DAY 1 - The 18th Annual Conference of the Arab Society for Economic Research

1970s : Oil and wheat are strategic commodities, their prices are skyrocketing, Arab countries declare an oil boycott against the US and the US contemplates to retaliate with a grain embargo. Gulf countries are alarmed and look into a plan to develop Sudan as an Arab breadbasket.  This plan, however, unravels by the 1980s amidst political instability, misguided project designs and alleged corruption amongst the Sudanese (Nimeiri) regime. Instead, Saudi Arabia embarks on a subsidize ...

The strategy to vertically integrate mining producers requires the identification of the right conditions for its financing. Many approaches are possible and the technique of securitization, although widely stigmatized since the financial crisis of 2008, must be considered. Several conditions are however necessary. It is unlikely that the off-balance sheet securitization is currently positioned as an important means to finance this sector’s production capacity. Whatever the scope of ...

Over the next couple of months, we want to explore the investing climate in Sub Saharan Africa (“SSA”) and try to understand where it is and what elements/variables are required to increase the continent’s attractiveness to institutional investors and thereby speed up the continent’s development. We will discuss the Private Equity industry in Africa and delve into the challenges faces. We will then work through how best to address them, and in particular, in the Agribusiness sector. ...

Brazil’s future prospects, and ability to harness its advantages, will hinge on its own policy choices over the next few years. Yet the outlook for meaningful change is unclear. At present, Brazil is in a weaker position than four years ago, from both an economic and a foreign policy standpoint. Even in a scenario where Brazil’s economy gradually returns to the course it was on until 2008, no major strategic changes are likely to happen in Rousseff’s four-year term. ...

Cet article propose, dans un premier temps, une revue de la littérature analytique et empirique récente sur les gains et coûts potentiels associés à l’intégration financière internationale, ainsi que les enjeux de politique économique créés ou exacerbés par cette intégration. En particulier, l’analyse fait ressortir le fait que, pour un pays en développement, les gains associés à cette intégration se matérialisent surtout sur le long terme, tandis que les coûts (liés notamment aux r ...

Manufacturing is declining as a share of GDP not only in advanced countries, but in developing countries as well. This new trend, a result of complex forces, should be seen on balance as a reason for development-optimism, not pessimism. In the 21st century economy, manufacturing remains important, but poor countries can attract investment, grow rapidly and diversify away from agriculture on the basis of many possible sources of comparative advantage, without artificially promoting m ...

“In my view, China’s very high rates of saving and of investment in infrastructure, plant and equipment, Rand D, and human capital should be seen more as a source of strength, than of weakness. There has, of course, been overinvestment in some sectors, such as heavy industry and housing in some regions, but China’s GDP and infrastructure stock per capita is still just a fraction of that of the most advanced countries, and the country’s potential to catch-up remains largely unexploit ...

OCP Policy Center vient de rendre public le 10 janvier son premier Policy Brief de l’année 2015, qui traite de la question de la baisse significative des prix des produits pétroliers, ses causes, et ses conséquences macroéconomiques pour les producteurs et les consommateurs de ce produit.  Yves Jégourel, Senior Fellow à OCP Policy Center et auteur du Policy Brief en question, a accumulé une expertise dans le domaine de l’analyse des marchés des matières premières. Il apporte égalem ...