Latin America's Left Turn
Jorge G. Castañeda (Foreign Affairs) May/Jun 2006
With all the talk of Latin America's turn to the left, few have noticed that there are really two lefts in the region. One has radical roots but is now open-minded and modern; the other is close-minded and stridently populist. Rather than fretting over the left's rise in general, the rest of the world should focus on fostering the former rather than the latter -- because it is exactly what Latin America needs.
The Long War Against Corruption
Ben W. Heineman, Jr., and Fritz Heimann (Foreign Affairs) May/Jun 2006
Corruption is widely acknowledged to distort markets, undermine the rule of law, damage government legitimacy, and hurt economic development. The global anticorruption movement has gained ground since the mid-1990s, but its key agents -- developed and developing countries, international organizations, and MNCs -- must do more to prevent and punish misbehavior systematically.
The New Middle Ages
John Rapley (Foreign Affairs) May/Jun 2006
The Middle Ages ended when the rise of capitalism on a national scale led to powerful states with sovereignty over particular territories and populations. Now that capitalism is operating globally, those states are eroding and a new medievalism is emerging, marked by multiple and overlapping sovereignties and identities -- particularly in the developing world, where states were never strong in the first place.
The Globally Integrated Enterprise
Samuel J. Palmisano (Foreign Affairs) May/Jun 2006
A new corporate entity based on collaborative innovation, integrated production, and outsourcing to specialists is emerging in response to globalization and new technology. Such "globally integrated enterprises" will end up reshaping geopolitics, trade, and education.
Can Doha Still Deliver on the Development Agenda?
Kimberly Ann Elliott (IIE) Jun 2006
Developing countries, especially the poorest, have the most at risk if the Doha Round is not wrapped up this year. If the multilateral negotiations languish, the recent trend toward bilateral and regional trade agreements will accelerate. These arrangements hurt the smallest and poorest countries the most, since they are often excluded. Developing countries would also lose the leverage they gain from negotiating as a group in the multilateral context. Proposals of particular interest to developing countries, including aid for trade and duty- and quota-free treatment for least-developed countries, might also be pulled off the table. Given their experience with the Uruguay Round, it is not surprising that developing countries are waiting for developed countries to offer serious reductions in agricultural protection before making serious offers on nonagricultural market access and services. But developing countries must move, and they must move now.
Paulson of the Treasury
Lawrence Kudlow (WSJ) Jun 1, 2006
"The new deputy president for all things financial."
What Single Market?
WSJ Jun 1, 2006
The EU agreement on trade in services is too watered down.
Good as Goldman
Daniel Gross (Slate) Jun 1, 2006
Bush drafts Hank to bat third.
Battle Over Steel Exposes Europe's Globalization Dilemma
Jonathan Fenby (YaleGlobal) Jun 1, 2006
Avoiding takeover by Mittal, Europe's leading steelmaker could jump out of the frying pan into the fire.
Global stock trading
IHT/NYT Jun 2, 2006
An era of global trading could benefit from international exchanges.
Goldman's choice: One head or two?
IHT/NYT Jun 2, 2006
Goldman Sachs prides itself on power-sharing. It has co-heads and co-presidents of everything from global sales and trading - there are four - to investment banking (three).
In Praise of Migration
Kofi A. Annan (WSJ) Jun 5, 2006
Nations that welcome immigrants are the most dynamic in the world.
IMF to Begin Multilateral Consultations with Focus on Global Imbalances
IMF Jun 5, 2006
The International Monetary Fund will shortly begin the first of its proposed multilateral consultations on issues of systemic or regional importance by focusing on how to address global imbalances while maintaining robust global growth.
U.S. Is Offering Deals on Trade to Entice Iran
Cooper, H. (NYT) Jun 6, 2006
The incentives include a proposal to allow Iran to upgrade its aging civilian air fleet by purchasing parts from Boeing.
China Plays a Dangerous Currency Game
Desmond Lachman (AEI) Jun 6, 2006
China seems reluctant to move decisively on the currency issue.
In Praise of the Maligned Sweatshop
Nicholas D. Kristof (NYT) Jun 6, 2006
Anyone who cares about fighting poverty should campaign in favor of sweatshops, demanding that companies set up factories in Africa.
Sell-off rolls across markets worldwide
IHT Jun 7, 2006
Signs that the Federal Reserve may continue to raise U.S. interest rates sent global stock markets sharply lower.
Stability, Growth, and Prosperity: The Global Economy and the IMF
Anne O. Krueger (IMF) Jun 7, 2006
We meet at a moment of great opportunity for the world economy. Over the past few years we have all benefited from a period of global economic expansion remarkable for its pace, its length and its breadth. On current projections, 2006 is likely to be the fourth consecutive year that real world GDP has grown by more than 4 percent: indeed, we now expect growth this year to be close to 5 percent.
At the UN, how we envy the World Cup
Kofi A. Annan (IHT) Jun 9, 2006
You may wonder what a secretary general of the United Nations is doing writing about football. But in fact, the World Cup makes us at the United Nations green with envy. As the pinnacle of the only truly global game, played in every country by every race and religion, it is one of the few phenomena as universal as the United Nations.
