v

Environmental Policy and Technological Innovation in Shipbuilding

This paper examines the relationship between environmental policy and "green" innovation in shipbuilding.




v

Lending to SMEs and entrepreneurs is improving, but more diverse forms of financing are needed

Financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has turned the corner from the downswing seen during the global financial crisis, but overall credit conditions remain challenging and access to external finance continues to be much tighter for SMEs than larger firms, according to a new OECD report.




v

Outcomes from the High-Level Symposium on Excess Capacity and Structural Adjustment in the Steel Sector

A High-Level Meeting on excess capacity and structural adjustment in the steel sector was convened on 18 April 2016, at the Palais d’Egmont in Brussels, co-organised by the OECD and the Belgian government.




v

Local growth and development: An era of new priorities

Not so long ago, “globalisation” was a favourite paradigm in international business. It was a trend that began in the late 1970s and accelerated in the 1980s, when corporate takeovers were the order of the day and multinational companies fixated on maximising short-term profits and boosting share prices. One approach was “global sourcing”, also called outsourcing or offshoring.




v

Inclusive business can help solve the sustainability equation

From the early 2000s, sustainability has emerged as a central policy-making consideration as climate change and population growth have heightened concerns about already-stretched natural resources.




v

Report on Due diligence in Colombia's Gold Supply Chain: Overview

This report is the first of a series of assessments on Colombian gold supply chains and aims to develop an initial approach and analysis for how risks outlined in Annex II of the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas are relevant in the Colombian context.




v

All on board to increase productivity for a more inclusive world

For Chile, it is a great honour and opportunity to chair the 2016 OECD Ministerial Council Meeting. It is an opportunity to celebrate Chile’s first five years as a member of the OECD and is yet another demonstration of the increasing relevance of emerging and developing economies, which today account for more than half of world GDP.




v

Organising sporting events: Preventing corruption and promoting responsible business conduct

This brochure looks at the corruption, labour, human rights and environmental risks associated with the organisation of large sporting events. It describes how OECD instruments and expertise in implementation of complex projects can help host governments, event organisers and their business partners ensure that the world of sport remains associated with the traditional values of excellence and fair play.




v

The economic empowerment of women for more productive and inclusive societies

This year’s OECD Ministerial Council Meeting (MCM), chaired by Chile, is devoted to productivity. Ministers will discuss what governments, firms and individuals can do to improve productivity with the aim of fostering inclusive growth.




v

For an optimistic revolution

The world has seen more than one industrial revolution and another one is already upon us. We should face it as optimists.




v

The productivity and equality nexus

Productivity growth has slowed since the crisis and inequality of income and opportunity has been getting worse. Could they be impacting each other?




v

Towards a more productive, inclusive world

Despite nearly a decade of policy efforts, the global economy remains in the repair shop. The legacies of the crisis are still very much present: weak growth, persistently high unemployment in several countries, faltering trade and investment and a profound loss of public confidence and trust. Any prospect of a strong upturn in advanced or emerging economies has dimmed in the past year.




v

New OECD indicators trace productivity growth slowdown pre- and post- crisis

Productivity growth – the central driver of rising economic output and material living standards – has been slowing in many advanced and emerging economies in the wake of the crisis, according to new data released today in the OECD Compendium of Productivity Indicators.




v

The twin challenges of promoting productivity and inclusive growth

Advanced economies remain in the doldrums. People’s incomes are rising at a very low pace, especially in the lower half of the distribution. Two global trends–the slowdown in productivity and the rise in inequality–reflect the state of policy, and point to the challenges policymakers face to change prospects for their citizens and the global economy.




v

New ‘nexus’ approach needed to tackle productivity and inequality challenges, says OECD report

Declining productivity growth and rising inequality are two of the biggest obstacles to improved economic performance, according to a new OECD report.




v

OECD Action Plan on the Sustainable Development Goals

Sound public policies grounded in evidence – and implemented effectively – will be crucial for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This document outlines four broad areas for future action for the OECD, highlighting what it could do more of – or do differently – to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. C/MIN(2016)6.




v

Tackling policy fragmentation: the key to getting onto a path of rapid and sustainable productivity growth

Further structural reforms are needed to help the business sector boost productivity growth and overcome the key challenges of sluggish investment in advanced economies and excess capacity in emerging economies, according to a new OECD report.




v

Inclusive Entrepreneurship Policy

A three-year programme of co-operation between the European Commission and LEED on self-employment and entrepreneurship in Europe.




v

G20 agrees Guiding Principles for Global Investment Policymaking

Shanghai, 9-10 July 2016: G20 Trade Ministers reinforced their "determination to promote inclusive, robust and sustainable trade and investment growth" with the adoption of the G20 Guiding Principles for Global Investment Policymaking.




v

The Policy Framework for Investment (PFI)

The Policy Framework for Investment (PFI) is a non-prescriptive tool for improving investment policy for development. It helps governments to design and implement policy reforms to create a truly attractive, robust and competitive environment for domestic and foreign investment.




v

Green shoots of recovery in entrepreneurship beginning to appear

The post-crisis recovery in entrepreneurial activity remains mixed across countries, but new data released today by the OECD provides tentative signs of a turning point, with trends in enterprise creation rates pointing upwards in most economies.




