IMF COUNTRY FOCUS

 

Latin America and the Caribbean Interest in Central Bank Digital Currencies Picks Up in Latin America and the Caribbean While Crypto Use Varies Photo Credit: IMF/Melissa Alcena By Rina Bhattacharya, Dmitry Vasilyev, and Mauricio Villafuerte Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) are at the forefront of digital money adoption, offering valuable lessons for the rest of the world. While El Salvador has made headlines by granting legal tender status to Bitcoin, other LAC countries have made significant strides in the introduction of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to either enhance financial inclusion and payment systems’ resilience or lower cross-border remittances’ costs, as our recent research shows. The Bahamas pioneered the introduction of a CBDC with the Sand Dollar in 2020, and the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) and Jamaica have followed suit. Brazil’s CBDC project is also in the advanced Proof-of-Concept stage, seeking to enhance “asset tokenization” by turning assets, such real estate, stocks, and commodities, into digital representations to facilitate their transfer and increase their liquidity. Notably, four Latin American countries—Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Ecuador—ranked in 2022 among the top 20 in global adoption of crypto assets. They seek the benefits that digital assets claim to offer, including protection against uncertain domestic macroeconomic conditions, circumvention of capital controls, improved financial inclusion for unbanked populations, cheaper and faster payments, and stronger competition. However, crypto asset adoption also presents numerous challenges and risks, particularly for vulnerable LAC countries with a history of macroeconomic instability, low institutional credibility, substantial capital flows, corruption, and extensive informal sectors. Twelve out of nineteen jurisdictions in the region surveyed for our paper in mid-2022 either already have a special regulatory framework in place or are in the process of creating one. Adopting crypto

WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION's latest

 

22 Jun 2023 Latest news

Dear maria CHADZIDAKIS VAVOURANAKIS, Below are the news items published today on the WTO public website

NEWS ITEM DG Okonjo-Iweala to business leaders: We must push for re-globalization and reform In her keynote address to the 13th World Chambers Congress in Geneva on 21 June, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the multilateral trading system works but that parts of it need reform. She also underlined the risk to global prosperity if trade fragments into rival blocs and reiterated her call for “re-globalization” rather than deglobalization. News item   ⟶

NEWS ITEM First members to formally accept Fisheries Subsidies Agreement urge others to follow suit WTO members that are among the first 10 to formally accept the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement called on other members to do the same to ensure entry into force of the historic agreement for ocean sustainability. Ambassadors and high-level representatives of Canada, the European Union, Iceland, Nigeria, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and the United States highlighted the Agreement’s importance to a variety of economies and shared experiences with domestic acceptance processes at the 21 June event “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies — Race to Entry into Force.” News item   ⟶

NEWS ITEM One year on from MC12, WTO Chairs Programme holds Annual Conference A year after the successful 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) and with an eye on MC13 early next year, the WTO is playing host to the Annual Conference of the WTO Chairs on 21-23 June, with a focus on the needs and interests of developing and least developed country (LDC) economies. The WTO Chairs Programme (WCP) aims to enhance knowledge and understanding of the trading system among academics and policy makers in developing and LDC economies through curriculum development, research and outreach activities by universities and research institutions. News item   ⟶   NEWS ITEM DG Okonjo-Iweala sets up civil society and business advisory groups Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala today (21 June) announced the establishment of two advisory groups, one comprising leaders from the business community and the other bringing together prominent civil society representatives. The establishment of these groups aims to strengthen the Director-General’s engagement with businesses and civil society. They will provide an informal platform for the exchange of views and discussions with key stakeholders. News item   ⟶   NEWS ITEM Members hold robust discussions on implementing Trade Facilitation Agreement At a meeting of the Committee on Trade Facilitation on 15 and 16 June, WTO members shared their experiences across a range of trade facilitation matters, including transit activities for landlocked developing countries, disaster preparedness and recent progress on the implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). News item   ⟶   NEWS ITEM WTO dispute panel issues report regarding Chinese duties on Japanese steel products On 19 June, the WTO circulated the panel report in the case brought by Japan in “China — Anti-Dumping Measures on Stainless Steel Products from Japan” (DS601). Panel report   ⟶

NATO latest

 

NATO Secretary General meets with the President of Montenegro On Thursday 22 June 2023, the NATO Secretary General, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg, received the President of Montenegro, Mr. Jakov Milatović, at NATO Headquarters. Click here to download the joint press conference by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the President of Montenegro Jakov Milatović. The transcript is available here. German Army practises rapidly reinforcing NATO’s eastern flank Germany recently showed its ability to surge forces to the east of the Alliance, demonstrating NATO’s ability to deter potential adversaries and, if necessary, defend its territory on short notice. Roughly 1,000 soldiers and 320 vehicles from the German Army’s 41st Panzer Grenadier Brigade were rapidly deployed to Lithuania for exercise Griffin Storm 23, arriving via rail, road and sea. Now established at Pabrade Training Area near the capital Vilnius, the troops will train with their counterparts from the Lithuanian Army until 7 July. The 41st Panzer Grenadier Brigade is a mechanised infantry unit, blending the firepower of heavy mortars with the speed of infantry fighting vehicles. They will join forces with the Lithuanian Army’s Grand Duke Algirdas Infantry Battalion to plan and execute joint training operations. Click here to download the b-roll. Footage includes shots of a civilian ferry arriving at the port of Klaipeda, unloading of the vehicles and march to the Pabrade Training Area.

