Economy and Finance

Photo: G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors gathered in Venice for their third official meeting under the Italian G20 Presidency on July 9-10, 2021.

The G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative Is a Fiasco

Viewpoint by William N Kring

The writer is the Assistant Director for the Global Development Policy Center at Boston University. This article first appeared on EastAsiaForum on September 7, 2021.

BOSTON (IDN) — As the more lethal and contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 rips across the globe, the prospects of multilateral efforts to combat the virus, tackle the looming global debt crisis and mount a sustainable economic recovery are dim. Nowhere is the insufficiency of the multilateral response more apparent than on the issue of debt relief.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 16 September 2021

Photo: President Vladimir Putin (left) with Mr. Sergei Katyrin, Head of the CCI-Chamber of Commerce and Industry (left).

Russia's Councils Abroad Foster Business Interests Worldwide

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW (IDN) — The Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) says it is working very hard to continue to prioritise the interests of Russian entrepreneurs in all its dealings. One of the ways the organisation is doing this is by strengthening its international ties.

Already, the CCI has successfully established 76 operational business councils with 76 countries. They involve representatives of the Russian business community and those from the relevant state.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 26 March 2021

Photo: German Chancellor Angela Merkel with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 24, 2018 at which they discussed intensifying German Chinese relations. Credit: Xinhua/Liu Weibing

Germany Is Particularly Attractive for Chinese Investors

By Jutta Wolf

BERLIN (IDN) — Germany is one of the most important countries for Chinese investors and ranks tenth in terms of Chinese foreign direct investments (FDI). Particularly the transport sector and the technology sector in Germany received a great number of investments from Chinese investors in recent years.

Although China has recently focused more than ever on geostrategic investments in countries of the "Belt and Road Initiative," investments in Germany remain strategically important for Chinese investors to gain access to key technologies.

: Jutta Wolf; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 19 March 2021

Photo: The fourth session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 5, 2021. Credit: Xinhua/Li Xueren

China Sets Over 6% GDP Target & 11 Million Urban Jobs in 2021

By Press Trust of India (PTI)

BEIJING (IDN) — China, which was the first to be hit by COVID-19 and the earliest to recover from the lockdown effects, has fixed a GDP (Gross Domestic Product) target of over 6% in 2021, optimistic of an economic recovery after last year’s 2.3% growth, its weakest in decades.

Premier Li Keqiang, in an announcement at the country’s Parliament National People's Congress (NPC), said China, the world's second largest economy, aims to expand its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by over 6% in 2021, with more efforts on reform, innovation and high-quality development.

: J C Suresh; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 05 March 2021

Image credit: UN Economic Commission for Africa.

Time to Redouble Efforts for Economic Diversification in East Africa

By Devendra Kamarajan

NAIROBI (IDN) — When the COVID-19 pandemic crisis started, most people were extremely pessimistic. They thought that the region would drown in terms of trade declining catastrophically. But a new report reveals that the East Africa Community economies — Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda — have, by global standards, proven to be relatively resilient.

: Devendra Kamarajan; THE WORLD; Africa; 21 February 2021

Photo: A worker observes construction at a harbor in Colombo, Sri Lanka, commissioned by China Harbour Engineering Co Ltd on Dec 1. Credit: XINHUA

2021 Yet Another Testing Year for COVID-19 Hemmed Sri Lanka’s Economy

Viewpoint by Dushni Weerakoon

The writer is the Executive Director and Head of the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka.

COLOMBO (IDN) — The unprecedented disruptions of COVID-19 are causing a geopolitical reset — and as the global order is redrawn, small emerging market economies like Sri Lanka are vulnerable to the fallout. Sri Lanka straddles vital shipping routes and is at the centre of diplomatic spats between China and the United States, who called on Sri Lanka to make ‘difficult but necessary choices’ over its growing economic and political ties to China.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 20 January 2021

Peace Prize for Humanitarian Work – Debt Dims Recovery – Better Times for Mental Health Groups

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Mixed news from Africa: the Somali Practitioner of ‘Yogadishu’, Ilwad Elman, is the German Africa Peace Prize Winner for 2020. Ilwad Elman has been helping former child soldiers and rape survivors overcome their trauma. Analysts say that recovery for the African States could be dimmed by debt. and African maternal health groups expect better times for women under Biden as the next US President.

: Global Information Network; Africa; 28 December 2020

Australia-China Spat: It's More Than Just Trade

Viewpoint by Kalinga Seneviratne

SYDNEY (IDN) – A one-sided trade war has been gathering momentum between China and Australia, ever since Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an “independent” international investigation of the origins of Covid-19, which infuriated China.

China is Australia’s biggest trading partner with two-way trade worth A$ 235 in financial year 2018-19, which amounts to 26% of Australia’s total trade.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; OPINION; 11 December 2020

New Report Sparks Anxiety About COVID-19 Wrecking UN's 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda

By Ramesh Jaura

BERLIN | GENEVA (IDN) – UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi has stressed the need to address the frailties of globalization that led to the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and its uneven economic impacts, gravely wounding the world economy with serious consequences for everyone. He hopes that the situation would prove to be 'course-altering' and a catalyst for change. "We need to reshape global production networks and reset multilateral cooperation for the better," he says.

: Ramesh Jaura; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 20 November 2020

Photo: Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Source:Twitter

U.S. Upsets Election of African Candidate for Top World Trade Post

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Backed by an overwhelming number of World Trade Organization (WTO) delegates, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was on a fast track to become the head of the global trade group.

Dr. Okonjo-Iweala was set to become the first woman and first African to lead the global trade watchdog. A selection panel of WTO trade ministers found she had far more support than a South Korean rival and it was expected that the Asian candidate would be withdrawn because the African candidate would be most likely to attract consensus among the members.