Reforms to Build a More Dynamic Private Sector Can Bolster Job Creation and ResilienceWASHINGTON, April 8, 2026—Economic growth in the developing countries of Europe and Central Asia (ECA) is likely to slow substantially this year because of the impact of the conflict in the Middle East, geopolitical tensi...
Region needs reforms to create enough jobs, accelerate growthWASHINGTON, April 8, 2026—Growth in South Asia is expected to slow to 6.3% in 2026—from 7% in 2025—due to disruptions in global energy markets, says the World Bank Group in its twice-a-year regional outlook.Released today, the latest South Asia Economic Update, Working with Industrial Pol...
BISHKEK, 8 April 2026 – The Ministry of Finance of the Kyrgyz Republic, the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry of the Kyrgyz Republic of the Kyrgyz Republic, the European Union (EU), and the UNDP today launched a new project aimed at enhancing the efficiency, transparency, and accountability of public finance management (PFM)...
The International Trade Centre (ITC), through its SheTrades Initiative, has received an award for its work to open government purchasing to women-led businesses.The ITC SheTrades Initiative won the Decision-Making & Value Chain Award at the 2026 FE+MALE Biennial Awards in Zurich, recognizing its leadership in advancing women’s access to publ...
Figure 1 – Consumer prices: All items and all items less food and energyOECD, year-on-year inflation rate (%)ChartLine chart with 2 lines.View as data table, ChartThe chart has 1 X axis displaying categories.The chart has 1 Y axis displaying values. Data ranges from 0.5322489388 to 10.5694172977.End of interactive chart.Due to missing data for the United ...
Nonbank financial investors expand funding access for emerging markets, but their flows are highly sensitive to shifts in global risk sentimentEmerging-market firms and governments seeking funding from abroad are increasingly looking beyond banks to nonbank sources. As we discuss in an analytical chapter of the latest Global Financial Stability R...
By Frank Elderson, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB and Vice-Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECBEurope’s energy dependence increasingly complicates the task of maintaining price stability. Meeting the continent’s clean‑energy targets would weaken the link between volatile global markets and domestic prices. Crucially, the tools to make thi...
HighlightThis edition of the Global Trade Update presents the latest data and trends in international trade.Global trade grew by $2.5 trillion in 2025, increasing by about 7.5% to a record of $35 trillionTrade in goods drove most of the expansion, growing by about 7% and adding roughly $1.8 trillion to global growth.Trade in services grew by arou...
Widening global current account imbalances are best addressed by simultaneous domestic policy adjustments. Industrial policy and tariffs offer a costly fix with unreliable effects on imbalances.Global current account imbalances are widening again, reversing a decade of steady decline following the global financial crisis. History suggests a clear risk: wid...
Technological revolutions have long served as key engines of economic transformation and social progress. Each wave of innovation, from the Industrial Revolution to the current Digital Revolution, has fundamentally reshaped the way societies are organized, how economies grow, and how people live and work.Today, rapid advances in artificial intelligence and...
