Number of results to display per page
Search Results
1082. Economic Survey of the Euro Area, 2004
- Publication Date:
- 07-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- The euro area has shown disappointing resilience to shocks and its income gap against the best performing countries remains large and is widening. The differences between individual euro area countries are even more striking and the forces that influence convergence in economic performance across the area are largely the same as those that shape the economic performance of the area.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, and International Trade and Finance
1083. Economic Survey of the Russian Federation, 2004
- Publication Date:
- 07-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- The major economic challenge facing Russia is the achievement of long-term, sustainable growth that would allow for a relatively rapid convergence between living standards in Russia and the OECD economies. The nature of this challenge is largely determined by Russia\'s economic structure. At present, Russia\'s economy is highly dependent on the export of a limited range of natural resources, chiefly hydrocarbons and metals. This presents policymakers with a number of specific problems. In particular, resource dependence makes the Russian economy especially vulnerable to external shocks. It is therefore difficult to overstate the importance of prudent macroeconomic policies, especially as the budget relies heavily on resource taxes and is thus influenced by volatile energy prices. Hence, exemplary fiscal discipline, in particular, is crucial to reducing Russia\'s vulnerability to commodity-price cycles. Yet while resource dependence brings with it certain macroeconomic risks, economic performance will continue to depend to a great extent on the performance of resource-exporting sectors for the foreseeable future. This makes reform of the natural gas sector an urgent priority. In the absence of substantial reform, the gas industry, which is critical to both exports and the domestic economy, could well stagnate or decline.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Development, and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Russia
1084. Access Pricing in Telecommunications
- Publication Date:
- 06-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- OECD countries now have an average of 5-6 years of experience with competition in the telecommunications industry. The liberalisation process has been guided by principles such as minimising barriers to entry and ensuring that new entrants have access to essential services at non-discriminatory terms and conditions. Experience has now shown that the conventional understanding of these principles needs to be refined in order to ensure the on-going, long-term development of competition in the industry.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Industrial Policy, and Science and Technology
1085. Economic Survey of Poland, 2004
- Publication Date:
- 06-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- Poland has made impressive progress in the transformation of its economy and the accession to the European Union on 1st May 2004 marks another historical event. It follows 15 years of profound change and accomplishment. More than 75 per cent of GDP is now produced in the private sector, the economy is well integrated with those of western European nations and inflation has been brought down to low levels. After an initial fall, output has been growing continuously for more than 10 years and, on average, Poles are much better off now than they were then. However, the striking drop in employment since 1998 is suggestive of serious remaining problems. To address these, much more needs to be done, notably in terms of raising productivity, expanding employment and increasing per capita income, which is 41 per cent of OECD levels.
- Topic:
- Development and Economics
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Poland
1086. Agricultural Support: How is it Measured and What does it Mean?
- Publication Date:
- 06-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- OECD governments have a long history of pursuing agricultural policies, with objectives ranging from supporting farm incomes to securing safe food and environmental quality. Policy measures are equally varied, including instruments such as import tariffs, export subsidies and a host of different government payments to farmers. Many of these policies share the common feature that they transfer money to farmers, and thereby impact on production decisions, incomes, international trade and the environment.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Development, Economics, and Environment
1087. Economic survey of Korea, 2004
- Publication Date:
- 06-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- Korea has been one of the fastest growing economies in the OECD area over the past five years, with an annual growth rate of about 6 per cent. Such rapid growth, which has lifted per capita income to two-thirds of the OECD average, reflects Korea's underlying dynamism and its progress in implementing a wide-ranging reform programme in the wake of the 1997 crisis. However, the recession in 2003 – which was due in part to structural problems in the labour market and in the corporate and financial sectors – indicates that the reform agenda is unfinished. Sustaining rapid growth over the medium term as the contribution from inputs of labour and capital slows requires further progress in structural reform, particularly in the labour market and in the corporate and financial sectors, accompanied by appropriate macroeconomic policies.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, and Government
- Political Geography:
- Asia and Korea
1088. Competition Law and Policy in Mexico
- Publication Date:
- 06-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- Mexico's competition policy was introduced as part of a decade-long reform initiative, begun in the mid-1980s, to end central government control and protection of domestic economic activity and to develop instead a market-based economy. A key element in the government's economic reform was the adoption, in 1993, of the Federal Law of Economic Competition (LFCE), and creation of the Federal Competition Commission (CFC) to enforce it.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, and Government
- Political Geography:
- North America and Mexico
1089. A New Challenge for Kosovo’s Emerging Democracy. November 2004.
- Author:
- Adrian Zeqiri
- Publication Date:
- 11-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)
- Abstract:
- On 23 October 2004, elections for the central institutions of Kosovo were held for the second time. According to CoE and OSCE observers, the elections were held in a free and fair environment and there were no irregularities in the process. Shortly after the publication of the election results, LDK (the largest party) and AAK, (a party stemming from former KLA structures) announced their decision to form a coalition government. This decision points to a number of new factors that may shape future political developments in Kosovo, set against a backdrop of urgent Standards implementation and future status negotiations. The NATO-led intervention in 1999 established the territory as a UN protectorate, under charge of the international community in all major spheres of life. Since then Kosovo has seen a gradual empowerment of local institutions over a period of four elections, both municipal and central. The 2004 central elections were organized largely by local institutions, reflecting the ability of Kosovo actors to successfully adopt responsibility for the running of the territory. Unlike the previous broad-based coalition government emerging from the 2001 elections, the recent agreement between LDK and AAK sees parties taking up positions of power and opposition within the new assembly. This constellation presents a new challenge for the fragile political environment of Kosovo. The international community may now be faced with a more confrontational political landscape and the more politicized Albanian politicians will be tested to function within this new arrangement. This report serves to analyse the election results and their implications for the formation of a Kosovo assembly. It will further discuss the impact of these developments in the current and upcoming intensive political period in Kosovo.
- Topic:
- Development, Minorities, Elections, and Democracy
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Kosovo
1090. Decoding Cancun: Hard Decisions for a Development Round
- Author:
- George Perkovich, Sandra Polaski, John Audley, and Scott Vaughan
- Publication Date:
- 08-2003
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- Following the riotous 1999 meeting in Seattle, and a near failure in Doha in 2001, the World Trade Organization dedicated the current round of trade liberalization talks to “development.” Negotiators will meet in Cancun, Mexico, in September amid competing claims regarding what steps are necessary to make trade serve development goals. The catch phrases of international trade—“comparative advantage,” “the development round,” “trade not aid,” and “level playing field”—hide tough choices for both developing and developed country governments. Getting trade rules right is not sufficient for development, but getting them wrong can cripple it. The authors outline the policies that governments and international institutions will need to avoid a debacle at Cancun and to assist developing countries in achieving long-lasting growth.
- Topic:
- Development, Globalization, International Organization, and International Trade and Finance
- Political Geography:
- Mexico