Aurélia Nguyen, Managing Director of the COVAX Facility and Sabina Bhatia, Deputy Secretary of the IMF, discuss the challenges of vaccine procurement and distribution, and highlight the need for international cooperation to secure global and equitable access to vaccines. Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF, will give opening remarks.

Join the conversation via #IMFinspired

By Gita Gopinath

????, ??, Español, Français, ???, Português, ???????

It is one year into the COVID-19 pandemic and the global community still confronts extreme social and economic strain as the human toll rises and millions remain unemployed. Yet, even with high uncertainty about the path of the pandemic, a way out of this health and economic crisis is increasingly visible. Thanks to the ingenuity of the scientific community hundreds of millions of people are being vaccinated and this is expected to power recoveries in many countries later this year. Economies also continue to adapt to new ways of working despite reduced mobility, leading to a stronger-than-anticipated rebound across regions. Additional fiscal support in large economies, particularly the United States, has further improved the outlook.

By John Bluedorn

????, ??, Español, Français,  ???,  Português, ???????

The COVID-19 pandemic’s destruction of jobs was sure and swift. The lasting effects of the crisis on workers could be just as painful and unequal.

Youth and lower-skilled workers took some of the hardest hits on average. Women, especially in emerging market and developing economies, also suffered. Many of these workers face earnings losses and difficult searches for job opportunities. Even after the pandemic recedes, structural changes to the economy in the wake of the shock may mean that job options in some sectors and occupations permanently shrink and others grow.

You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

Thank you for joining us here today for this virtual workshop about how digital money can facilitate remittances.

 

The eminent MIT economist Rudy Dornbusch famously said:

“In economics things take longer to happen than you think they will, and then they happen faster than you thought they could.”

Digital money is a perfect illustration of this maxim, where after a long period of development, the field is on the cusp of major changes that have the potential to reshape cross-border payments and remittances.

 

For example, last October The Bahamas launched the Sand Dollar, the world’s first central bank digital currency. Many other economies are exploring their own pilot programs. Other forms of digital money, such as privately issued stablecoins, are increasingly being used for cross-border payments.

 

We are witnessing a revolution in digital money that could make remittances easier,...

Emerging and developing economies are viewing rising interest rates with trepidation. Most of them are facing a slower economic recovery than advanced economies because of longer waits for vaccines and limited space for their own fiscal stimulus. Now, capital inflows to emerging markets have shown signs of drying up. The fear is of a repeat of the “taper tantrum” episode of 2013, when indications of an earlier-than-expected tapering of US bond purchases caused a rush of capital outflows from emerging markets.

Are these fears justified? Our research in the latest World Economic Outlook finds that for emerging markets, what matters is the reason for the rise in US interest rates.

Cause and effect

When the reason is good news about US jobs or COVID-19 vaccines, most emerging markets tend to experience stronger portfolio inflows and lower spreads on US dollar-denominated debt. Good economic news in advanced economies could lead to export growth for emerging...

Thank you for joining us here today for this virtual workshop about how digital money can facilitate remittances.

 

The eminent MIT economist Rudy Dornbusch famously said:

“In economics things take longer to happen than you think they will, and then they happen faster than you thought they could.”

Digital money is a perfect illustration of this maxim, where after a long period of development, the field is on the cusp of major changes that have the potential to reshape cross-border payments and remittances.

 

For example, last October The Bahamas launched the Sand Dollar, the world’s first central bank digital currency. Many other economies are exploring their own pilot programs. Other forms of digital money, such as privately issued stablecoins, are increasingly being used for cross-border payments.

 

We are witnessing a revolution in digital money that could make remittances easier,...

The Spring Meetings will take place virtually on April 5-11, 2021. Tune in on our website and in social media to stay on top of the discussions, and watch events on the IMF Live page. #IMFMeetings.

