Economy-International

Lagarde says Europeans essentially are responsible for their own fate. WASHINGTON — The head of the International Monetary Fund said Wednesday the greatest threat to a lasting economic recovery in Europe is “the fatigue of both governments and populations” over painful steps taken to boost growth and combat national debt.

Lisbon — No matter how Cyprus’s financial drama ends, its troubles show yet again that rich countries enfeebled by the great financial crisis remain a weak link in the world economy. By comparison, emerging markets are not only looking stronger but are also contributing more consistently to global growth.

Financial Times) — China is on track for a fourth consecutive decade of rapid growth and will overtake the US as the world’s biggest economy in 2016 after accounting for price differences, according to a new report by the OECD.

THE GLOBAL economy is on the road to recovery this year, but the continued surge of volatile capital inflows to Asia could threaten the region’s growth prospects, a credit rater said.

The region has the fundamentals, policy and confidence as well as room for ‘easy’ growth ASEAN is the region to be in again in 2013. After an estimated growth of 5.2 per cent in 2012, Asean’s gross domestic product or GDP (on a purchasing power parity or PPP-weighted basis) will grow 5.3 per cent this…

BEIJING – Rising sovereign debt levels in advanced economies are spawning a crisis that threatens to topple the dollar and other reserve currencies, a Chinese credit ratings agency warned Monday.

LONDON – With the road ahead looking a bit smoother, G20 finance ministers will be happy to ignore the wreck in the rear-view mirror when they meet this week to steer a course for the world economy.

MANILA, Philippines – World policymakers have highlighted the resilience of emerging markets in the past year, but warned nobody is “decoupled” from the fragile global economic environment and that buffers must be built up to ensure sustainability.

World Economic Outlook Update Gradual upturn in global growth during 2013 PDF version (652 kb)Global growth is projected to increase during 2013, as the factors underlying soft global activity are expected to subside. However, this upturn is projected to be more gradual than in the October 2012 World Economic Outlook (WEO) projections. Policy actions have…

Global Economic Prospects—January 2013: Assuring growth over the medium term Press Releases WB urges developing countries to safeguard economic growth, as road ahead remains bumpy January 15, 2013 – Four years after the onset of the global financial crisis, the worst appears to be over. However, the global economy remains fragile, as high-income countries continue…

Beijing — China will overtake the United States economically within six years, an official research institute predicts, and go on to become the world’s most important country in three decades more, state media said Wednesday.

Battered by weak exports and an economy in recession, Japan unveiled a $117 billion fiscal stimulus package Friday in a bid to boost growth. The measure will increase spending on public works, disaster recovery and provide aid to smaller businesses. The plan is part of newly installed Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s effort to get the…

Unemployment in the eurozone hit a new peak in October, underlining the misery facing millions of households suffering the effects of a recession that could last well into next year.

Decisive policy action is needed to ensure the world is not “plunged back into recession”, according to the OECD. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which represents the world’s richest nations, also lowered its growth forecasts.

HONG KONG (CNNMoney) — Europe’s economy will contract next year and the United States will see slower growth than previously forecast, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development warned Tuesday.

LONDON – The euro zone economy is on course for its weakest quarter since the dark days of early 2009, according to business surveys that showed companies toiling against shrinking order books in November.

Business activity in the eurozone continued to contract in November, a survey suggests. The Markit eurozone Purchasing Managers’ Output Index was little changed from October, up to 45.8 from 45.7. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.

SOUTHEAST Asian countries, including the Philippines, are emerging resilient from a period of global turmoil, with rising investment and domestic consumption that will propel growth in coming years, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said.

Workers across the European Union are staging a series of protests and strikes against rising unemployment and austerity measures. The Day of Action and Solidarity calls on leaders to address growing social anxiety and abandon austerity measures. Some 40 groups from 23 countries are involved in Wednesday’s protests.

BEIJING – China’s sovereign wealth fund will focus more of its $482-billion firepower on Asia in twin bids to beat a rise in protectionism in the West and boost exposure to rapid regional growth, chairman and chief executive Lou Jiwei said.

(Financial Times) — Economies across the Middle East need to introduce fiscal restraint and deeper reform to safeguard their futures, says the International Monetary Fund.

The uptick in the US economic data and early signs of bottoming in China’s slowdown are giving Asean a good opportunity to deploy money into sectors that provide exposure to economic growth in China such as banking and insurance in the H-Share market, said Hwang-DBS Investment.

THERE’S a specter haunting Asia—the ghost of double—dip recession in advanced economies that small businesses are trading with is dampening confidence, a report by Regus Plc. said. “It’s clear that there’s been a stagnation in business confidence, accompanied by significant falls in some rapidly developing economies since our last BCI report in April,” said Filippo…

The ongoing euro crisis is “the business of everyone,” as it affects everyone, including emerging economies where “we still have a lot of poverty to address,” said Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima.

BEIJING—China’s economic model that delivered three decades of double-digit growth is running out of steam and the country’s next leaders face tough choices to keep incomes rising. But they don’t seem to have ambitious solutions. Even if they do, they will need to tackle entrenched interests with backing high in the Communist Party.

TOKYO, Japan – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and its regional counterparts all expect no quick solutions to problems in the Euro zone but remain convinced Asia will be the driving force of the global economy.

THE INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund (IMF) published the Bi-Annual World Economic Outlook (WEO) last week so I thought I would provide a brief summary with a focus on the Asian region and the Philippines. The WEO projects global growth, at 3.3 and 3.6% in 2012 and 2013, respectively, weaker than in the July 2012 WEO Update.…

NEW DELHI, India – The world faces a “dangerous” cocktail of low growth and high unemployment, OECD chief Angel Gurria said on Tuesday, after the global body warned of gloomier prospects for major economies. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in its latest global overview, said this month leading indicators for the 34-nation…

WASHINGTON – The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits slid last week to the lowest level in more than four and a half years, according to government data that may provide a boost to President Barack Obama a month before voters go to the polls.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) head, Christine Lagarde, has warned the global economic crisis has started to hurt growth in emerging economies. She said that uncertainty surrounding the global economy was hampering policymakers’ ability to take measures to boost growth. Earlier this week, the IMF warned that the global economic recovery was getting weaker.