Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

On December 21,Decision makers along with representatives from civil society and the private sector from Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, and other Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries were convened in Tunis to debate the findings of two recently-released World Bank reports that call for more investments in people to prepare for the economies of the future. The reports argue for greater investments in health and education, and more effective social protection systems, as critical for adapting to the changes caused by disruptive technologies and seizing the opportunities they create.

On December 12, 2018, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Panama.

As of 1 January 2019, all Member States shall apply new legally binding anti-abuse measures that target the main forms of tax avoidance practiced by large multinationals.

Japan must improve job quality and further reform the mandatory retirement age to address upfront the challenges of its rapidly ageing and shrinking labour force, according to a new OECD report.

As part of its forecasting exercise, the World Bank has updated its growth projections for the Philippines to 6.4 percent in 2018 and 6.5 percent in 2019, to reflect recent economic trends.

The new harmonised securitisation rules, which will apply as of 1 January, are an important building block of the Capital Markets Union. They will help provide additional funding sources for companies, strengthen banks' ability to support the economy and spread risks across market participants, while avoiding the excesses that led to the financial crisis.

On December 21, 2018, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the second review of Guinea’s economic performance under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement. Completion of this review enables the immediate disbursement of SDR 17.213 million (about US$23.9 million), bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 51.636 million (about US$71.6 million). The Board also approved the authorities’ request for modification and a waiver of non-observance of a performance criterion.

While growth is moderating, China’s economy continues to perform well. China’s GDP growth slowed to 6.5 percent year-on-year in the third quarter from 6.8 percent in the first half of 2018, mainly due to weaker trade and investment. Growth is projected to moderate to 6.5 percent in 2018 and 6.2 percent in 2019-20, according to the World Bank’s new China Economic Update released on December 20th.

On December 21, 2018, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the first review of Burkina Faso’s economic performance under a three-year program supported by the IMF’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF).

“No Authoritarian, Need Survival” People marched on the street calling for transitional justice and reversal of wrongful tax cases.