Chapter News

New Report Shows Global Fiscal Transparency Lagging Behind US Standards

Developing countries are failing to meet fiscal transparency standards as established by the United States, according to a report released on July 28. The US State Department’s Fiscal Transparency Report—released annually since 2012—details which countries meet the State Department’s minimum fiscal transparency requirements, which countries are making progress towards it, and which countries are making no significant progress. In the 2016 report, sixty-four countries failed to meet the minimum standards. Of those, only eight showed significant progress. The report reveals the highest...

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Member News

Can the German economy continue to defy gravity?

The Germany-US trade corridor is firmly entrenched, with HSBC analysts expecting demand for German capital and goods to remain high in its primary North American market. Contrary to expectations, Germany is a commerce and industry bright spot in Europe. Labelled the Sick Man of Europe at the turn of the century, Germany defied its critics to emerge from the global recession and a series of euro crises as an economic superstar. The nation reversed its shrinking growth rate and high unemployment...

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Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

TTIP: Public report of the 14th round of negotiations

A detailed report of the 14th round of TTIP talks is now available. It sets out progress achieved, chapter by chapter. The 14th negotiating Round took place in Brussels from 11-15 July 2016. For logistical reasons, the talks on services and investment stretched into the following week. This Round saw a record number of textual exchanges, which means there are proposals for almost all chapters on the table now, totalling about 30. As in previous rounds, close to 400 stakeholders...

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Chapter News

E-government a powerful tool to implement global sustainability goals, UN survey finds

A new United Nations report has found that e-government is an effective tool for facilitating integrated policies and public service by promoting accountable and transparent institutions, such as through open data and participatory decision-making, and therefore it has the potential to help support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). “For ICTs to truly transform the public sector into an instrument of sustainable development, efficiency in service delivery must be...

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Member News

BDO USA, LLP Announces South Florida Expansion Through Addition of Goldstein Schechter Koch

Chicago, IL – BDO USA, LLP, one of the nation’s leading accounting and consulting firms, today announced an expansion of its South Florida practice through the addition of just over 100 staff, including 14 partners, from Goldstein Schechter Koch (GSK).  Founded in 1949, GSK provides a full range of accounting, tax and wealth advisory services to a client base of public and private middle market businesses, nonprofits and high net worth individuals. The firm, which has offices in Coral Gables...

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Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

Will TTIP survive Brexit?

There are concerns that the UK’s decision to leave the EU may jeopardise future TTIP negotiations. Some fear Brexit could make the EU a less attractive trade partner for the US. However, it seems that the new US administration as well as upcoming elections in Germany and France could end up posing bigger threats to the trade agreement than Brexit. 23 June  2016 was a sad day in the history of the European Union. Nearly 52% of the British citizens who...

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New York Related News

Governor Cuomo Announces $16 Million Available for Community Clean Energy Projects

Municipalities Eligible to Apply for Funding and Technical Assistance to Implement Energy Efficiency, Renewable, and Sustainable Development Projects in their Communities Initiative Supports New York’s Recent Adoption of the Clean Energy Standard and its Aggressive Mandate to Achieve 50 Percent Renewables by 2030 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the launch of Clean Energy Communities, a $16 million initiative to help local governments across the state reduce energy consumption and drive clean energy use in their communities. The new initiative advances...

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Chapter News

North Sea: a sustainable and profitable management plan for the region and its fishermen

This first comprehensive plan covers more than 70% of the fishing sector, sets catch limits based on science and brings decision-making closer to the fisherman. Today the European Commission has proposed a multi-annual plan for demersal fish stocks in the North Sea. The proposal covers demersal fish stocks, i.e. fish that live and feed near the bottom of the sea, and aims to ensure that stocks are fished at sustainable levels. It will also bring decision-making closer to fishermen. The new...

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Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

Recent EU Trade Figures

The EU has become deeply integrated into global markets. The openness of our trade regime has meant that the EU is the biggest player on the global trading scene and remains a good region to do business with. Overview Top trading partners Countries and regions statistics View this Table for illustration. Trade flows (€bn)Year-on-year growth (%)EU28 merchandise trade with Extra-EU28ImportsExportsBalance% Imports growth% Exports growthJun14-May15Jul14-Jun15Aug14-Jul15Sep14-Aug15Oct14-Sep15Nov14-Oct15Dec14-Nov15Jan15-Dec15Feb15-Jan16Mar15-Feb16Apr15-Mar16May16 -Apr16Jun15 -May16-500 €bn0 €bn500 €bn1000 €bn1500 €bn2000 €bn-5 %0 %5 %10 %15 %20 % EU28 merchandise trade with Extra-EU28 More on Statistics Trade flows in goods between...

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Chapter News

Ambassador O’Sullivan Reflects on the EU-U.S. Partnership

We may be in the midst of summer, but don’t expect the “gone fishing” sign to be put up anytime soon when it comes to EU-US relations. Last week in Warsaw, President Barack Obama met with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and President of the European Council Donald Tusk. They were joined by Secretary of State John Kerry and his counterpart, High Representative Federica Mogherini. At times, high-level heads of state meetings will be limited to an exchange of pleasantries and...

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