Global Economy

In a briefing to Member States, the World Economic Situation and Prospects 2019 was presented to the ECOSOC by United Nations Chief Economist and Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development Elliott Harris, and Matthias Kempf, Senior Economist ...

Dawn Holland, Chief of the Global Economic Monitoring Branch, participated in a panel discussion on Global Economy in 2019: What Policymakers Need to Know, organized by the Center for Global Development in Washington, D.C. The discussion was hosted by Mr. Masood Ahmed, President, Center for Global Development and panelists included Ayhan Kose, Director, Prospects Group, World Bank; Anne-Marie Gulde, Deputy Director, African Department, International Monetary Fund; Liliana Rojas-Suarez, Senior Fellow and Director of the Latin America Initiative, Center for Global Development; and Sudhir Shetty, Chief Economist, East Asia and Pacific Region, World Bank.

Short-term prospects for the world economy continue to strengthen, but more efforts are needed to ensure the gains are widely shared Weak productivity growth and a lack of secure employment are constraining progress in many countries in Africa, Latin America and Western Asia Rising inequality in China and India poses a risk to medium-term growth prospects

Stock market volatility returns amid concerns over inflation and monetary policy tightening Macroprudential policy measures in emerging economies can help address financial vulnerabilities and limit systemic risks Global investment conditions have improved markedly, but investment gaps remain large in many developing countries

Among the many issues touched upon were inequality and the economics of innovation and technology change; fostering broader private sector engagement in sustainable investment; and aligning educational priorities with the changing nature of work.

WESP 2018 highlights that the strengthening global economy is an opportunity to address structural challenges Several economies in Africa, Latin America and Western Asia still see negligible per capita income growth East and South Asia remain world’s most dynamic regions

Economists from the Global Economic Monitoring Unit of the Development Policy and Analysis Division in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) are currently in Geneva to attend the DESA Expert Group Meeting on the World Economy.