Finance & Economics
Finance & Economics
Fair Observer's analysis of important economic and financial issues, events and trends in global markets and the world economy.
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Andrew Haldane / Dodd Frank Act / Financial regulations / Glass Steagall Act / Irish Prime minister / John Bruton / prime minister / UK tax system / United States / Europe / Finance & Economics / Focus Article / Business & EntrepreneurshipBy John BrutonFormer Prime Minister John Bruton asks, why are modern business regulations so complex? I believe that, across the Western world, we may be reaching some sort of limit in the complexity of rules governing business. The response to the financial crisis has been ever more complex rules, that only a tiny number of professional advisors could ever hope to remember, or understand properly. In the United States, the Glass Steagall Act, introduced to regulate banking after the Depression of the 1930s, ran to 37 pages. In contrast, the Dodd Frank Act, introduced in the wake of the recent crisis, runs to 848 pages of basic text, plus 30,000 pages of implementing rules. In the United...
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360° Analysis / Economic growth / Economic Policy / EU / Foreign Investment / Inflation / Iran / Mahmoud Ahmadinejad / Nikolay Kozhanov / Oil Industry / PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRY / presidential elections / Sanctions / Unemployment / United States / Finance & Economics / Middle EastThe international sanctions against Iran have been effective. However, they also made the Iranian elite more practical and cynical by teaching it how to survive under external economic pressure. This is the last of a two part series. Read part one. In spite of existing sanctions, Iran keeps on developing its petrochemical and gas industries. For instance, in February 2013, Tehran finally managed to settle with Pakistan main issues related to the construction of the gas pipeline between the two countries. According to the Iranian media, Tehran also launched talks on exporting 25 million cubic metres of gas per day to Iraq. This news became the practical confirmation of recent statements by...
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2011 Constitution / 360° Analysis / Casablanca / Economic Reform / IT / Jean AbiNader / Justice and Development Party / Labor Market / Morocco / Rabat / Subsidy / Youth Unemployment / Finance & Economics / Middle EastJean AbiNader reflects on Morocco's challenge of reforming the labor market and realigning government subsidies. After a year away, I returned to Morocco today for ten days. I am sure that I will find the visit both challenging and satisfying. My central interest is to better understand the tangible governance issues facing the PJD (Justice and Development Party)-led government. It continues to struggle with advancing its agenda through parliament and achieving a consensus among its coalition partners on policies that effectively attack unemployment, the budget deficit, corruption, and social reforms. Most organic laws required to enable reforms promised in the 2011 constitution are...
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360° Analysis / Economic growth / Economic Policy / Electricity Exports / EU / Foreign Investment / Inflation / Iran / Mahmoud Ahmadinejad / Nikolay Kozhanov / Oil Industry / Sanctions / Unemployment / United States / Finance & Economics / Middle EastThe international sanctions against Iran have been effective. However, they also made the Iranian elite more practical and cynical by teaching it how to survive under external economic pressure. This is the first of a two part series. International reports on the economic and political situation in Iran prepared by different respected analytical institutes and consultancies, state that sanctions adopted against Tehran by the US, EU and their partners in 2010-12, not only appear to be very effective but will inevitably put the Islamic Republic on the fringe of economic collapse. Meanwhile, diplomats and businessmen often travelling to the country draw a different picture: They describe Iran...
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360° Analysis / Africa / African Change / developing world / economy / Lee-Roy Chetty / Socio-Economic Development / Sub-Saharan Africa / Finance & Economics / Global Change / AfricaAfter a decade of disappointing progress on development, many people attributed Africa’s poor performance to persistent governance failures. Today, the picture is changing dramatically. Africa is the second most populous continent after Asia. Its current population of nearly 1 billion people is expected to rise to 2.2 billion over the next 40 years. Between 2000 and 2010, GDP grew at 5.6% a year, topping 7% in 2002, 2004 and 2007 respectively. The global economic crisis of 2008 continues to affect the continent, particularly resource-rich countries. Growth in sub-Saharan Africa slowed to 2.8% in 2009 as international banks cut back on letters of credit to exporters. Demand for exports...
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360° Analysis / Africa / China / diversification / Dubai / Economic growth / governance / Leadership / Solomon Appiah / Finance & Economics / AfricaAs Africa's economy continues to grow, questions arise over how to make that growth sustainable. The World Bank released the latest Africa’s Pulse Volume 7 on April 15, 2013. It reports that Africa has maintained impressive growth momentum as well as having made progress towards the Millenium Development Goals. Another highlight of the report includes a graph on the fastest growing economies which depict a number of African countries outperforming China and India in terms of economic growth. This growth is making a dent in poverty on the continent but not as deep as we would like to see. The growth phenomenon is not new. The IMF World Economic Outlook 2012 declared...
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360° Analysis / austerity / Cyprus / Cyprus bail out / ECB / JOHN SYDNEY HOPKINS / Mario Draghi / Michalis Sarris / Europe / Finance & Economics / BRICWith the great amount of debate, chatter, and serious analysis about the EU’s financial rescue of Cyprus from insolvency and potential departure from the euro zone, many wonder if the EU policy emerging from the Cypriot “bail out” will have a lasting impact on the political and economic integration of Europe. In my view, the European Union’s (EU) rescue of Cyprus will be seen as a milestone event, and will have a lasting impact on the EU’s ability to manage the process of European integration and the future integrity of the euro zone for key reasons. Loss of Credibility The EU leadership has suffered another loss of credibility. The fragility of the Cypriot...
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360° Analysis / Cyprus bailout / Euro crisis / Eurozone / Harris Samaras / IMF / Europe / Finance & EconomicsHarris Samaras asks why Cyprus received the harshest bailout deal in the Eurozone so far, and looks at what this means for Europe’s financial future. The European Union (EU), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the international media blame Cyprus’ banking practices for the main cause of the crisis, and have ensured that the Cyprus economy was ruined in just a weekend. Manically, German and French politicians argued that Cyprus is harboring criminal money, is an offshore tax haven, and a money laundering center. For the record, Cyprus is an EU low tax jurisdiction not an offshore financial center. It makes one wonder: have all the EU, IMF and OECD reports and assessments...
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Arab Human Development / Arab World / economy / Foreign Direct Investment / Jean AbiNader / Private Sector / Unemployment / World Bank / WTO / Finance & Economics / Focus Article / Middle East / AfricaJean AbiNader analyzes the newest World Bank report on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The World Bank has issued its fourth volume in the series Jobs for Shared Prosperity – Time for Action in the Middle East and North Africa. Well over 300 pages, the study provides its five main messages separately for those who need a super condensed summary. Reading through the messages, I noticed how clear it is that very few results can be achieved without strategies that integrate the resources and talents of the public and private sectors. Drawing on my experiences across the MENA region, there is much to be gained from cross-border sharing of best practices regardless...