Rising Food and Energy Prices in Europe and Central Asia

Rising Food and Energy Prices in Europe and Central Asia PDF Author: Weltbank
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the channels through which rising commodity prices might affect countries in the Europe and Central Asia Region (ECA) in the short run and to indicate which countries are most likely to be significantly affected. This paper discusses the effects of the global food and energy price increases on ECA countries from two perspectives: (a) impacts on the macro-economy through inflation, the trade balance, fiscal accounts and growth; and (b) distributional impacts within countries. It aims to highlight vulnerabilities to rising commodity prices and discusses some policy interventions to mitigate the impact of rising prices. It puts the ECA experience in the context of the last commodity price increase as well the recent global economic crisis. Section one summarizes the state of global commodity markets. Section two discusses the main macroeconomic channels through which commodity price increases affect the economy. Section three discusses the potential poverty impacts of the price increases and the ability of countries' social assistance systems to deal with the heightened need for social assistance. It also discusses country responses to the crisis to date with reference to policies followed during the 2008 price hikes. Section four examines ECA's agriculture sector and potential responses to the commodity price increase and price volatility. Section five discusses the energy sector. Bank support to ECA countries to help deal with commodity market a development is discussed in annexes one.

Rising Food and Energy Prices in Europe and Central Asia

Rising Food and Energy Prices in Europe and Central Asia PDF Author: Weltbank
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the channels through which rising commodity prices might affect countries in the Europe and Central Asia Region (ECA) in the short run and to indicate which countries are most likely to be significantly affected. This paper discusses the effects of the global food and energy price increases on ECA countries from two perspectives: (a) impacts on the macro-economy through inflation, the trade balance, fiscal accounts and growth; and (b) distributional impacts within countries. It aims to highlight vulnerabilities to rising commodity prices and discusses some policy interventions to mitigate the impact of rising prices. It puts the ECA experience in the context of the last commodity price increase as well the recent global economic crisis. Section one summarizes the state of global commodity markets. Section two discusses the main macroeconomic channels through which commodity price increases affect the economy. Section three discusses the potential poverty impacts of the price increases and the ability of countries' social assistance systems to deal with the heightened need for social assistance. It also discusses country responses to the crisis to date with reference to policies followed during the 2008 price hikes. Section four examines ECA's agriculture sector and potential responses to the commodity price increase and price volatility. Section five discusses the energy sector. Bank support to ECA countries to help deal with commodity market a development is discussed in annexes one.

Rising Food and Energy Prices in Europe and Central Asia

Rising Food and Energy Prices in Europe and Central Asia PDF Author: World Bank
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the channels through which rising commodity prices might affect countries in the Europe and Central Asia Region (ECA) in the short run and to indicate which countries are most likely to be significantly affected. This paper discusses the effects of the global food and energy price increases on ECA countries from two perspectives: (a) impacts on the macro-economy through inflation, the trade balance, fiscal accounts and growth; and (b) distributional impacts within countries. It aims to highlight vulnerabilities to rising commodity prices and discusses some policy interventions to mitigate the impact of rising prices. It puts the ECA experience in the context of the last commodity price increase as well the recent global economic crisis. Section one summarizes the state of global commodity markets. Section two discusses the main macroeconomic channels through which commodity price increases affect the economy. Section three discusses the potential poverty impacts of the price increases and the ability of countries' social assistance systems to deal with the heightened need for social assistance. It also discusses country responses to the crisis to date with reference to policies followed during the 2008 price hikes. Section four examines ECA's agriculture sector and potential responses to the commodity price increase and price volatility. Section five discusses the energy sector. Bank support to ECA countries to help deal with commodity market a development is discussed in annexes one.

