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COVID’s Impact in Real Time: Finding Balance Amid the Crisis
The IMF analyzed the economic effects of lockdowns and voluntary social distancing using two high-frequency proxies for economic activity: mobility data from Google and job openings posted on the website Indeed. As illustrated…
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Fiscal Policy for an Unprecedented Crisis
The COVID-19 crisis has devastated people’s lives, jobs, and businesses. Governments have taken forceful measures to cushion the blow, totaling a staggering $12 trillion globally. These lifelines have saved lives and livelihoods. But…
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China and the Burgeoning African Debt Crisis
Contrary to the swirling rumors on African social media and in the local press about the supposed imminent danger of Chinese asset seizures in Zambia, it’s not the Chinese that are the problem…
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Corruption and COVID-19
Corruption, the abuse of public office for private gain, is about more than wasted money: it erodes the social contract and corrodes the government’s ability to help grow the economy in a way…
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Next Phase of the Crisis: Further Action Needed for a Resilient Recovery
When G20 finance ministers and central bank governors last met in April, the world was in the midst of the Great Lockdown forced by the outbreak of COVID-19. As they meet virtually this…