Stock market participation remains low, especially among the older, less affluent, and less educated households, despite its clear benefits for wealth preservation and growth. Although digitisation has reduced some barriers, many households remain disengaged. Using data from a Chinese investment platform, this column shows that digital nudges and financial education via the platform increase stock […]
The world is at a demographic inflection point, presenting both challenges and opportunities. On the one hand, lower and lower-middle-income countries, particularly sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, are experiencing expanding working-age populations. But they face a significant challenge: insufficient job creation to absorb all new labor market entrants. At the same time, many high-income and […]
Organizers highlighted that Hong Kongآ’s external trade with Belt and Road countries reached $276bln in 2024. The 10th Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong concluded on Thursday with the signing of nine memoranda of understanding (MoUs) and the conclusion of 36 business-to-business (B2B) deals worth close to USD one billion. The two-day summit, co-organized […]
The World Bank has long recognized the critical importance of agricultural extension services – ranging from training and data to technology transfer – which make up the second-largest share of its agriculture portfolio. Yet farmers have often been slow to adopt the very methods and tools these services are designed to deliver—limiting their own productivity and […]
The introduction of crypto technology and tokenisation is spurring changes in the financial system. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is taking steps to integrate crypto into traditional finance, most notably the GENIUS Act’s establishment of a regulatory regime for payment stablecoins. This column explores the US’ policy goals concerning digital assets and argues that tokenisation – […]
The world is moving into a period of entrenched manufacturing overcapacity, threatening deflation and stagnant growth. Over the past two decades, China has emerged as the world’s manufacturing powerhouse. By offering goods at significantly lower prices than its competitors, China has captured a huge share of the global market. However, this flood of inexpensive goods […]
How does generative AI affect real workplace productivity? This column reports results from an experiment at the National Bank of Slovakia, where staff were randomly assigned GPT-4o access while completing routine and non-routine tasks. The model improved output quality by up to 44% and cut completion time by 21%, with the largest gains on non-routine, […]
The competition being fought between the US and China in cutting-edge technology fields friction is also affecting basic research activities at universities and other public institutions. This column examines how innovation processes in Japan compare with those in the US and China, and argues that Japan must improve the incorporation of cutting-edge international research results […]
Population ageing makes it harder for governments to finance programmes like public pensions and long-term care. But policy responses, such as tightening programme eligibility and benefit levels or raising taxes on current workers, often prove unpopular. This column presents findings from the latest wave of the OECD’s Risks that Matter survey, which takes stock of […]
Developing countries invest about $1 billion annually to train millions of aspiring and existing entrepreneurs. While significant, this investment doesn’t fully address the shortage of expertise needed to better support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) or to design programs to improve their access to finance, markets, and technology. So, what is limiting MSMEs from […]
