Subsidies—Love Them or Hate Them, It’s Better to Target Them

Posted on May 10, 2011 by iMFdirect

By Masood Ahmed

(Version in عربي)

For decades, countries in the Middle East and North Africa have relied heavily on food and fuel price subsidies as a form of social protection. And, understandably, governments have recently raised subsidies in response to hikes in global commodity prices and regional political developments.

Like many things, there may be a time and a place for using subsidies.But, they need to be better targeted. And, often, there will be better alternatives. Alternatives that do a better job of protecting the poor. (more…)

Filed under: Economic outlook, International Monetary Fund, Middle East | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Seven Pillars of Prosperity—Diversifying Economic Growth in the Caucasus and Central Asia

Posted on May 5, 2011 by iMFdirect

By David Owen

(Version in Русский)

Medium-term economic growth prospects in the Caucasus and Central Asia region are strong. But, to secure ongoing prosperity, the eight countries of the region—Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—will need to look beyond traditional sources of growth.

The challenge for policymakers will be to foster new and more diverse growth drivers, outside mining, oil, and gas.

There are seven policy pillars that can help them do that: (more…)

Filed under: Economic outlook, Emerging Markets, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Is There a Silver Lining to Sluggish Credit Growth in the Gulf Countries?

Posted on December 7, 2010 by iMFdirect

By Masood Ahmed

(Version in عربي )

Bank credit has been very slow to pickup in the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). How big a problem is this for their economic recovery?

Sluggish credit growth in the post-crisis period was hardly a unique development, as indicated in our latest Regional Economic Outlook. More than a dozen countries in the Middle East and Central Asia region, and countless more outside the region, shared this experience. But while there are clearer signs of recovery in some countries, credit to the private sector is still barely growing in the GCC, notwithstanding policy efforts to revive it.

It might seem easy to ring the alarm bells. After all, won’t the prospect of weak credit growth restrain economic activity in the short-term? Perhaps. But we believe the negative impact of credit growth may not be quite so severe.

Why not? In part, that answer lies in how we arrived at the current situation. (more…)

Filed under: Economic Crisis, Economic outlook, Middle East, عربي | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Raising Competitiveness: Recipe for Tapping into the Middle East’s Growth Potential

Posted on October 29, 2010 by iMFdirect

By Masood Ahmed

(Version in  عربي )

With the global economy on the mend, countries in the Middle East and North Africa are witnessing a pickup in trade and economic growth. Aided by rising oil prices and production levels and supportive fiscal policies, economic growth for the region as a whole is projected to exceed 4 percent in 2010, almost double what it was in 2009.

In contrast, and unlike many emerging markets elsewhere, the region’s oil-importing countries saw only a mild slowdown in economic growth last year to 4½ percent and are likely to see growth nudge up to around 5 percent this year. However, as our October 2010 Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East points out, that growth rate is well below the average of 6½ percent a year required to create the 18 million jobs needed over the next decade to absorb new labor-market entrants and eliminate chronically high unemployment. (more…)

Filed under: Economic outlook, International Monetary Fund, Middle East, عربي | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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