Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

China Airlines' newest 777-300ER (Extended Range) landed at Le Bourget, France on June 13, marking the debut of China Airlines' new twin-aisle jet at the Paris Air Show.

Quarterly GDP in volume terms for the G20

Percentage change on the previous quarter, seasonally adjusted data

The World Bank Thursday approved an additional grant of $21.50 million to improve the effectiveness of customs clearance at border crossings and inland clearance depots (ICDs) in Afghanistan.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on June 11 completed the third review of Mali’s performance under an economic program supported by a three-year Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement. The Board’s decision, which was taken without a formal meeting, enables the disbursement of SDR 4 million (about US$5.6 million), bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 18 million (about US$25.3 million).

The European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) signed a grant agreement for a €8 million (US$9 million) capacity development program on fiscal reforms in Southeastern Europe (SEE).

On June 8, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with The Bahamas.

Real GDP expanded by an estimated 1 percent in 2014 on the back of increased tourist arrivals, but growth remains well below pre-global crisis levels. Supported, in part, by rising US economic activity, air arrivals grew by almost 5 percent in 2014 and applied room rates improved by 7 percent. Domestic demand has been weighed down by the weak macroeconomic outlook, high household indebtedness, and high unemployment which stood at 15.7 percent in November 2014.

World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim expressed strong commitment to the Middle East and Africa regions on June 10, praising the 26 member countries of the East African Community (EAC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) for moving toward establishing a Tripartite Free Trade Area, the largest in Africa.

Economic growth is expected to continue to pick up across the European Union (EU), from zero in 2013 and 1.3 percent in 2014, to 1.8 percent and 2.0 percent in 2015 and 2016 respectively. Most Central and eastern European countries (EU-CEE) will continue to grow above the European average, with growth expanding over 2.4 percent in 2015, based on robust consumer demand, the gradual return of investment, and continued export growth, says the new World Bank EU Regular Economic Report presented Wednesday in Zagreb.

Bakhyt Sultanov, Minister of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan (left), and Ludmilla Butenko, World Bank Country Manager for Kazakhstan (right), at the signing ceremony.

On June 1, 2015 the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Tajikistan.

Growth has been strong and poverty has fallen in the past decade, though Tajikistan faces rising vulnerabilities. Growth is now softening and the external position has weakened as remittances have fallen with the slowdown in Russia and earnings from cotton and aluminum exports have dropped due to global market developments.