The risks to the global economy are growing and so are risks to Russia’s growth. Russia’s short-term economic and fiscal situation remains favorable because of high oil prices with an almost balanced budget this year. But the balance of macroeconomic risks has shifted toward an uncertain...

Russia’s economy contracted 4.6 percent in the second quarter, year-on-year, after a 2.2 percent contraction in the first quarter, but in June the pace of contraction slowed. Russia’s second quarter balance of payment remained stable despite a weaker trade balance as the current account...

In June, the European Council extended EU economic sanctions against Russia for another six months while Russia extended its food import ban against Western countries for a year. A fluid situation on global financial markets and yet again lower growth prospects led to oil prices losing ground in...

Russia’s short-term economic growth has accelerated above its long term trend, defying weak global conditions. In 2007, the economy grew by 8.1 percent on the heels of very high (and perhaps unsustainable) oil prices, robust domestic demand and strong macroeconomic fundamentals. Preliminary...

This paper relies on the recently developed Maquette for Millennium Development Goals Simulations (MAMS) model to assess the consistency of alternative scaling-up and policy packages for growth and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals in Ghana. In the baseline scenario, Ghana's strong...

This paper explores competitiveness of Cote d'Ivoire's economy over a long period of 1960-2003 and its link with cocoa prices. The main conclusions are as follows. First, using four measures of real effective exchange rate (REER) for the 1960-2002 period, we track the evolution of REER and...

Key economic variables in Cote d'Ivoire vary widely from their long-run trends, moving in multi-year cyclical patterns. Cocoa prices move with cycles in growth rates, capital stock, real exchange rates, terms of trade, cocoa production, and coffee production and output. These patterns have...

Real GDP per capita and capital stock in Cote d'Ivoire grew strongly from 1960 to 1979, but have declined ever since, for twenty-five years. As a result, the country has traveled a full circle from economic success to failure in little more than a generation. What are the long-term factors...

Russia is a country of global importance and great diversity. The world’s largest transcontinental country spans eleven time zones and is the ninth most populous country in the world. Russia is the main trading partner for many of its more than a dozen neighbors. It is richly endowed with...