This is a companion to the Global Economic Prospects 2010. Most commodity prices reached historical highs in mid-2008, giving rise to the longest and broadest commodity boom of the post-WWII period. Apart from strong and sustained economic growth, the boom was fueled by numerous factors...

The decline in commodity prices that began with metals and agriculture four years ago—joined by crude oil in mid-2014—continued in 2015Q1 (Figure 1). Energy, metals, and agricultural prices were down 28, 11, and 5 percent, respectively, from the previous quarter. Increasing supplies, bumper...

This paper discusses issues and explores options related to the reform of the power sector regulatory system in China. It reviews the power sector's current situation and impediments to reform, examines the relationship between power sector structure and regulation, and suggests several...

Hydro resources are provided by nature. The exploitation of such resources can generate significant economic rent to the owners. In the past, governments have usually claimed ownership of hydroelectric resources and passed on the rents to their state-owned utilities, which have used them to...

Concerns about global warming and the availability of clean renewable sources of energy are increasing. However, as private companies take over state power utilities, the demand for profit has stifled those concerns. Currently the private sector is building over 40 megawatts of fossil-fuel...

A radical new strategy for dealing with the problems of energy and the environment in the Sahel is being implemented in Niger. Rather than have urban wood traders go into the countryside to cut the wood and truck it back to the cities, the government is giving village communities control over...

Iraq's economy is gradually emerging from the deep recession caused by the pandemic and the plunge in oil prices in 2020. Higher oil revenues pushed Iraq's overall fiscal and external balances into a surplus in 2021. The turnaround in oil markets has significantly improved Iraq's economic...

Cambodia is now weathering an oil price shock, just as the economy had started to recover amid a rollback of Coronavirus (COVID-19)-related restrictions. Negative impacts of the oil price shock are amplified by Cambodia's already large external imbalances. Rising food and energy prices have...