Schedule

###

You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

A year into the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the race between vaccine and virus entered a new phase in the Middle East and Central Asia region, and the path to recovery in 2021 is expected to be long and divergent. The outlook will vary significantly across countries, depending on the pandemic’s path, vaccine rollouts, underlying fragilities, exposure to tourism and contact-intensive sectors, and policy space and actions. Public gross financing needs in most emerging markets in the region are expected to remain elevated in 2021–22, with downside risks in the event of tighter global financial conditions and/or if fiscal consolidation is delayed due to weaker-than-expected recovery. 2021 will be the year of policies that continue saving lives and livelihoods and promote recovery, while balancing the need for debt sustainability and financial resilience. At the same time, policymakers must not lose sight of the transformational challenges to build forward better and...

By John Bluedorn

????, ??, Español, Français,  ???,  Português, ???????

The COVID-19 pandemic’s destruction of jobs was sure and swift. The lasting effects of the crisis on workers could be just as painful and unequal.

Youth and lower-skilled workers took some of the hardest hits on average. Women, especially in emerging market and developing economies, also suffered. Many of these workers face earnings losses and difficult searches for job opportunities. Even after the pandemic recedes, structural changes to the economy in the wake of the shock may mean that job options in some sectors and occupations permanently shrink and others grow.

This one-to-one conversation between Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF, and Commissioner Gentiloni will discuss the European Recovery and Resilience Facility and how it can help the EU rebound in the wake of the pandemic and aid in the transformation of its economic model.

###

You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

A year into the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the race between vaccine and virus entered a new phase in the Middle East and Central Asia region, and the path to recovery in 2021 is expected to be long and divergent. The outlook will vary significantly across countries, depending on the pandemic’s path, vaccine rollouts, underlying fragilities, exposure to tourism and contact-intensive sectors, and policy space and actions. Public gross financing needs in most emerging markets in the region are expected to remain elevated in 2021–22, with downside risks in the event of tighter global financial conditions and/or if fiscal consolidation is delayed due to weaker-than-expected recovery. 2021 will be the year of policies that continue saving lives and livelihoods and promote recovery, while balancing the need for debt sustainability and financial resilience. At the same time, policymakers must not lose sight of the transformational challenges to build forward better and...

by Jonathan D. Ostry

??

In some Asia-Pacific countries, the unpleasant memory of the pandemic is receding; elsewhere, second or third waves of infections are raging. A recovery is underway, but the regional averages obscure wide differences within and across countries.

###

You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

Emerging and developing economies are viewing rising interest rates with trepidation. Most of them are facing a slower economic recovery than advanced economies because of longer waits for vaccines and limited space for their own fiscal stimulus. Now, capital inflows to emerging markets have shown signs of drying up. The fear is of a repeat of the “taper tantrum” episode of 2013, when indications of an earlier-than-expected tapering of US bond purchases caused a rush of capital outflows from emerging markets.

Are these fears justified? Our research in the latest World Economic Outlook finds that for emerging markets, what matters is the reason for the rise in US interest rates.

Cause and effect

When the reason is good news about US jobs or COVID-19 vaccines, most emerging markets tend to experience stronger portfolio inflows and lower spreads on US dollar-denominated debt. Good economic news in advanced economies could lead to export growth for emerging...

by Jonathan D. Ostry

In some Asia-Pacific countries, the unpleasant memory of the pandemic is receding; elsewhere, second or third waves of infections are raging. A recovery is underway, but the regional averages obscure wide differences within and across countries.

by Jonathan D. Ostry

In some Asia-Pacific countries, the unpleasant memory of the pandemic is receding; elsewhere, second or third waves of infections are raging. A recovery is underway, but the regional averages obscure wide differences within and across countries.

by Jonathan D. Ostry

In some Asia-Pacific countries, the unpleasant memory of the pandemic is receding; elsewhere, second or third waves of infections are raging. A recovery is underway, but the regional averages obscure wide differences within and across countries.