This blog post is part of a special series based on the April 2025 Commodity Markets Outlook, a flagship report published by the World Bank. This series features concise summaries of commodity-specific sections extracted from the report. The World Bank’s food commodity price index edged down in April, extending the 2 percent decline in 2025Q1. Over […]
In the fast-paced world of finance, ongoing digitization is disrupting the traditional rules of banking with profound consequences. Our lives have also become more digital through shopping, social interactions, news, and information gathering, to name just a few. A burgeoning amount of personal data is now being produced daily. The total amount of data created, captured, […]
Mental health represents a significant public health challenge and a critical economic and social issue for countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental health and substance use disorders, along with suicide, have become leading causes of mortality, morbidity, and disability in the region. This burden disproportionately affects young […]
The growing toll of global disaster and climate losses seems inescapable. The year 2024 was another record-breaking year, with global disaster losses estimated at over $350 million. In an increasingly risky world, developing country governments must juggle the difficult tradeoff of protecting their people and economies from the shocks of today, while trying to invest […]
Global external assets exceeded 200% of world GDP in 2020. Comparing the performance of foreign investments for 13 advanced economies between 1975 and 2023, this column finds that some countries consistently earn up to four percentage points higher average nominal returns than other countries. The large differences in investment performance abroad have substantial effects on […]
The implementation of Brexit produced markedly different experiences for Northern Ireland, which effectively remained within the EU’s Single Market for goods, and the rest of the UK. This column exploits this contrast to investigate the impact of Brexit on UK firms. Firms located further from the Irish border, and thus more exposed to the full […]
Delivering free or subsidized agricultural inputs to smallholder farmers in Ghana has always been a challenge—especially during emergencies, when speed is of essence. The objective is straight forward: help smallholder farmers improve their yields, boost food security, and build resilience in times of crisis. Yet, inefficiencies, delays, and opacity have often hampered these efforts. Great news, […]
While tariffs dominate the news, international trade is increasingly shaped by an array of regulations known as non-tariff measures (NTMs). Unlike tariffs, which are taxes imposed on imported goods, NTMs establish criteria that goods must meet before they can enter a market. They include measures to protect consumers by ensuring that food is safe to eat, for […]
President Trump’s sweeping “reciprocal tariffs” announced on 2 April sent shockwaves through the global economy. This column introduces the European Commission’s Spring Forecast, which depicts a resilient EU economy. Yet growth is set to remain modest, reinforcing the image of a continent buffeted by external shocks and mired in low growth. Tariffs, and even more […]
Despite headlines dominated by threats and implementations of US and retaliatory tariffs since President Trump’s inauguration, it was not until his “Liberation Day” announcement on 2 April that equity prices fell significantly. This column asks why equity prices reacted so slowly to the elevated trade policy uncertainty that followed immediately after Trump’s election. Historical evidence […]
