According to a recent report by UNICEF, “the simultaneous adoption of fiscal austerity in countries worldwide is driving the global economy toward recession, imposing human costs that are detrimental to high-income and developing countries alike.”
Yet the world remains fixated on austerity and cost-cutting measures to boost recovery, which in turn has made the economic crisis even worse than it already is.
Dubai is an international and regional trading hub in the UAE and despite financial woes over the last few years, economic growth looks set to be strong for this glittering desert jewel in 2012. Although this strength was founded partly upon the oil industry, Dubai is also succeeding in the tourist industry, corporate income, international trade, property and investment.
The eurozone’s second largest economy, France, is headed for another recession by the third quarter of the year, said the nation’s central bank on Wednesday, with the newly-elected Hollande government expected to be forced into deep spending cuts in order to balance the country’s books.
The high cost of road tax, fuel and auto-repairs have forced thousands of Greek commuters to ditch their cars for bicycles, said a report by Reuters on Wednesday, with many bicycle shop owners claiming that a new “bike culture” was emerging along the, formerly bike-adverse, streets of Athens.
The money-laundering allegations brought against British bank Standard Chartered have led to suspicions of a political conspiracy. According to a report by Reuters, several political observers and bank executives are questioning if the recent scandals involving British banks are part of a larger scheme that seeks to undermine London’s role as a global financial centre.
Authorities in the Cayman Islands have backed down from plans to impose a direct income tax on foreign workers earning more than $43,200 a year, reported Reuters on Wednesday, after several high-profile business leaders lobbied the government to withdraw the proposal, which would have overcome the tax haven’s budget shortfall.
Residents in China’s Huaxi village, located in the east of Jiangsu province, will now be able to enjoy free helicopter rides around their region, reported the China Daily on Tuesday, after Huaxi village officials set up the nation’s first ever village-owned aviation company, with an initial investment of 100 million yuan ($15.7 million).
Promoting financial literacy among citizens can help improve the financial health of individuals as well as stabilize the national economy, said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.
Speaking at a town hall meeting with teachers in Washington on Tuesday, Bernanke said students who learn the basic principles of financial planning are more likely to save more later on in life, allowing them to weather economic and market downturns.
Green growth has been touted as the economic and environmentally sustainable way forward. However inclusive green growth is, according to the World Bank, the only way to reconcile rapid growth and the needs of more than 1 billion people still living in poverty.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has called for compassion for the average American, arguing that economic indicators fail to reflect the suffering of individual citizens. US unemployment in July remained stubbornly high at 8.3 percent, with an estimated 12.8 million Americans out of work.
Speaking via a prerecorded video at the International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, Bernanke urged economists and researchers to look for better ways to measure well-being so they can make stronger and more effective policy decisions.
