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EU Agrees to Simplify CAP
The EU Council has agreed to discuss simplification of Europe’s Common Agricultural Policy and has adopted an action plan on competitiveness in the agro-food industry. While discussing the issues faced by EU dairy farmers during the last year, most delegations welcomed the analysis brought forth by the European Commission, and the measures undertaken, but they had differing opinions on the best means to solve these issues. The Council also took note of the work done by the High Level Group on the Competitiveness of the Agro-Food Industry. Of the recommendations presented by the group, Member-States generally welcomed those making better use of available instruments that support competitiveness, facilitate technology innovation and development, and avoid anti-competitive activities.
Report of the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress
This Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress report reflects concerns over the adequacy of current measures of economic performance, in particular those based on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures. Containing views from renowned experts from universities, governmental, and intergovernmental organisations, the report aims to identify the limits of GDP as an indicator of economic performance and social progress, to consider additional information required for the production of a more relevant picture, to discuss how to present this information in the most appropriate way, and to check the feasibility of measurement tools proposed by the Commission. To achieve this, the authors recommend measuring consumption and income rather than production, and considering those jointly with wealth, emphasising the household perspective in measurements, and broadening income measures to non-market activities. In order to better measure sustainability, the authors recommend factoring physical and economic indicators of sustainability into current measures of economic performance. The Commission says it hopes this report will open discussions on progressively improving economic performance measurement systems.
To view this report in full, see “Report by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress”, at www.stiglitz-sen-fitoussi.fr/documents/rapport_anglais.pdf
UNCTAD Trade and Development Report 2009
Even before the international financial turmoil turned into a full-blown crisis in September 2008, growth of gross domestic product (GDP) had come to a halt in most developed countries. Moreover, almost all developing countries have experienced a sharp slowdown of economic growth since mid-2008, while many have also slipped into recession. With global trade expected to decline and the sharp fall in international prices for primary commodities, exporting offers no easy way out of this crisis, especially for developing countries. The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) claims that years of significant “disequilibria” within and among major national economies made the economic crisis predictable. After discussing the monetary policy responses and financial rescue operations in all types of economies, this report suggests numerous methods of alleviating the crisis and preventing such disasters in the future. These include financial support for developing countries; creating more stringent financial regulations; and the reformation of international monetary, financial, and exchange-rate systems. Much emphasis is also placed on the adaptation and mitigation of climate change and how such policies can be integrated into industrial strategies.
To view this report, see “Trade and Development Report 2009”, at http://www.unctad.org/en/docs/tdr2009_en.pdf
Researchers say Protectionism Rampant
Protectionism shows no sign of slowing down, according to a new report prepared by an independent group of researchers and analysts located around the globe. The second Global Trade Alert report is based on over 400 investigations of state measures that have been implemented since the first G20 crisis-related meeting in November 2008. The report says that almost every nation has now been harmed by another’s protectionist policy and fewer than 5 percent of product categories have escaped being hit by some type of protectionist measure. The report, aimed to coincide with the meeting of the G20 in Pittsburgh, chastises the G20 for failing to keep its no-protectionism pledge, arguing that every three days a G20 government has broken their no-protectionist pledge. The authors acknowledge that there is some comfort in the fact that the scale of protectionism is much less than that seen in the 1930s. However, they say significant protectionist plans are currently in the pipeline and there is growing pressure on politicians due to rising unemployment which could harm exports and hamper economy recovery efforts.
To view this publication in full, see Evenett, S (2009) “Broken Promises: a G20 Summit Report by Global Trade Alert”, at http://www.globaltradealert.org/sites/default/files/Broken_promises_GTA_second_report.pdf
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