Multilateral consultation
IMF Survey Jun 12, 2006
Plus: Euro Area; Caruana to head new Department; Marshall Islands; Malaysia; São Tomé and Príncipe; Inflation targeting; Offshoring U.S. services; Public sector credit; Singapore; Pakistan's inflation; Kyrgyz Republic; Latin America.
The Changing Role of the IMF in Asia and the Global Economy
Rodrigo de Rato (IMF) Jun 13, 2006
We live in times of change. And in recent weeks we have witnessed how economies and financial markets are affected by change in a globalized environment. Today, I would like to talk about the role of the International Monetary Fund in supporting global economic growth and stability, and about some changes I've proposed to ensure that the Fund continues to be responsive to the changing needs of our membership. I will also talk a bit about what is going on in the global economy, the challenges facing the Asia and Pacific region, and about Australia's role in the world, in Asia, and in the Fund.
Globalization, Flexibility and Interdependence: Equipping Economies
Anne O. Krueger (IMF) Jun 13, 2006
I want to say something about the policies needed to make economies more flexible and enable them to take full advantage of the benefits of globalization. I will also talk about the IMF's role in the reform process.
How the stockmarket is like a Roppongi bar
Economist Jun 13, 2006
Twitchy foreign hedge funds have sold too soon.
A McDonald's Ally in Paris
NYT Jun 19, 2006
Never mind that Denis Hennequin was the top executive here when a half-built McDonald's restaurant was bulldozed seven years ago to protest the Americanization of France.
Fighting EU 'enlargement fatigue'
IHT Jun 20, 2006
The European Union's expansion commissioner issued a call to European leaders to sell enlargement to voters and not make it a scapegoat of larger policy failures such as high unemployment and globalization.
Why Dollar Hegemony Is Unhealthy
Thomas I. Palley (YaleGlobal) Jun 20, 2006
The world's dangerous dependence on the US dollar risks hurting all
Audit the World Bank's Performance
Adam Lerrick (AEI) Jun 21, 2006
The World Bank is resisting efforts to create a truly independent review of its stewardship over foreign aid.
Trade talks dead if U.S.stands pat, EU asserts
IHT Jun 21, 2006
The European Commission warned that global trade talks were dead unless the U.S. was willing to make more concessions. Left, as European leaders and the U.S. president converged on Vienna, a bomb-disposal officer examined a suspicious package in a street.
Awaiting Draft Modalities Text, Members Still Divided On Ag Market Access
BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest - Vol. 10, Number 22 Jun 21, 2006
Only a week before ministers are set to arrive at WTO headquarters in Geneva in an attempt to hammer out an agreement on some central aspects of the Doha Round negotiations, Members remain profoundly divided on agricultural market access.
End-June Meeting Starts To Take Shape Amidst Low Expectations
BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest - Vol. 10, Number 22 Jun 21, 2006
Ministers and senior trade officials from several WTO Member countries are planning to attend a high-level meeting in Geneva at the end of June in an attempt to rescue the faltering Doha Round trade talks. However, persistent divisions have left many observers pessimistic about their ability to strike a framework deal on modalities for agriculture and industrial tariffs, barring last-minute concessions from major players in the negotiations.
Some Gaps Remain On Ag Export Competition
BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest - Vol. 10, Number 22 Jun 21, 2006
As WTO Members scrambled to narrow their differences ahead of a top-level meeting scheduled for the week of 26 June, a new paper from the chair of the agriculture negotiations showed that they had made clear progress on export competition, though a number of issues still need to be resolved.
Look to Japan for a currency realignment
Philip Bowring (IHT) Jun 22, 2006
Japan needs a sharp currency appreciation and continued reforms to ensure future growth.
The New Frontlines of Capitalism: Microcredit Comes to Borguindé
Nathalie Boittin (Globalist) Jun 22, 2006
Do microcredit loan programs have the potential to transform villages in Burkina Faso?
Bonding, Buenos Aires-Style
Martin Krause (WSJ) Jun 23, 2006
Does Argentine debt morality end at the Pyrenees?
The New Frontlines of Capitalism: Borguindé Soap-Makers
Nathalie Boittin (Globalist) Jun 23, 2006
Can economic spirits be advanced through the production and sale of soap in Burkina Faso?
What's a Treasury Secretary to Do?
WP Jun 26, 2006
An Agenda for Henry Paulson, Here and Abroad.
IMF work program
IMF Survey Jun 26, 2006
Plus: de Rato in Australia, New Zealand; Improving the IEO; Swaziland, Philippines briefs; Inequality in Panama; Namibia: poverty and inequality; Gabon: post-oil era; Growth in Indian states; HIV/AIDS effect; China and India: emerging giants.
Middle Market Kingdom
Ingo Beter von Morgenstern & Xioaoyu Xia (WSJ) Jun 27, 2006
A strategy for multinationals in China.
Trouble Is Coming to Beijing
David Frum (AEI) Jun 27, 2006
The problems of the world's biggest country have a way of becoming problems for the whole planet; so it is with China's inflation.
Globalization: When Cure Is Worse Than Malady
Richard Hornik (YaleGlobal) Jun 27, 2006
Attempts to halt globalization can cause more harm than global economic integration itself.
Doha in the Doldrums
Kamal Nath (WSJ) Jun 28, 2006
The promise of trade liberalization is not dead.
A Promise Not Kept
Paul Blustein (WP) Jun 30, 2006
All 149 members expect a fair deal from the WTO.