Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

On July 24, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation1 with the Euro Area.

The recovery is strengthening, driven by rising domestic demand and supported by lower oil prices, the ECB’s quantitative easing under the expanded asset purchase program, and a weaker euro. The improving sentiment, rising inflation expectations, and easing credit conditions suggest that the recovery is likely to continue in the near term.

Staff teams from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Commission (EC), in liaison with the European Central Bank (ECB), visited Nicosia during July 14-24 to review Cyprus’s economic reform program. Cyprus’s program, which is supported by financial assistance from the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and the IMF, aims to promote economic recovery and job creation by restoring financial sector stability, strengthening the public finances, and implementing reforms to increase long-run growth.

On July 24, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the second review of Morocco’s economic performance under a program supported by a two-year Precautionary and Liquidity line (PLL) arrangement and the Ex Post Evaluation of exceptional access (EPE) under the 2012-14 PLL arrangement.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed its annual review of the Fund’s income position for the financial years ending April 30, 2015 (FY 2015) and FY 2016 on April 27, 2015.

On July 17, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the annual discussions on Common Policies and Challenges of Member Countries with the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC).

UK's proposals for a new Small Business Commissioner to lead a culture change in how small businesses resolve disputes with larger companies have been set out on 26 July.

The European Union, the United States, China and the vast majority of the World Trade Organization (WTO) members that were participating in the negotiations agreed on 24 July to eliminate custom duties on 201 high-tech products. The extension of the 1996 Information Technology Agreement (ITA) is the biggest tariff-cutting deal in the WTO in almost two decades. The agreement initiated and brokered by the EU, will benefit both consumers and firms alike by removing customs duties on a wide range of goods, including medical equipment, video games and consoles, home hi-fi systems, headphones, blue-ray/DVR players, semi-conductors, and GPS devices. All in all, the deal will cover €1 trillion in global trade, covering close to 90% of world trade in the products concerned. A total of 54 WTO members[1] negotiated the expansion of the ITA. A limited group of countries is expected to confirm its participation in the coming days.

The World Bank Group’s Board of Executive Directors Thursday approved a €912.7 million (approximately $1 billion) Second Resilience and Growth Development Policy Loan (DPL2) for Poland to support Poland’s economic growth and resilience, leading to more dynamic job creation and shared prosperity.

On July 17, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation1 with Japan.

A modest economic recovery is underway. GDP is expected to grow at an above-potential pace this year (0.8 percent) buoyed by gradually strengthening private consumption on higher real wages and a gradual recovery of external demand. Inflation remains well below the Bank of Japan’s 2 percent target partly due to commodity price developments, but will start to pick up toward the end of this year with the dissipation of the negative effects of falling oil prices and higher wage growth.

On July 15, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with the Czech Republic and considered and endorsed the staff appraisal without a meeting.