News and Analysis: 19-31 Oct 2016 | EmergingFrontierMarkets.com

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Posted on Mon, 31 Oct 2016:

Michael Spence: How inequality found a political voice, Project Syndicate, 31 Oct 19 [via New Europe/Belgium]:
Now that inequality is a central issue, national econ priorities will need to shift substantially to create more inclusive economies. If not, people could embrace explosive alternatives to their current govts, such as the populist movements now sweeping many nations, writes 2001 Nobel Laureate

Eswar Prasad: Who wins if the US pulls back?, Bloomberg, 18 Oct 16:
Both Hillary and Trump have made clear that they're suspicious of big free-trade agreements. At a time of major realignments in the world, the US is in danger of fomenting uncertainty in its relationships with major trading partners, writes author of Gaining Currency: The rise of the renminbi (Nov 2016) {eBooks | Alibris}

Which nation is the best trading partner for developing countries?, Ctr Global Devt (blog), by Crawfurd & Elliott, 21 Oct 16:
Since post-Brexit UK will need new trade policies for poor nations as well as with major trading partners, we begin that discussion by assessing which country currently has the best trade-for-devt policy in the world, write Ctr res assoc; and senior fellow

Posted on Fri, 28 Oct 2016:

The hot spots of the world, Rand Review, 13 Oct 16:
More people survive today without adequate food or clean water than live in the US and the EU combined. So the corporation created a tool with the potential to help make aid initiatives more effective

Canada-Europe trade pact's day of reckoning with democratic process, CIGI, by D Schneiderman, 27 Oct 16:
Wallonia has been withholding support partly because of the Investor-State Dispute Settlement, a system that empowers a cadre of investment lawyers and arbitrators with authority to determine when a state has run afoul of vague rights available only to foreign investors, writes Ctr senior fellow

Robert Shiller: What's behind a rise in ethnic nationalism? Maybe the economy, NYT, 19 Oct 16 [courtesy Yale U]:
Leaders today often do not openly declare themselves to be ethnic nationalists - in which identity is defined by perceived genetic, religious, or linguistic heritage rather than democratic ideals or principles, writes 2013 Nobel Laureate

Posted on Wed, 26 Oct 2016:

New Zealand is 1st on ease of doing business among 190 economies, World Bank, 25 Oct 16:
In its global country rankings of business efficiency, Doing Business 2017 awarded its coveted top spot to New Zealand, Singapore is 2nd, followed by Denmark, Hong Kong, S.Korea, Norway, UK, US, Sweden, and Fmr Yugoslav Rep of Macedonia

Migrants bring economic benefits for advanced economies, IMF (blog), by Jaumotte, Koloskova & Saxena, 24 Oct 16:
Migration, no matter how controversial politically, makes sense economically, says a new study. It may therefore be well-worth shouldering the short-term costs to help integrate these new workers, write IMF senior economists

Jeffrey Sachs: The truth about trade, Boston Globe, 17 Oct 16:
I am a believer in expanded international trade, but I am an opponent of the Trans-Pacific Partnership with Asian countries and the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with Europe. This isn't a contradiction, writes Columbia U Sustainable Devt Ctr dir

Posted on Mon, 24 Oct 2016:

Canada-Europe trade pact - the canary in the coal mine of international free trade, Financial Post, by J Chidley, 24 Oct 16:
Here’s something you don't hear every day: the eyes of the world are on Wallonia in Belgium. The excuses for its opposition are all too familiar, incl its impact on heavily subsidized local farmers (it is said that there are three cows for every Walloon) (Rodrik: The Walloon mouse)

The 23 cities people think are best in the world for happiness..., Business Insider, 22 Oct 16 [via Independent]:
The accounting/consultancy firm PwC, in collaboration with BAV Consulting, surveyed a group of 5,200 people from 16 countries about where they believe the best cities in the world are. They were asked what they think about 30 global cities across 40 metrics

Gregory Mankiw: $2,500 - a fair price for 'Hamilton' at the theater, NYT, 23 Oct 16 [PDF, courtesy Harvard]:
Consumers do not typically wish that producers charged higher prices. But that was exactly my desire on a recent trip to NYC. I am a big fan of theater, and I live just outside Boston. While Boston is a good city for the arts, it is not the mecca that NY is, writes Pres GW Bush's Council Econ Advisers chair

Posted on Fri, 21 Oct 2016:

Habitat III and the challenge of urbanization in five charts, OECD (blog), by W Below, 20 Oct 16:
Steps need to be taken to ensure that our cities are liveable, sustainable and inclusive going forward. For this, an adequate roadmap must exist. The UN Habitat III Conference, presently underway in Quito, Ecuador, has an answer, writes official in public governance & territorial devt

Capitalism behaving badly, MIT Technology Review, by D Rotman, 12 Oct 16:
It's time to rethink the role that government plays in shaping and supporting policies to solve big problems, especially in finding more effective ways to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, writes Review editor

Eswar Prasad: The limited rise of the Chinese yuan, WSJ, 27 Sep 16 [PDF, courtesy Cornell U]:
According to the optimists, with China's economy now the 2nd-largest in the world and gradually catching up to the US, the day of the dollar's dominance are surely numbered, writes Cornell economist / author of Gaining Currency: The rise of the renminbi (Nov 2016) {eBooks | Alibris}

Posted on Wed, 19 Oct 2016:

World Bank's Atkinson-led commission releases report on how to better measure, monitor global poverty, 18 Oct 16:
The Commission on Global Poverty has submitted recommendations on how to more comprehensively measure and monitor global poverty. Set up last year by the WB and chaired by Sir Anthony Atkinson, it brought together 24 of the world's leading poverty experts

Ngaire Woods: Who should lead international institutions?, Project Syndicate, 08 Oct 16 [via La Nacion/Costa Rica]:
Our times call for a more meritocratic and unbiased approach to filling the top positions at institutions like the UN, World Bank and WHO. To assess the candidates fairly and effectively, five key criteria should be used, writes Oxford U global econ governance prog dir / school of govt dean

The biggest free trade agreement you've never heard of, CME Group's Open Markets, 30 Sep 16:
Measured in terms of column inches, digital exposure and plain old-fashioned newsworthiness, Asia's response to the rise of the mega-free trade agreement - the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) - has barely rated a mention

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