In The News

CNBC: Technology and Globalization Are Eliminating the Middle Class

Berkeley Lovelace Jr. July 14, 2017
Advances in technology continue to reduce the need for many low-skilled positions in the United States, reported Federal Chair Janet Yellen to the House Financial Services Committee. She also targeted a limited form of globalization – outsourcing workplaces and jobs to other countries – for reinforcing the effects of automation along with retailers reducing jobs in response to greater demands by...

Brookings: Housing Africa

Vera Songwe February 21, 2017
As Africa’s population grows and moves to urban areas, one major challenge facing the continent will be housing. McKinsey estimates that by 2025, over 90 percent of young people in Africa will live in urban areas. Policymakers and the private sector must work to make millions of new housing units available and affordable. Vera Songwe, writing for Brookings, urges governments to work with the...

Historic Chance for Myanmar Peace Probably Scuttled

Michele Penna January 9, 2017
Hope is dwindling for an end to Myanmar’s ethnic conflict underway since 1947. An outbreak of violence in Rakhine State has been linked to Harakah al-Yaqin, reports Michele Penna, adding that the International Crisis Group has linked the trouble with hardships and discrimination suffered by the Rohingya. “Conflict is also dragging on in Kachin and Shan States, where the army is staging...

The Complexity of Inequality

Michael Heise December 13, 2016
Governments delayed in accepting or tackling inequality as a major challenge. The concept “remains poorly defined, its effect is highly variable, and its causes hotly debated,” notes Michael Heise, chief economist of Allianz SE, for Project Syndicate. Inequality is concentrated in the developed world, and wealth is more broadly distributed at the global level: Since 2000, the ranks of the middle...

What the Latest Standardized School Tests Tell Us

Karin Klein December 9, 2016
Strong education systems contribute to strong economies. Every three years the Programme for International Student Assessment, PISA, tests the skills and knowledge of 15-year-old students in math, reading and science. More than 80 countries have participated, and many obsess about rankings. Comparisons based on raw scores can be tricky, warns Karin Klein for the Los Angeles Times. Researchers...

Wanted: Equal Opportunity Globalization

Branko Milanovic November 29, 2016
Populist stances are resonating with dissatisfied voters in the wealthiest places including Europe and the United States. The West has posted low growth rates for its middle class over the past 25 years while the average income growth of a median household in Asia during the same period was about four times as high – Asia still has some catching up to do as income levels and gross domestic...

EU Agrees Screening Process for Tax Havens, Critics Cry Foul

Francesco Guarascio November 10, 2016
European Union finance ministers are preparing a weak blacklist of tax havens and suggest that zero tax rates may not be a qualifying factor. “The bloc committed in May to agree on a common list of tax offenders by the end of next year, after leaked documents - the so-called Panama Papers - that showed how some multinationals and individuals avoided paying tax,” reports Francesco Guarascio for...