Finance & Economics | WPN World People News

On January 20, 2016, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the 2015 Article IV consultation with Bangladesh.

On January 28, 2016, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Nicaragua.

Corporate tax avoidance costs EU countries €50-70 billion in lost revenue a year, according to the European Commission. On 2 February it will discuss with MEPs how it plans to make corporate taxation fairer and more efficient. The Lux Leaks scandal showed that EU countries sometimes court multinationals with advantageous tax schemes. Parliament has set up two special committees to investigate and called on the Commission to introduce legislation to restrain these practices.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Ms. Patrizia Tumbarello visited the Solomon Islands during January 19–28 to hold discussions on the 2016 Article IV consultation. The mission also conducted the fifth and sixth reviews under a three-year Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement, approved on December 7, 2012 which expires on March 31, 2016. The team met with Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, Governor Denton Rarawa, Permanent Secretary of Finance and Treasury Harry Kuma, and other senior officials, as well as representatives from the private sector and development partners.

Youth in Peru.

On January 29, 2016, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with the Kingdom of Lesotho, and considered and endorsed the staff appraisal on a lapse-of-time basis.

The World Bank Board on Friday approved a US$ 35 million credit for the Citizen Access to Responsive Services Project to improve access to selected public services for the people of Madhya Pradesh (MP), particularly those belonging to disadvantaged groups.

The Governor of the Bank of Botswana, Ms. Linah Mohohlo, and the Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Mr. Min Zhu, hosted on Friday in Gaborone, Botswana, a regional conference entitled “Small Middle-Income Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa—Raising the Bar”.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi presents his 2014 annual report to Parliament on Monday 1 February. A debate with MEPs will follow and likely focus on low inflation and the ECB's quantitative easing programme for reviving the economy. The proceedings will be streamed live on our website.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission led by Ms. Padamja Khandelwal visited Manama from January 12–25, 2016 for discussions on the 2016 Article IV consultation. Subject to management approval, the findings of the mission will be presented to the Executive Board for consideration in March 2016.