News from Around the World

What to watch in US Congress in 2019

WASHINGTON — On Capitol Hill, the new year brings with it new leadership of key committees, a divided Congress, a few development-related bills likely to be considered, and a fair amount of uncertainty about what’s in store after a period of bipartisan cooperation on development issues.

What will it take to fix flailing SDG funding?

UNITED NATIONS – The international community is not acting fast enough to mobilize finance for the Sustainable Development Goals, experts gathered at the Financing for Development Forum told Devex.

What's Next For The World Trade Organization?

Since the Second World War, the United States has been a driving force in shaping the global trading system. From the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to the launch of the ill-fated Doha round of trade talks, the United States has nudged and cajoled the major trading nations of the world to come together and solve pressing trade issues.

Where now for the rules that rocked European finance?

Helping small and medium companies access capital markets was at the heart of Mifid II but more than 16 months on, bankers and regulators are worrying that Europe’s flagship securities-industry overhaul has become more of a problem than a solution.

White House Knows It Needs the Fed to Make a Dent in the Dollar

Donald Trump needs help from one of his favorite punching bags, the Federal Reserve, if he truly wants to take action to weaken the dollar.

Why Venezuela Will Influence Argentina’s IMF Talks

Argentine President-elect Alberto Fernandez’s stance on Venezuela may pose another challenge to his ability to renegotiate the terms of an aid package from the International Monetary Fund.

An imposing debt load and uncertainty about his economic policies already limit Fernandez’s room for a renegotiation of the record credit line, but his views on the Venezuelan regime of Nicolas Maduro are also softer than those of outgoing Mauricio Macri.

Will a Worsening Outlook for Inflation Force the ECB to Act?

Patience, persistence and prudence: the latest incarnation of the European Central Bank’s policy guidance appears to take a leaf out of early Christian writings on virtue. The central bank has counselled that, because it takes time for pricing pressures to recover from crisis years, it will keep interest rates unchanged at least through the summer of this year.

World Bank Appoints New Treasurer

LONDON, Oct 29 (IFR) - The World Bank has appointed Jingdong Hua as vice president and treasurer, replacing Arunma Oteh, who is leaving the bank on December 1 to join Oxford University.

In his new job, effective 1 January 2019, Hua will be responsible for managing the World Bank’s US$200bn debt portfolio, as well as an asset portfolio of nearly US$200bn for the World Bank Group and external clients.

World Bank boss warns global growth could disappoint

David Malpass, the president of the World Bank, has warned that global growth could fall short of the 2.6 per cent rate it predicted in June, in the latest sign of concern in multilateral institutions about the direction of the world economy.

In a speech in Montreal, ahead of the World Bank and IMF’s annual meetings next week, Mr Malpass warned that global growth was “slowing” and said he expected it to be even lower than the forecast from four months ago due to “Brexit, Europe’s recession, and trade uncertainty”.

World Bank launches world-first blockchain bond

SYDNEY - The World Bank has priced the world’s first public bond created and managed using only blockchain in a A$100 million ($73.16 million) deal designed to test how the technology might improve decades-old bond sales practices.