Last week, the leadership of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) decided unanimously to invite the European nation of Latvia to join as its 35th member. The Baltic nation had met all of the OECD’s membership requirements, and the decision to invite it to join the OECD was made by unanimous vote of the OECD’s governing council.
In a speech to supporters, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro threatened to seize control of non-productive factories and imprison owners if they stop production, according to Associated Press.
His threat comes on the heels of an emergency decree granting him more authority, and he blames the “bourgeoisie” for worsening the South American nation’s widespread food and product shortages. Venezuela’s economy is on the brink of ruin, with opposition leaders gathering signatures to launch a recall referendum.
Retail sales in America posted a surprising jump, as consumers are feeling more comfortable about opening their wallets. Retail sales rose 1.4% on a month-over-month basis in April after falling 0.3% in March on a seasonally adjusted basis. Sales also rose 2.7% on a year-over-year basis, with non-store retailers seeing a 10.2% gain on a year-over-year basis.
That jump helped to boost overall retail sales from February to April, which saw a 2.8% year-over-year gain.
The week yielded a mixed bag of economic data indicating some strength in America’s recovery. A new Department of Labor study showed unemployment claims rose 20,000 to 294,000, ahead of economists’ expectations. As wages have risen and job openings continue to soar, economists expected more employers to find qualified workers and boost both incomes and the employment rate.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a report on global corruption this week. In it, the international finance organization reported that almost $2 trillion worth of public works projects, permits for private work, and other transactions in countries around the world are tainted each year by bribery. That amounts to about 2% of the world’s total economic output.
Due to anemic growth and an unstable world economy, Italy’s small business sector woes grow worse, according to The Wall Street Journal. Small businesses are vital to Italy’s economy, and the European Union (EU) relies on Italy and other EU nations to strengthen Eurozone GDP. The Italian prime minister has yet to instill policies that would bolster the economy.
Dramatic declines in commercial real estate soured GDP growth in the first quarter, leading to speculation that the Federal Reserve will delay raising interest rates. Analysts are growing increasingly confident that the Fed will delay its rate hike, with a new report by Goldman Sachs calling for the next hike to be delayed until December.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is the parent organization for the International Energy Agency (IEA). The two bodies have apparently been locked in an internal feud for years, and this dispute has finally led the two bodies to consider a full and formal legal split. Of course, such a split could come with a complicated morass of funding and governance issues.
The Norwegian government will tap into its wealth fund once again to sustain government operations, as the sting of a low-priced oil market burdens the Scandinavian country, according to Reuters. Officials have used the fund once before as a rainy day fund and may continue to do so as the economy lacks the necessary revenue. The economy is expected to expand 1.0% in 2016.
The Federal Reserve has boosted one estimate of second quarter GDP as housing and small business data improves. The Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow indicator rose 50 basis points to 2.2% as Fed economists cited expectations for higher consumer spending and fixed investment.
The upgrade comes amidst a report from CoreLogic, a real estate research firm, which showed a tremendous decline in foreclosures. Total foreclosures in America fell 14.9% on a year-over-year basis in March, with just 427,000 foreclosures on the market. That represents 1.1% of homes.
