Transatlantic News
Transatlantic News
13
Mar
The European Commission has published a Communication on managing climate risks in Europe on March 13th. It sets out how the EU and its Member States can better anticipate, understand, and address growing climate risks. It further presents how they can prepare and implement policies that save lives, cut costs, and protect prosperity across the EU.
The Communication responds to the first ever European Climate Risk Assessment (EUCRA), a scientific report by the European Environment Agency. Together, they are a...
11
Mar
At the end of 2023, the total volume of sovereign and corporate bond debt stood at almost USD 100 trillion, similar in size to global GDP, says a new OECD report.
The first OECD Global Debt Report 2024: Bond Markets in a High-Debt Environment released today shows the low interest rate environment post-2008 opened bond markets to a wider range of issuers, including lower rated governments and companies, expanding the riskier market segments and contributing to the rapid growth of the sustainable...
11
Mar
Open, well-functioning, and integrated European capital markets are crucial to promote the single market and to attract the necessary investments, and thereby to boost the EU’s global competitiveness, innovation, sustainable growth, and job creation. It will provide better funding possibilities for growing companies, including small and medium-sized companies, and give EU citizens the opportunity to invest their savings more productively in Europe.
Deep and liquid capital markets that can allocate capital efficiently and allow for cross-border private risk-sharing constitute, together...
08
Mar
In the first two months of 2024, Suez Canal trade dropped by 50 percent from a year earlier while trade through the Panama Canal fell by 32 percent, disrupting supply chains and distorting key macroeconomic indicators.
In the past few months, global trade has been held back by disruptions at two critical shipping routes. Attacks on vessels in the Red Sea area reduced traffic through the Suez Canal, the shortest maritime route between Asia and Europe, through which about 15...
06
Mar
Article by Atif Mian in the IMF's Finance & Development Magazine | Nature requires balance—between predator and prey in the jungle, between the push and pull of planets in orbit, and so on. The economic system is no different; it requires long-term balance between what people earn and what they spend. Loss of this balance has led to a massive debt supercycle that threatens the global economy. Breaking that cycle is one of the most pressing challenges of the...
04
Mar
The European Commission was instrumental in brokering important outcomes at the 13th ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (MC13) that ended Friday in Abu Dhabi. After a week of intense engagement, EU negotiators secured important agreements on e-commerce, new rules to improve global services trade, environmental cooperation, and strengthening the position of developing countries in the global trading system.
However, over the past months, the EU had worked for ambitious results to revitalise the WTO at a time of...
29
Feb
It is my great pleasure to report to you ahead of your first meeting under the Brazilian G20 Presidency. Tax policy and tax administration efforts can help to move the dial in the fight against extreme poverty and hunger, while addressing rising inequality and closing the funding gaps on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Thanks to the leadership of the G20, stronger international tax cooperation in recent year has delivered significant additional revenues and other important benefits for governments...
26
Feb
G20 merchandise trade growth flattens while services trade rises moderately in Q4 2023.
After several quarters of decline, G20 merchandise trade growth flattened in value terms in Q4 2023, as measured in current US dollars (Figure 1 and 2). There was little change in exports and imports compared to Q3 2023, as a robust recovery in East Asia was counterbalanced by a slowdown in Europe and North America. Export growth stagnated in the United States, with lower sales of automobiles...