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Spring 2023

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Spring 2023 PDF Author: Ivailo Izvorski
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464819823
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 122

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Book Description
Economic growth slowed sharply last year in Europe and Central Asia, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a surge in inflation, and the sharp tightening of monetary policy and financing conditions hit private consumption, investment, and trade. The marked increase in food and energy prices boosted inflation to a pace not seen in 20 years. The burden of inflation was spread unevenly across households. The poorest households faced inflation that was more than 2 percentage points higher than the inflation faced by the richest households, with this difference exceeding 5 percentage points in some countries. Poverty and inequality rates derived from household-specific inflation rates differ from those based on the standard consumer price index (CPI) approach. These differences have important policy implications, because many programs use CPI†“based inflation adjustments, which do not accurately capture changes in the cost of living of targeted populations. Output growth in the region is projected to remain little changed in 2023 but better than projected in January 2023, largely reflecting upgrades to the pace of expansion in Poland, Russia, and Türkiye.

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Spring 2022

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Spring 2022 PDF Author: World Bank
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464818665
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 118

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Book Description
In February 2022, the world was shocked by the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine. The war is having a devastating impact on human life and causing economic destruction in both countries, and will lead to significant economic losses in the Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region and the rest of the world. It comes at a particularly vulnerable time for ECA as its economic recovery was expected to be held back by scarring from the pandemic and lingering structural weaknesses. The economic impact of the conflict has reverberated through multiple channels, including commodity and financial markets, trade and migration links, and the damaging impact on confidence. Moreover, the war has added to mounting concerns about a sharp global slowdown, surging inflation and debt, and a spike in poverty levels. Neighboring ECA countries are likely to suffer considerable economic damage because of their strong trade, financial, and migration links with Russia and Ukraine. The war is also causing a destabilizing wave of refugees, financial stresses in vulnerable countries, runaway inflation expectations, and food insecurity. A protracted conflict could further heighten policy uncertainty and fragment critical trade and investment networks.

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Fall 2022

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Fall 2022 PDF Author: World Bank
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464819289
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
Globalization, demographic trends, the green transition, and technological innovations are transforming labor markets in Europe and Central Asia, altering their institutional and contractual arrangements, and creating disparities and vulnerabilities in the labor force. Systemic risks—economic, health, or climate-related—are also playing an increased role in driving poverty and vulnerability. Social protection systems in Europe and Central Asia will need to be reformed to address these challenges and provide adequate protection to workers and families. Countries in the region responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by implementing social protection packages with a substantial contribution of job protection policies. Analysis of the impact of these policies suggests that while job protection policies may have preserved employment in the short run, this may have come at the expense of efficiency and growth. In the long run, income protection policies may be better at addressing the needs of vulnerable groups as labor markets continue evolving. A policy package that combines a guaranteed minimum income with labor market policies that facilitate job transitions can best help countries address long-term challenges.

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Fall 2023

Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Fall 2023 PDF Author: Ivailo Izvorski
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464820457
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 100

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Book Description
Europe and Central Asia (ECA) continues to be negatively impacted by the Russian Federation's invasion of Ukraine, tighter global financial conditions, persistent inflation, and global economic fragmentation. Economic growth in the region is projected to remain weak relative to the long-term trend, delaying the convergence of living standards to those of high-income countries. Climate change is becoming a serious constraint on growth, as extreme weather events are affecting the region with increased frequency and severity. Economic growth for the emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) of the Europe and Central Asia region has been revised up to 2.4% for 2023. The pickup in growth reflects improved forecast for war-hit Ukraine and for Central Asia as well as consumer resiliency in Türkiye and better-than-expected growth in Russia because of a surge in government spending on the military and social transfers. Nevertheless, growth remains weak relative to the long-term pre-pandemic averages. Downside risks cloud the outlook for the 23 EMDEs in Europe and Central Asia. High inflation may persist amid heightened volatility in global commodity markets and a surge in energy prices. Global financial markets may become more volatile and restrictive due to tightening financing conditions. Global growth for 2020-2024 is the weakest than during any five-year period since 1990 and may weaken further.

