This paper studies the production and trade linkages between a selected group of economies belonging to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). After defining a group of Belt and Road Economies, the paper uses three standard trade databases to analyze trade and production linkages among these...

Cities can increase economic growth and participate in global economic flows by acting as hubs or gateways to regional corridors, that are supported by three dimensions of connectivity: physical (infrastructure) connectivity, digital connectivity, and economic integration. Integrating these...

Following from Vietnam's ratification of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in late 2018 and its effectiveness from January 2019, and the European Parliament's recent approval of the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and its...

This book proposes a renewal of 'Open Regionalism' in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) aimed at achieving the region's goals of high growth with stability. The LAC region experienced a growth spurt with equity during the first decade of the 21st Century. It is well understood that an...

This report reviews the status of Maghreb countries' economic integration with the world, with the Arab world, and within the Maghreb itself. It focuses on trade in goods and services, labor and capital flows, financial integration and cross-border infrastructure integration. It discusses the...

The study analyzes the SE landscape and related ecosystem of seven SAARC countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The scope of this study is limited to three sectors that are significant for SEs: (a) Agri-business, (b) Healthcare and (c) Renewable...

The report presents the results of macro-simulations of the consequences of different excise policy scenarios for 2018-2021 in two EAEU countries, Russia and Kazakhstan. Three scenarios are considered: (a) the low-taxation harmonization level and rate of growth proposed by the Eurasian Economic...

Critical Connections examines how trade, investment, migration, and other linkages among countries drive economic growth in the Europe and Central Asia region. The study breaks new ground by using a multidimensional approach that recognizes how each connectivity channel for growth is likely to...

"China proposed the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013 to improve connectivity and cooperation on a transcontinental scale. This study, by a team of World Bank Group economists led by Michele Ruta, analyzes the economics of the initiative. It assesses the connectivity gaps between economies along...

The economies of Europe and Central Asia (ECA) are facing complex challenges. In the eastern part of the region the task of governments is to orchestrate a coordinated crisis response. The collapse of oil revenues and the associated decline in remittances triggered a chain reaction of shocks....