Publications | Economic Analysis and Policy Division

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04 December 2023

World Economic Situation and Prospects 2024

Protracted period of low growth looms large, undermining progress on sustainable development The world economy continues to face multiple crises, jeopardizing progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Although global economic growth outperformed expectations in 2023 with several large economies showing remarkable resilience, simmering geo-political tensions and the growing intensity and frequency of extreme weather events have increased underlying risks and vulnerabilities. Furthermore, tight financial conditions also pose increasing risks to global trade and industrial production. "2024 must be the year when we break out of this quagmire. By unlocking big, bold… Download

29 November 2023

UN DESA Policy Brief No. 155: Accelerating middle-income countries? progress towards sustainable development

What are middle-income countries? Middle-income countries (MICs) are those whose incomes per capita lie between the levels used to define low- and high- income countries, with thresholds established by the World Bank. As of 1 July 2023, the group comprises 108 countries with a gross national income per capita of between $1,136 and $13,845. Together, MICs account for about 30 per cent of global GDP and make up 75 per cent of the world?s population, including 60 per cent of the world?s poor. The MICs classification overlaps with other country groupings. Currently, 22 least developed countries, 20 landlocked developing countries and 27 small island developing States are also classed as MICs.… UN DESA Policy Brief No. 155: Accelerating middle-income countries? progress towards sustainable development

08 November 2023

Measuring export concentration for identifying least developed countries

CDP Background Paper No. 59 By Matthias Bruckner Export concentration has long been recognized as a key indicator of the development progress of least developed countries (LDCs). This paper presents the refined export concentration index recently included in the criteria used for identifying LDCs. The refined index is a Theil index that covers both concentration in the basket of exported products and concentration in the set of export markets, thereby capturing two dimensions of vulnerability due to undiversified export structures. The paper shows that relative to other developing countries, LDCs are less diversified both in terms of export products and export markets, contributing to their… Measuring export concentration for identifying least developed countries

01 November 2023

World Economic Situation and Prospects: November 2023 Briefing, No. 177

The revival and changing nature of industrial policy Industrial policies are gaining increasing relevance, becoming centrepieces of many government policy agendas. These policies aim at changing the structure or sectoral composition of the economy in line with strategic and medium-term goals, such as export diversification, technology upgrading and industrialisation. As such, industrial policies include a broad range of issues, including ?infant industry? support, science, technology and innovation (STI) policies, trade and foreign direct investments policies and intellectual property rights, public procurement policies, and policies shaping the allocation of financial resources (Chang,… World Economic Situation and Prospects: November 2023 Briefing, No. 177

02 October 2023

World Economic Situation and Prospects: October 2023 Briefing, No. 176

Labour markets in developed economies ? signs of stabilization? During the first three quarters of 2023, the state of labour markets in the developed economies continued to return to their pre-pandemic conditions, at least in terms of key headline indicators. The post-pandemic rebound in employment in these economies were quite swift, compared with the protracted labour market recovery that followed the global financial crisis of 2008?2009. Since early 2021, many developed economies, with the exception of the United Kingdom, saw a continuing decline in unemployment rates (figure?1), while the employment rates that reflect economic activity of the population reached historically high levels… World Economic Situation and Prospects: October 2023 Briefing, No. 176

12 September 2023

2023 Reports of the Secretary-General to the General Assembly

Development cooperation with middle-income countries (A/78/224)
中文, English, Français, Русский, Español Unilateral economic measures as a means of political and economic coercion against developing countries (A/78/506)
中文, English, Français, Русский, Español

08 September 2023

UN DESA Policy Brief Special Issue: Financing the Sustainable Development Goals through mission-oriented development banks

Special issue in collaboration with the United Nations High-level Advisory Board on Economic and Social Affairs Abstract There is an urgent need for channeling long-term risk-tolerant finance towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The paper argues that National Development Banks (NDBs) and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) can play a crucial role in mobilizing the needed capital but only if an outcomes oriented ?mission-oriented? approach is adopted to galvanize, catalyze, and crowd in substantial global public and private finance (scaling it up from billions to trillions). Missions help transform broad SDG related challenges, like global health and climate change, into… UN DESA Policy Brief Special Issue: Financing the Sustainable Development Goals through mission-oriented development banks

05 September 2023

World Economic Situation and Prospects: September 2023 Briefing, No. 175

The need for energy transition Energy transition is at the core of fighting against climate change and achieving net-zero by 2050. It refers to the global energy sector?s shift from a fossil-fuels based energy system to one that is based on renewable sources such as solar and wind. It is a systemic change that involves a structural transformation in the production and consumption of energy. Therefore, it requires significant amounts of investment in energy transition technologies which includes power generation, storage and distribution, energy efficiency, electrified transport and district heat, hydrogen, and carbon capture and storage (CCS) (IRENA, 2023a). A truly net-zero economy also… World Economic Situation and Prospects: September 2023 Briefing, No. 175

01 August 2023

World Economic Situation and Prospects: August 2023 Briefing, No. 174

Recent trends in domestic food prices Food prices surged over the past few years owing to multiple shocks. Between 2019 and 2021, extreme weather events and supply chain disruptions derived from the pandemic drove up domestic food price inflation (measured as a component of the Consumer Price Index) in many countries. In 2022 domestic food inflation became more common across the world, reaching multi-decade highs in several countries amid the spillover effects of the war in Ukraine, higher international commodity prices and a surging US dollar. Headline inflation also rose significantly in most economies, in part due to the importance of food and energy in the consumption basket. While… World Economic Situation and Prospects: August 2023 Briefing, No. 174

24 July 2023

The raw reality of the growing (external) debt crisis: A call to action

CDP Background Paper No. 58 By CDP Working Group on external debt This paper discusses the escalating external debt distress and financial constraints faced by many least developed countries (LDCs) and other developing countries, particularly in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic, rising interest rates, high food and energy prices and currency depreciation. It stresses the importance of a comprehensive financing strategy to address the large scale of investment needs of developing countries. The paper underscores the urgent need for short-term solutions such as multilateral financing and debt renegotiation to tackle the current debt crisis, while simultaneously establishing long-term… The raw reality of the growing (external) debt crisis: A call to action