Commissioner, Phil Hogan, in Tuesday's debate on the ongoing crisis. They also called for structural reforms to better balance the supply chain, ensure fairer income for farmers and assist them to become more resilient to market shocks.

Development institutions can take immediate actions inside and outside Syria to help make peace happen today, according to a new World Bank report released on April 12. With the battles still ongoing, the Middle East and North Africa’s short-term prospects remain grim as the humanitarian and economic situation in the war-torn countries keeps deteriorating.

Economic activity in Sub-Saharan Africa slowed in 2015, with GDP growth averaging 3.0 percent, down from 4.5 percent in 2014. This means that the pace of expansion decelerated to the lows last seen in 2009.

On February 17, 2016, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded a review of access limits, surcharge policies, and other quota-related policies. This review took place in response to the effectiveness of the quota increases under the 14th General Review of Quotas, which doubled members’ quotas on average.

With a serious export glut weighing on the global steel sector, ministers, senior officials and private sector representatives from around 30 countries including China, Japan, Germany, India, the UK and the US will meet with EU, WTO, OECD and World Steel Association representatives on Monday 18 April in Brussels to seek solutions to the overcapacity crisis.

Growth remains strong, estimated to have reached 7.0 percent in 2015, led by the garment and the construction sectors, according to the latest Cambodia Economic Update. In 2016, growth is expected to be around 6.9 percent, making Cambodia one of the fastest growing countries in East Asia.

A staff team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) led by Todd Schneider visited Colombo during March 31- April 11 to hold the 2016 Article IV consultation discussions and to discuss the authorities’ request for a Fund supported arrangement. The mission made significant progress toward a staff level agreement with the government on an economic program that could be supported by a 36-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF).