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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The OECD has published updated transfer pricing country profiles, reflecting the current transfer pricing legislation and practices of 20 jurisdictions. These updated profiles also contain new information on countries' legislation and practices regarding the transfer pricing treatment of financial transactions and the application of the Authorised OECD Approach (AOA) to attribute profits to permanent establishments. The transfer pricing country profiles focus on countries' domestic legislation regarding key transfer pricing aspects, including the arm's length principle, methods, comparability analysis, intangible property, intra-group services,...

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The EU bank funds will help to increase the competitiveness of the Spanish company by boosting its investments from 2021 to 2024, focusing on digitalisation and the improvement of facilities. The EIB-financed project will enable Fagor Arrasate to develop machinery for the production of lighter, more environmentally friendly vehicles, as well as components for electric vehicles. The agreement is supported by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI). The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Fagor Arrasate (a cooperative and...

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Have you or one of your employees received an alarming text message about unemployment insurance benefits from what seems to be your state workforce agency? You’re not alone. Identity thieves are targeting millions of people nationwide with scam phishing texts aimed at stealing personal information, unemployment benefits, or both. The phishing texts try to dupe the recipient to click a link to “make necessary corrections” to their unemployment insurance (UI) claim, “verify” their personal information, or “reactivate” their UI benefits account. The...

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The implications of savings accumulated during the pandemic for the global economic outlook The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to the accumulation of a large stock of household savings across advanced economies, significantly above what has historically been observed. Owing to their large size, the savings accumulated since early 2020 have the potential to shape the post-pandemic recovery. The central question is whether households will spend heavily once pandemic-related restrictions are lifted and consumer confidence returns, or whether other motives...

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The role of sectoral developments for wage growth in the euro area since the start of the pandemic The economic consequences of and policy responses to the pandemic pose challenges for interpreting wage developments. Aggregate wage growth is mostly assessed in terms of compensation per employee or compensation per hour worked. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a substantial divergence between compensation per employee and compensation per hour. The high number of workers on job retention schemes played a decisive...

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Assessing Progress as the Economy Moves from Reopening to Recovery, Governor Lael Brainard at "Rebuilding the Post-Pandemic Economy" 2021 Annual Meeting of the Aspen Economic Strategy Group, Aspen, Colorado | The economy is reopening, consumer spending is strong, and hundreds of thousands of workers are finding jobs in the hard-hit leisure and hospitality sector each month. Pent-up demand has outstripped capacity in some sectors, as businesses that had pared back to survive the pandemic are encountering bottlenecks as they rehire...

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For the first time since the creation of the Innovation Fund, the European Union is investing €118 million into 32 small innovative projects located in 14 EU Member States, Iceland and Norway. The grants will support projects aiming to bring low-carbon technologies to the market in energy intensive industries, hydrogen, energy storage and renewable energy. In addition to these grants, 15 projects located in 10 EU Member States and Norway will benefit from project development assistance worth up to €4.4...

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2020 was a year of extremes. Travel all but ceased for a period. Oil prices wildly fluctuated. Trade in medical products reached new heights. Household spending shifted to consumer goods rather than services and savings ballooned as people stayed home amid a global shutdown. 'If not for the crisis, global current account balances would have continued to decline.' Exceptional policy support prevented a global economic depression, even as the pandemic took a heavy toll on lives and livelihoods. The global reaction,...

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