Atlantic Council

On December 3 the Atlantic Council, in collaboration with Asia Society Washington, hosted a panel discussion on the Pakistan economy. This event was the second in a series of events about Pakistan; the first, on October 22, dealt with civil-military relations in the country.

FT reports that, "Ireland, easily the best performing eurozone economy since the birth of the single currency, on Thursday became the first in the 15-country region to fall into recession."  It's decline has been modest, a GDP drop of 0.5 per cent in the second quarter, but this was the second consecutive negative quarters, the technical definition of recession.

The crisis on Wall Street drove oil prices down 4% to their lowest in seven months on Tuesday.  The Reuters-Jefferies CRB index, a benchmark for raw materials prices, was down to its lowest since January amid predictions that the demand for commodities and global economic slowdown would impact consumer and trader spending.  The Financial Times reported that West Texas Intermediate crude, the US benchmark, was down $3.92 to $91.79 a barrel.

Bankers claim Russia is facing its worst financial crisis since the August 1998 default as foreign capital is removed from the market in reaction to the conflict in Georgia, according to the Financial Times.  Analysts estimate that up to $20bn (€14bn, £11bn) has been removed since the beginning of the conflict.  This has led to problems with liquidity. One senior banker said, "There are real estate developers who can’t finish projects. They can’t get money from anyone, state banks included."  However Russian central bank says the figures are exaggerated, and that only $5bn left the country in August. 

Hans-Jörg Rudloff, chairman of Barclays Capital, warns that lack of investor confidence and the decline in the Russian stock market could have adverse effects around the globe. He said: "Geopolitical tensions always interfere with economic planning and could derail growth patterns around the world.”

A study published this week by Dublin's Eurofound think tank finds that workers in eastern Europe work more hours and take less vacation than their counterparts to the west.  A Der Spiegel synopsis notes that full-time workers in Romania and Bulgaria average 41.7 hours a week at work, compared to 41.1 hours for 6th ranked Germany.  More generally, "the 15 pre-2004 members of the EU spend an average of 39. 5 hours a week on the job, while people in the 12 new member states work 40.6 hours on average. Of the top 10 countries, seven -- Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia and Hungary -- joined the EU after 2004."  Workers in France put in the fewest hours, a mere 37.7 per week.

Swedes get the most vacation time, with 33 days per year paid time off compared to only 20 for the bottom-ranked Estonians.

Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Robert Kimmitt provided an overflow Atlantic Council audience with a “snapshot” of how Treasury is working in the United States and abroad to advance open economies while protecting US national security.  Kimmitt said that globalization will only grow and that “the prosperity of the United States and the world economy will depend in large measure on our ability to balance open investment regimes and national security interests.”

The Council’s report Transatlantic Leadership for a New Global Economy is the product of a commission co-chaired by Stuart E. Eizenstat, former deputy secretary of the Treasury a­nd Council board member, and Grant D. Aldonas, former under secretary of Commerce for international trade.

The Workshop on China and the World Economy, sponsored by the Atlantic Council of the United States and the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, U.S. Department of State, convened December 7, 2005, and January 9, 2006, at the Atlantic Council. The conference was chaired by Franklin D. Kramer of the Atlantic Council. Robert A. Kapp of Robert A. Kapp & Associates, Inc. served as rapporteur.

Beginning with the start of reform in the late 1970s, China’s industry has recorded impressive growth of output, labor productivity, and exports as well as dramatic upgrading of the quality and variety of output.

The United States and the European Union maintain the world’s largest and most significant economic relationship, which in turn is a foundation supporting the transatlantic political partnership. By some estimates, the transatlantic economy — including two-way trade and foreign affiliate sales — totals $2.5 trillion and is responsible for 14 million jobs in the United States and Europe. It is not just the scale of the transactions, however; the transatlantic economy is deeply interconnected through impressive levels of foreign direct investment in both directions.