The global financial crisis severely affected economies in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ECA). Currencies depreciated across the region. Government tax revenues declined sharply leading to high budget deficits and rising levels of public debt. Tightening credit supply and deteriorating...

Investment commitments to new infrastructure projects with private participation (PPI projects) reaching closure in developing countries grew by 15 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009 compared with the same period of 2008-and by 15 percent in 2009 as a whole. These growth rates indicate a...

Investment commitments to infrastructure projects with private participation (Private Participation in Infrastructure (PPI) projects) reaching closure in developing countries grew by 22 percent in the third quarter of 2009, and by 10 percent in the first three quarters of the year, compared with...

"This paper analyzes the effects of capital controls and crises on international financial integration, using data on stocks from emerging economies that trade in domestic and international markets. The cross-market premium (the ratio between the domestic and international market price of...

"An apparent temporary narrowing of income inequality has been observed during several recent banking crises. But it would be a mistake to conclude that such crises don't matter for the poor. For one thing, the correlation is not strong, and the opposite pattern has also been present. Besides,...

This report is the sixth in an annual series assessing development issues. It reviews recent trends in the international economy and their implications for the developing countries with a special focus on the management and institutional aspects of development. The early recovery in the world...

The global economic crisis that began in 2008 threatened to erase years of progress in developing countries. In response, the World Bank Group increased lending to unprecedented levels. The World Bank posted a large increase in middle income countries (MICs), and a much smaller one in low income...

This report examines the fiscal prospects of major units of sub-national government in the voivodship (province) of Mazowieckie and proposes a series of reforms in recurrent spending and capital investment planning. Mazowieckie, the seat of Warsaw, is the heart of the Polish economy. While...