Europe and Central Asia - Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2023

Europe and Central Asia - Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2023 PDF Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251383650
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 76

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Book Description
The Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Europe and Central Asia for 2023 – Statistics and Trends provides a comprehensive analysis of Sustainable Development Goal 2, focusing specifically on Target 2.1 (ending hunger and ensuring universal access to food) and Target 2.2 (eradicating all forms of malnutrition). Additionally, the report evaluates progress concerning three global nutrition targets: adult obesity, exclusive breastfeeding, and low birthweight, as endorsed by the 2012 World Health Assembly. It also offers an updated analysis of the cost and affordability of a healthy diet within the Europe and Central Asia region. Recent estimates affirm that hunger prevalence remains relatively low in the ECA region. Food insecurity at moderate or severe levels is notably lower compared to global estimates. However, food insecurity levels remain significantly higher than those recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the ECA region has made significant strides in reducing undernutrition overall, some countries still exhibit relatively high rates of stunting (over 10 percent) and wasting (over 3 percent). Overall, the region is not on track in addressing childhood overweight, adult obesity, anemia among women aged 15 to 49, and exclusive breastfeeding. Healthy diets play a crucial role in safeguarding against the impacts of malnutrition, fostering improved health outcomes. Notably, in the past year, the Western Balkans experienced the highest cost for a healthy diet within the region, surpassing both the ECA and global averages. Overall, there has been an increase in the number of individuals able to afford a healthy diet over the past year, while the percentage unable to afford it remains significantly lower than the global estimate.

Europe and Central Asia – Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2022

Europe and Central Asia – Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2022 PDF Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251376018
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
This report presents the latest updates related to food security and nutrition in Europe and Central Asia, including estimates on the cost and affordability of healthy diets. It also explores how governments are supporting the food and agriculture sector and how to repurpose policies and incentives to make healthy diets more affordable and agrifood systems more environmentally sustainable. The new estimates confirm that the prevalence of hunger at chronic or severe levels is relatively low in the ECA region, through the prevalence of food insecurity at moderate or severe levels can be quite high. The region is seeing alarmingly high – and rising – rates of overweight and obesity. The COVID-19 pandemic has added 25.5 million people in the region to the ranks of the moderately or severely food insecure, leaving them without access to safe, nutritious and adequate food. The war in Ukraine has made the situation worse. Almost all ECA subregions are experiencing increased costs and reduced affordability of healthy diets because of higher food prices and lower incomes. This report contains an in-depth analysis of the repurposing of food and agricultural policies to ensure the food systems transformation is better suited to addressing the “triple challenge” of achieving food security and good nutrition for better health, providing livelihoods to farmers and others connected to the sector, and reducing the nature and climate footprint of the sector. This report also reviews complementing policies within and outside of agrifood systems to assess whether repurposing efforts are impactful in the ECA region.

Global Economic Prospects, June 2022

Global Economic Prospects, June 2022 PDF Author: World Bank
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464818444
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 299

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Book Description
The world economy continues to suffer from a series of destabilizing shocks. After more than two years of pandemic, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its global effects on commodity markets, supply chains, inflation, and financial conditions have steepened the slowdown in global growth. In particular, the war is leading to soaring prices and volatility in energy markets, with improvements in activity in energy exporters more than offset by headwinds to activity in most other economies. The war has also led to a significant increase in agricultural commodity prices, which is exacerbating food insecurity and extreme poverty in many emerging market and developing economies. Numerous risks could further derail what is now a precarious recovery. Among them is, in particular, the possibility of stubbornly high global inflation accompanied by tepid growth, reminiscent of the stagflation of the 1970s. This could eventually result in a sharp tightening of monetary policy in advanced economies to rein in inflation, lead to surging borrowing costs, and possibly culminate in financial stress in some emerging market and developing economies. A forceful and wide-ranging policy response is required by policy makers and the global community to boost growth, bolster macroeconomic frameworks, reduce financial vulnerabilities, provide support to the vulnerable population groups, and attenuate the long-term impacts of the global shocks of recent years.

The Political Economy and Islam of the Middle East

The Political Economy and Islam of the Middle East PDF Author: Hayat Alvi
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3030170500
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 213

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Book Description
This book analyzes the political economy of the MENA region with a focus on pre-revolutionary political and economic conditions, the 2011 revolution itself, and post-revolutionary political processes in Tunisia. The author places particular emphasis on the political role of women, Islam, and democracy after the revolution, and argues that post-Revolution Tunisia serves as an ideal model for the MENA region to follow. This volume will interest scholars, students, researchers, and everyone who is interested in the politics of MENA and political economy.