Posted by oecdecoscope. The global economic expansion is strengthening. Global growth is projected to increase from 3.7% in 2017 to around 4% in 2018 and 2019 in our latest Interim Economic Outlook. In many advanced and emerging G-20 economies, the growth prospects for the next two years have improved. Global trade and investment are growing faster, accompanied by robust job creation. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. The Israeli economy is strong. The country is enjoying its 15^th consecutive year of growth, with GDP increasing on average by 4.0% annually since 2003, i.e. faster than nearly any other OECD country. Unemployment is at historically low level, and the average standard of living is improving steadily. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. The Irish economy is booming and is expected to continue expanding at healthy rates over the next few years. But as the 2018 OECD Economic Survey of Ireland highlights, the outlook is clouded with uncertainty. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. Growth is recovering but inequality remains persistent. Growth is projected to reach 1.5% in 2018 after many years below one percent or negative in per capita terms. Low growth and high unemployment have adversely affected the well-being of South Africans. Since 2010, inequality, measured by the Gini coefficient at 0.62, has almost stagnated withering the social contract in a context of policy mistrust. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. After a long period of lacklustre economic performance, robust growth has resumed. The Finnish economy suffered a series of sizeable adverse shocks alongside the global financial and economic crisis, facing major difficulties in the electronic and forest industries, in addition to a severe recession in Russia. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. Over the past two decades, strong growth combined with remarkable social progress has made Brazil one of the world’s leading economies. However, Brazil remains a highly unequal country, recent corruption allegations have revealed significant challenges in economic governance and the situation of its fiscal accounts is challenging with high and rising public debt (OECD, 2018). More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. In Finland, as elsewhere, income taxation and the withdrawal of benefits reduce the pay-off for individuals who go from benefits to work. Multiple benefits interact in complex ways, trapping individuals in unemployment, underemployment or inactivity. Complex benefit rules combine with administrative practices to create “bureaucratic traps” when individuals taking up temporary, part-time or unstable employment face a real or perceived risk of losing eligibility or receiving benefits with a delay as their claims are re-evaluated. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. Chile has been one of the fastest-growing economies in the OECD in recent decades. Sound macroeconomic management, bold structural reforms, such as trade and investment liberalisation, and buoyant natural-resource sectors, supported fast convergence in living standards. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. Households’ economic well-being is usually measured by income. But what if there is an interruption in the flow of income? Or an unexpected expense? Such events highlight the importance of wealth accumulation to sustain people’s economic well-being. More...

Posted by oecdecoscope. In many advanced countries, the share of citiziens having reached post-retirement age is growing fast. Since elderly rely for a good part on a public pension scheme for income support, population ageing tends to result in more income redistribution, in particular in the form cash transfers. More...