Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

The World Bank Board of Directors approved a US$600 million loan to strengthen Colombia’s fiscal capacity. This Development Policy Loan (DPL) was designed to support the Colombian administration’s budgetary program and improve equity in the country.

It is "realistic to assume that additional support will be required for Greece beyond the programme", Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem told the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee. But it is too early to speculate on the exact details, he later said in reply to MEPs' questions. The hearing also focused on the nascent banking union, the recently-issued country-specific recommendations, and the urgent need to tackle unemployment.

High logistics costs are a serious impediment to higher economic growth for Indonesia, according to a report launched by Bandung’s Institute of Technology in West Java, in partnership with the World Bank.

Public authorities will have more scope to decide how best to spend taxpayers' money on public works, goods or services thanks to new EU rules formally endorsed by the Internal Market Committee. Rather than force authorities to accept the lowest bid, the rules would enable them to pick innovative solutions. For example, building a new road cleverly, rather than just cheaply, should ensure that it does not need to be rebuilt after five years.

South Africans call it the strike season. It happens every two years when wage negotiations take place in different economic sectors and cripple them with labor walkouts. This year, strike season is affecting the mining, construction and automobile sectors. The only thing out of the ordinary this time is the exceptionally high pay demands from competing unions, at a time when companies are struggling in a tough international environment.

The financial crisis has shown that many people need to have a better understanding of the financial issues in order to make informed decisions on matters such as savings, investments, pensions and credit, according to a report to be presented to G20 leaders in Saint Petersburg this week.

Public procurement makes up 19% of the EU's annual gross domestic product, but how do we guarantee best value for money? The Parliament is currently working on new rules to ensure a more effective and transparent use of public money when public authorities pay for goods or services.

A new report from the World Bank and IFC finds that cities across Colombia continue to implement regulatory business reforms with the large business cities making the biggest strides. Released, Doing Business in Colombia 2013 finds that Manizales and Ibagué once again top the rankings thanks to continuous improvements that make it easier to do business.

The situation in Egypt and Syria will be debated in Parliament