In The News

World Bank Admits Some Have Lost Out From Free Trade

Kamal Ahmed October 12, 2016
The benefits of globalization and trade are not spread evenly, suggests a World Bank internal document reported on by BBC News. “Jim Kim, the head of the World Bank, told the BBC that he understood why people were angry in advanced economies despite the fact that free trade was one of the ‘most powerful’ drivers of growth and prosperity,” reports Kamal Ahmed for BBC. “Kim said that 20% of jobs...

Global Economic Growth “Sliding Back into the Morass”

Chris Giles October 4, 2016
A report from the Brookings Institution and the Financial Times indicates that global economic growth rates are slowing. The report was published before the meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, where global economic leaders plan to stress the value of inclusion and global cooperation and other main tenets of globalization. The Brookings-FT Tiger index compares numerous...

G20 Must Address the Anti-Globalization Undercurrent to Stay Relevant

Peter Drysdale September 2, 2016
Immigration, trade and many other aspects of globalization are interwoven into daily routines, taken for granted, and some opponents contend that communities and entire countries can easily sever the connections. G20 leaders, meeting in Hangzhou, China, must address global stagnation and populism that feed resentment and disrupt cooperation, increasing inequality and the power of despots....

Abenomics: What Japan’s Economic Experiment Can Teach the Rest of the World

August 16, 2016
Japan’s economy shifted from being the envy of the world in the 1980s to today's case study in stagnation. The country's nominal GDP for 2015 is mostly unchanged from levels in 1995 even as the US nominal GDP grew by more than 130 percent, reports the Economist. “To reflate Japan and reform it, Shinzo Abe, prime minister since December 2012, proposed the three ‘arrows’ of what has...

Food for Thought

Nayan Chanda August 15, 2016
US presidential candidates, sensing anti-trade sentiment among voters, rely on populist strategies, much like Indian Prime Minister Modi’s “Make in India” campaign, encouraging manufacturers to create jobs close to home. “Even if protectionist urges dwindle after the election, anti-trade sentiment will linger to the detriment of export-dependent emerging economies,” writes Nayan Chanda in his...

We’re in a Low-Growth World. How Did We Get Here?

Neil Irwin August 8, 2016
Economic growth increases wealth and improves living standards, driven by additional workers, work hours and technological advancements that increase productivity. But economic growth and income have slowed for the world’s most advanced economies, and the trends contribute to rising inequality and populist movements. Economists are trying to determine if supply or demand issues contribute to low...

Erdogan Targets More Than 50,000 in Purge After Failed Turkish Coup

Humeyra Pamuk and Ercan Gurses July 20, 2016
The Turkish government is said to be blaming a self-exiled religious leader for a July 15 coup attempt and targeting his supporters in the military, judiciary and education systems. Fethullah Gulen lives in Pennsylvania and denies having a role in the coup attempt. “A former ally-turned critic of Erdogan, he suggested the president staged it as an excuse for a crackdown after a steady...