Against the background of the dramatic aggravation of the financial crisis the world economy is in a downturn. After four years of strong economic growth the economy already cooled down in 2007. World trade has expanded only marginally in recent months. A further weakening in 2009 is already...

The world economy continues to expand at a vigorous rate for the fifth year in a row, with real output growth exceeding 5 percent. Downside risks to global economic activity have increased mainly because of the aggravation of the real estate crisis in the USA, where real estate prices have been...