In The News

Problems, Problems

June 30, 2003
Breakdown of law and order, guerilla efforts, smashed infrastructure, multiple currencies, and deep factionalism are just a few of the problems currently plaguing the American-led coalition in Iraq. Many parts of the country, including Baghdad, are still anarchic, says this article from The Economist. The coalition was taken aback by the speed with which Iraqi forces melted away, and was thus...

Time to Trade

Anke Bryson June 27, 2003
Three years ago, Germany’s major stock exchange operator, Deutsche Börse, extended its trading hours until 8:00pm. The move, an anomaly in a country where all shops close every Sunday, was designed to appeal to a flood of new private investors who had no time to speculate during the regular work day. Now, after a market decline caused those investors to flee, Deutsche Börse will likely bow to the...

The Homes of Argentines Are at Risk in I.M.F. Talks

Larry Rohter June 23, 2003
In an echo of the harsh economic policies prescribed by the IMF in Southeast Asia after the 1997 Asian Crisis the organization is asking the crisis-ridden Argentina to adopt severe belt-tightening measures. For homeowners across Argentina, the prescribed cure for financial crisis may prove more devastating than the economic disease. In a country still reeling from months of economic chaos, the...

Global Finance Firms Plan Huge Jobs Reshuffle

Catherine Ong April 29, 2003
The worldwide improvement in telecommunications that has occurred in the last several years has opened the doors for new business opportunities with significant consequences for the global economic community. Now, with more and more countries offering multinational corporations a prosperous haven by promising cheap and reliable infrastructure and technical support, the largest firms have begun...

Black Money Flowing Back to India

V. K. Raghunathan April 16, 2003
Since September 11 the US has cracked down on bank accounts that might be funding terrorists. It has even asked countries with secrecy laws to disclose information about account holders to help in its fight. An unintended consequence of this policy is that many Indians who have illegally stashed money outside of the country now fear discovery and prosecution, and have begun to bring their money...

A War Against Eurocrats

Ranvir Nayar April 3, 2003
This article from Outlook India suggests that one of the Bush administration’s objectives in the war on Iraq may be to maintain the dominance of the US dollar in the global economy. The Euro in recent years has been an attractive alternative to the US dollar for many countries around the world, including oil producing countries in the Middle East. Gaining control over Iraq’s oil fields would...

With Little Loans, Mexican Women Overcome

Tim Weiner March 19, 2003
Still struggling after decades of failed poverty alleviation schemes and IMF-imposed structural adjustment programs, poor women in some developing countries are finding hope and success in micro-loans. In Mexico, where banks have generally ignored the financial services needs of the poor, microcredit organizations offer poor people loans of a few hundred dollars to start new small businesses....