The European Union's strong positions in international services trade are mainly in finance and insurance, as well as in computing wherethey are now challenged by large emerging countries. The United Kingdom appears to be the only large European country specialized inservices with strong growth....

As part of discussions on reforming the international monetary system, there has been renewed interest in the Special Drawing Right (SDR). In April 2011, the finance ministers and central bankers of the G20 decided to work on a “criteria-based path to broaden the composition of the SDR”.1 In...

While the sovereign debt crisis continues worsening in the Euro area, European partners are still hesitating in offering some help, considering that Europe must rely primary on its own resources and fix its failed governance. Still, this crisis constitutes a new, major risk for other countries,...

Just like any market price, the exchange rate for the dollar fluctuates based on supply and demand. By observing the constituent elements of the supply and demand for dollar assets, we can thus explain the significant appreciation of the dollar during the second half of 2008. Over this period,...

The brutal drop in global trade during the last quarter of 2008 and the first months of 2009 has been the subject of much discussion. Some have seen this fall-off, which was considerably steeper than the accompanying decline in production, as a reversal of previous trends. The international...

In the wake of the global crisis the G20 has largely substituted the G7 as the key forum for international economic cooperation. However, G7 and non-G7 members of the G20 come to G20 meetings with different priorities. Developed countries have taken a direct hit on their banking and financial...