IMF Podcasts

The IMF released an update to its World Economic Outlook published in October 2015. The WEO Update, projects global growth to be slightly lower than last fall’s forecast, at 3.4 percent this year, and 3.6 percent in 2017. IMF Chief economist Maurice Obstfeld, launched the new report at a press conference in London.

Equality is not just about everyone getting their fair share, it’s also about everyone paying their fair share. A top NGO chief says the growing wealth gap could be reduced by tightening both domestic and international tax rules.Read more on the subject:Fixing International Corporate Taxation---Not Just a Problem for Advanced Economies http://blog-imfdirect.imf.org/2014/06/25/fixing-international-corporate-taxation-not-just-a-problem-for-advanced-economies/ http://www.imf.org/external/np/pp/eng/2014/050914.pdf

The Global Financial Stability Report, or GFSR, is published twice a year and looks at the risks facing the global financial system. The objective is to prevent future crises by highlighting policies that might help mitigate some of those risks. In this podcast, the IMF’s Fabio Natalucci suggests investors stay attuned to risks associated with rising interest rates and protectionism. Natalucci heads the team of economists who write the overview chapter of the GFSR. The report also looks at crypto-assets for the first time. Fabio Natalucci, is a Deputy Director in the IMF's Monetary and Capital Markets Department.

More than 1 million migrants and refugees made their way to Europe last year, 350K from Syria alone. A recent IMF study says people fleeing conflict areas in the Middle-East and North Africa has brought about the biggest refugee crisis since World War 2. In this podcast, the UN’s Kyung-Wha Kang says the 1951 UN convention for refugees is no longer enough.  Contributors: Kyung-Wha Kang, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator at the United Nations.

Despite their oil wealth, the countries of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community still struggle with the "Resource Curse". Sharmini Coorey, Director of the IMF's Institute of Capacity Development describe the challenges of managing oil wealth in the region, and outline policies that could help overcome them.

While many African countries have enjoyed significant revenues from the mining industry in recent years, a new study published by the Natural Resource Governance Institute suggests tax revenues from mining could be much higher if transfer pricing rules were enforced. In this podcast, we speak with the report’s author Alexandra Readhead. Contributors: Alexandra Readhead, author of Preventing Tax Base Erosion in Africa

Who benefits from free trade and who doesn’t? The realities don’t always match people’s perceptions. In this podcast, economist and free trade expert Douglas Irwin addresses some of the controversies. Irwin participated in a seminar entitled Making Trade an Engine of Growth for All at this year’s IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings. Contributors: Douglas Irwin, John Sloan Dickey Third Century Professor in Social Sciences in the Department of Economics at Dartmouth College

The IMF’s latest Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa dedicates an entire chapter on what a drought, an earthquake or a pandemic can do to a country’s economy. In this podcast, lead authors Marshall Mills and Vimal Thakoor say natural disasters have a much bigger impact in sub-Saharan Africa than any other region. Contributors: Marshall Mills: Economist and Mission Chief for Madagascar, IMF African Department. Vimal Thakoor: Economist, IMF African Department.

Le dernier rapport du FMI sur les Perspectives économiques régionales prévoit que le taux de croissance économique de l’Afrique subsaharienne devrait descendre à son plus bas niveau depuis plus de deux décennies. Mais Céline Allard, chef de la division des études régionales au Département Afrique, dit que plusieurs pays continuent de croitre de manière très robuste Contributeurs: Céline Allard, chef de la division des études régionales au Département Afrique du FMI

Sub-Saharan Africa has made significant inroads in reducing poverty and increasing access to education and health services, but the infrastructure deficit still looms large throughout the region. For many countries, the ability to finance their development needs has become more constrained as public debt has increased rapidly in recent years. In this podcast, Abebe Aemro Selassie says when governments invest in the right types of infrastructure, people are more willing to pay the taxes the government needs to service its debt. Selassie is Director of the IMF's African Department, which has helped organize a special conference in Dakar, Senegal, this week to discuss how countries can continue to address the infrastructure gap while maintaining manageable debt levels. Sustainable Development and Debt conference page

Historically, countries that are rich in mineral and commodity resources, like oil, copper or coffee, for example, have had lower rates of growth compared to nations which don't enjoy those advantages. It's a phenomenon dubbed the nature resource curse." Jeffrey Frankel outlines ways he believes the natural resource curse can be mitigated or even avoided.

From global financial crises to cybercrime, globalization has its downsides. The director of the Oxford Martin School discusses the pitfalls of the global community’s ever closer union, and offers some possible remedies to its darker side.

The Global Financial Stability Report exposes weak spots in the global economy that could amplify the impact of a shock, such as an intensification of trade tensions or rising corporate debt. Fabio Natalucci heads the team of economists who write the GFSR. In this podcast, Natalucci says if current trends continue, debt owed by firms unable to cover interest expenses with earnings, or debt-at-risk, could rise to $19 trillion. Fabio Natalucci, is Deputy Director in the IMF's Monetary and Capital Markets Department. Read the IMF BLOG

After a period of high growth between 2007 and 2010, Malawi's economic situation took a turn for the worst. Between 2010 and 2011, growth fell two percent from 6 and a half percent. But since April this year, when a new administration took office, the country has been enjoying renewed stability and revitalized relations with partners.

With Asia’s recent growth comes a growing responsibility within the global economy. In this podcast, Barry Eichengreen, Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley, breaks down the weight of that responsibility and how Asia can rise to fulfill it. Contributors: Barry Eichengreen, George C. Pardee and Helen N. Pardee Professor of Economics and Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley.

Studying the market for salt in 19th century India and the effects on trade of a railroad built 150 years ago led economist Dave Donaldson to important new findings that are relevant today. Donaldson was the 2017 John Bates Clark Medalist, awarded for the most significant contributions by an economist under the age of 40. In this podcast, Donaldson talks about his work on trade and how it benefits economic welfare. A profile of Dave Donaldson, Sherlock of Trade is featured in the June 2018 edition of Finance and Development Magazine. Dave Donaldson is professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Globalization is a recent term, but the internationalization of markets, people, ideas, and cultures is nothing new. In this podcast, IMF historian Harold James, talks about how the past might help guide us into the future. James is Professor of History and International Affairs at Princeton University, and author of New Concept Old Reality published in the December 2016 edition of Finance and Development magazine. Contributors: Harold James, Professor of History and International Affairs at Princeton University and IMF Historian

Decades after the end of colonial rule in Africa, and more than one hundred years after the official end of the slave trade in the US, the continent remains among the least-developed regions of the globe. But how far is the trade in human beings responsible for Africa's lack of economic progress?

While technology is reshaping economies around the world, a recent book published by the World Bank suggests developing countries are missing out on a huge opportunity. In this podcast, economist William Maloney, says the potential returns on investment into Research and Development by developing countries are astounding, and could dwarf international aid flows. Yet, developing country firms and governments invest very little toward realizing this potential. Maloney is Chief Economist for Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions in the World Bank Group, and co-author of The Innovation Paradox. He was a guest lecturer at the IMF’s Developing Economies Seminar Series. William F. Maloney is Chief Economist for Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions in the World Bank Group

Asia fared well throughout the global financial crisis and has since become one of the strongest economic regions in the world. But with the global economy such as it is, a new book published by the IMF says Asia’s financial systems are facing new challenges. In this podcast coauthor Jim Walsh talks about The Future of Asian Finance.