Argentina is among the world’s countries which experienced the highest inflation in the last five years based on average data from the country’s private consultants and the IMF. The double digit inflation was estimated at 21.3%, an approximate average for the 2008/2012 period, and compiled by IERAL an Argentine business think-tank.
The World Bank's arbitration unit has agreed to hear a complaint by Spanish oil firm Repsol over Argentina's nationalization of the company's former energy affiliate YPF.
The European Union issued on Wednesday its revised import preference scheme - known as the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) - for developing countries most in need which will take effect from 1 January 2014, revealing that all Mercosur full members, except for Paraguay, will no longer benefit.
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has defended the central bank's measures to bolster the US economy. Brazil has said US monetary easing to keep interest rates low and weaken the dollar has hurt emerging economies. And IMF chief Christine Lagarde warned on Sunday of consequent asset bubbles developing in emerging nations.
World Bank has lowered its growth forecast for China citing weak demand for its exports and lower investment growth. The bank said it expects China's economy to grow by 7.7% this year, down from its projection of 8.2% in May.
Latin America and the Caribbean region (LAC) will be growing at 3%, more in line with global trends but even with GDP beginning to slow, the region’s unemployment rate stood at 6.5%, approaching historic lows and well below its peak of 11% a decade ago, according to the latest semi-annual report “The Labour Market Story Behind Latin America’s Transformation,” by the World Bank’s Office of the Chief Economist for the region.
In developing countries, jobs are a cornerstone of development, with a pay off far beyond income alone. They are critical for reducing poverty, making cities work, and providing youth with alternatives to violence, says a new World Bank report.
The 2015 Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund will take place in Lima, Peru, in October 2015, following a vote by the Boards of Governors of the two institutions.
World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim announced the appointment of Indian national Kaushik Basu as the institution’s new Chief Economist and Senior Vice President.
Global food prices soared by 10% in July from a month ago, with maize and soybean reaching all-time peaks due to an unprecedented summer of droughts and high temperatures in both the United States and Eastern Europe, according to the World Bank Group’s latest Food Price Watch report.