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT BY COMMISSION

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT Fruit and vegetables newsletter

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Agricultural markets dashboard – stone fruit See the latest update in the fruit and vegetables market observatory. Related links EU fruits and vegetables scheme | EU agricultural markets short-term outlook – specialised crops Milk and dairy products newsletter Latest update Dashboard: Milk and dairy products Highlights EU butter prices: 474 €/100 kg, +0.6% in last 4 weeks; EU SMP prices: 252 €/100 kg, +1.4% in last 4 weeks; EU WMP prices: 357 €/100 kg, +2.0% in last 4 weeks; EU cheddar prices: 358 €/100 kg, -1.2% in last 4 weeks; Increase of IT spot milk price at 51.0 c/kg (18 Jun); Decrease of feed costs (-0.6%) and slight increase of energy cost (+0.2%) in week 24 compared to the previous 4 weeks; EU milk deliveries in April 2023 went up by +0.8% compared to last year (cumul Jan.-Apr. 2023: +0.8%); Evolution of dairy productions in Jan.-Apr. 2023 compared to 2022: increase for butter (+2.6%), SMP (+2.0%), cream (+1.6%), condensed (+3.6%) and cheese (+0.5%); decrease for WMP (-0.7%), drinking milk (-0.5%) and fermented milks (-0.7%); In January-March 2023, EU butter exports decreased by 16% to China and by 21% to the U.K. but increased by 91% to the USA; During the same period, EU cheese exports were down to Japan (-18%) and to the USA (-5%) but up to the U.K. (+7%) ; In Jan.-Mar. 2023, EU SMP exports were up to China (+69%) and Algeria (+194%) and down to Indonesia (-62%).  EU WMP exports were down to Oman (-35%), China (-31%) and up to the U.K. (+12%); US dairy exports of cheese and SMP were up in Jan.-Mar. 2023 (+4% and + 3%) while US butter(oil) and WMP exports were down (-34% and -48%); In Jan.-Mar. 2023, NZ exports were up for cheese and SMP (+5% and +33%) while butter(oil) and WMP exports were down (-1% and -15%); Chinese imports of cheese (+4%), SMP (+13%), wheypowder (+57%), caseines (+7%) and lactose (+23%) were up in Jan.-Mar. 2023 while imports of butter(oil) (-20%), WMP (-62%) and condensed (-46%) were down; GDT last auction (20/06/2023): general price index +0.0%. Prices decrease for cheddar (-3.3%) and SMP (-2.3%); price increase for AMF (+0.5%) and butter (+5.5%). WMP stable. Related links EU milk and dairy products policy | EU agricultural markets short-term outlook Sheep meat newsletter Agricultural markets dashboard – sheep meat View the latest update Related links EU Lamb, mutton and goatmeat policy | EU agriclutural markets short-term outlook – meat products Agricultural markets dashboard – eggs View the latest update Related links EU eggs policy | EU agricultural markets short-term outlook Agricultural markets dashboard – poultry meat View the latest update Related links EU poultry policy | EU agricultural markets short-term outlook Latest news Networking proves to be important to successfully implement the EU’s rural development policy A study evaluating the European Rural Networks from 2014 to 2022 concludes that they contributed to better implementation of rural development projects on the ground.   See also Full article

Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development

Η ενημέρωση από τον Εκπρόσωπο της Νέας Δημοκρατίας Άκη Σκέρτσο

 

Αθήνα, 23 Ιουνίου 2023   Η ενημέρωση των πολιτικών συντακτών και των ανταποκριτών ξένου Τύπου από τον Εκπρόσωπο της Νέας Δημοκρατίας Άκη Σκέρτσο   Στο τελευταίο briefing αυτής της μακράς αλλά και ιδιαίτερης προεκλογικής περιόδου θα μου επιτρέψετε να κλείσω μιλώντας για τους λόγους που καθιστούν αυτή την αναμέτρηση ιστορική για να κάνουμε όλοι μαζί τα αναγκαία άλματα προς τα μπρος για μια πιο ισχυρή, δίκαιη και ευρωπαϊκή Ελλάδα. Για όλους εκείνους τους λόγους δηλαδή που έκαναν την πλειοψηφία των πολιτών στις 21 Μαΐου να επιλέξουν τον Κυριάκο Μητσοτάκη και τη «νέα» Νέα Δημοκρατία σε αυτές τις εκλογές.   Η πρόκληση της πολιτικής σήμερα, σε έναν κόσμο που αλλάζει ραγδαία και χαρακτηρίζεται από μεγάλες κρίσεις και αβεβαιότητες είναι να μπορούν τα παιδιά μας, να μπορούν οι νεότερες γενιές να ζουν καλύτερα από τις προηγούμενες.