Global Debt Reaches a Record $226 Trillion
Policymakers must strike the right balance in the face of high debt and rising inflation.
Taming Market Power Could (also) Help Monetary Policy
By Romain Duval, Davide Furceri, and Marina M. Tavares
Some central banks are currently debating whether to tighten monetary policy to fight inflationary pressures, after having eased decisively in response to the COVID-19 shock. […]
Seizing the Opportunity for a Pro-Growth, Post-Pandemic World
عربي, 中文, Español, Français, 日本語, Português, Русский
Since March 2020, governments have spent $16 trillion providing fiscal support amid the pandemic, and global central banks have increased their balance sheets by a combined $7.5 trillion. Deficits are the highest they have been since World War II and central banks have provided more liquidity in the past year than in the past 10 years combined. […]
Slow-Healing Scars: The Pandemic’s Legacy
By Sonali Das and Philippe Wingender
عربي, 中文, Español, Français, 日本語, Português, Русский
Recessions wreak havoc and the damage is often long-lived. Businesses shut down, investment spending is cut, and people out of work can lose skills and motivation as the months stretch on. […]
Chart of the WeekUnemployment in Today’s Recession Compared to the Global Financial Crisis
There has been much discussion in recent months about how workers who transitioned to working from home—and those who were deemed “essential”—are less affected by the layoffs and job losses brought on by lockdowns than are workers in “social” jobs that require closer human interaction, like restaurant workers. […]
Reopening from the Great Lockdown: Uneven and Uncertain Recovery
عربي, 中文, Español, Français, 日本語, Português, Русский
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed economies into a Great Lockdown, which helped contain the virus and save lives, but also triggered the worst recession since the Great Depression. Over 75 percent of countries are now reopening at the same time as the pandemic is intensifying in many emerging market and developing economies. […]
Making Economies More Resilient to Downturns
By John Bluedorn and Wenjie Chen
عربي, 中文, Español, Français, 日本語, Português, Русский
The world is in the grip of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing Great Lockdown has pushed many countries into deep recessions—worse than during the 2008–09 global financial crisis. […]
A Global Crisis Like No Other Needs a Global Response Like No Other
عربي, 中文, Español, Français, 日本語, Português, Русский
I have been saying for a while that this is a “crisis like no other.” It is:
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More complex, with interlinked shocks to our health and our economies that have brought our way of life to an almost complete stop;
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More uncertain, as we are learning only gradually how to treat the novel virus, make containment most effective, and restart our economies; and
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Truly global. Pandemics don’t respect borders, neither do the economic shocks they cause.
