For countries on the path to recovery, reviving economic activity is a major priority. And what better way to support a come-back than by creating jobs. Our new IMF staff research shows that when governments spend on infrastructure, they create many new jobs. Drawing on a 19-year dataset of over 5,600 construction companies from 27 advanced economies and 14 emerging market economies, we use an innovative approach to measure the direct employment effect of $1 million of infrastructure spending by country income group...

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Our action plan lays out an ambitious roadmap to take the effects of climate change into account. On this path, we will pass three major milestones that guide our commitment to do our part to tackle climate change. What's our roadmap to greening monetary policy? We at the ECB are doing our part to tackle climate change within our mandate. As a result of our strategy review, we’ve agreed on an ambitious roadmap on how to integrate climate change considerations into our...

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Differences in vaccine access and the ability to deploy policy support are creating a growing divergence between advanced economies from many emerging market and developing economies. Faced with high deficits and historic levels of debt, countries with limited access to financing are walking a fiscal tightrope between providing adequate support and preserving financial stability. 'IMF support focused most where it mattered the most.' Without resolute measures to address this growing divide, COVID‑19 will continue to claim lives and destroy jobs, inflicting lasting damage...

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CBDC: A Solution in Search of a Problem? By Governor Christopher J. Waller at the American Enterprise Institute, Washington, D.C. (via webcast) | The payment system is changing in profound ways as individuals demand faster payments, central banks including the Fed respond, and nonbank entities seek a greater role in facilitating payments. In all this excitement, there are also calls for the Federal Reserve to "get in the game" and issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC) that the general public...

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