v

OECD launches business survey on tax certainty to support G20 tax agenda

The OECD received a strong endorsement from both the G20 Leaders and Finance Ministers to work on solutions to support certainty in the tax system with the aim to promote investment, trade and balanced growth. As part of a wider project, the OECD launches a Business Survey to invite businesses and other stakeholders to contribute their views on tax certainty.




v

Seminar on open and orderly capital movements

Co-organised by the OECD and the German Federal Ministry of Finance, the seminar focused on the policy implications of the increasingly interconnected global financial and economic system and the need for an open and orderly regime for capital flows in the context of the review of the OECD Code of Liberalisation of Capital Movements.




v

Mayors can play a key role in making inclusive growth a reality

Mayors and local leaders from around the world launched today a plan of action to help tackle inequality, boost job creation and harness economic development.




v

Lower public R&D spending and protectionist risks may pose a threat to innovation

A decline in government funding of science and technology research in a number of countries could pose a threat to innovation at a time when global challenges like climate change and ageing populations demand solutions, according to a new OECD report.




v

OECD Steel Committee says persistently high excess capacity threatens recovery

There are signs of a modest return to growth in global steel demand and production and a price recovery from the lows of 2015, yet these trends could turn out to be temporary, the OECD Steel Committee said after meeting this week. Considerable structural imbalances remain unaddressed in the steel sector, it said, reiterating the urgency of tackling persistently high excess capacity.




v

Ukraine signs OECD agreement to strengthen investment climate

27/03/2017 - Ukraine has become the 47th country to adhere to the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises. The Declaration commits Ukraine to provide an open and transparent environment for international investment and to encourage the positive contribution foreign investment can make to economic and social progress.




v

One in five mobile phones shipped abroad is fake

Nearly one in five mobile phones and one in four video game consoles shipped internationally is fake, as a growing trade in counterfeit IT and communications hardware weighs on consumers, manufacturers and public finances, according to a new OECD report.




v

Responsible business conduct for institutional investors: Key considerations for due diligence under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises

Promoting responsible business conduct in the financial sector is vital to building a sustainable global economy. This paper will help institutional investors implement the due diligence recommendations of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises in order to prevent or address adverse impacts related to human and labour rights, the environment, and corruption in their investment portfolios.




v

Lending volumes and credit conditions are improving for SMEs, but many firms continue to struggle to obtain financing that meets their needs

Lending volumes and credit conditions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have gradually improved, according to a new report from the OECD, but demand-side obstacles such as a lack of financial knowledge are contributing to holding back a stronger recovery.




v

Investment governance and the integration of environmental, social and governance factors

This paper presents the findings of an international stocktaking of the regulatory frameworks that apply to institutional investment in different jurisdictions and how these frameworks are interpreted by institutional investors in terms of their ability or responsibility to integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in their governance processes.




v

Improving adult skills can help countries benefit from globalisation

In an increasingly competitive international environment, providing workers with the right mix of skills can help ensure that globalisation translates into new jobs and productivity gains rather than negative economic and social outcomes, according to a new OECD report.




v

US manufacturing decline and the rise of new production innovation paradigms

Between 2000 and 2010, US manufacturing experienced a nightmare. The number of manufacturing jobs in the United States, which had been relatively stable at 17 million since 1965, declined by one third in that decade, falling by 5.8 million to below 12 million in 2010 (returning to just 12.3 million in 2016). Certainly, the 2007–08 recession accelerated the disruption, but the causes were also structural, not simply financial.




v

Continued slowdown in productivity growth weighs down on living standards

The slowdown in productivity growth - already underway before the crisis – combined with sluggish investment, continued to undermine rises in economic output and material living standards in recent years in many of the world’s economies, according to a new report released today by the OECD.




v

Business brief: Bomare: An innovative player

Bomare Company was founded in 2001. Its current capital is DA 620 million (US$5.6 million) and its production covers two major fields: the manufacture of electronic and telephone apparatus (televisions, smartphones, tablets, satellite receivers and professional display screens) under our own brand Stream System and international brands, and subcontracting for the automobile, aeronautics and renewable energy industries.




v

Open and Orderly Capital Movements: Interventions from the 2016 OECD High-Level Seminar

This collection compiles the contributions of senior policy experts, academics, and economic practitioners on developments in the financial integration and financial regulation of cross-border capital flows since the 2008 global financial crisis at the OECD High-Level Seminar “Open and Orderly Capital Movements” held in October 2016.




v

The government role in mobilising investment and innovation in renewable energy

Successfully attracting investment and innovation in renewable energy requires not only core climate policies, such as pricing carbon, but also a focus on the broader investment environment. Based on new research from the OECD, this article reviews some of the main factors holding back investment and innovation in renewable energy and looks at what governments can do to take action.




v

OECD data show pick-up in entrepreneurial activity

Entrepreneurial activity appears to be recovering from the crisis as new data show that the number of new businesses created has been rising in most OECD countries.




v

OECD Steel Committee sees tentative and vulnerable recovery amid excess capacity and market distortions

A modest recovery is under way in the global steel market but structural imbalances remain acute amid sluggish demand growth expected in the long-term demand, the OECD Steel Committee said at the end of its meeting this week.




v

High-Level Meeting on Tourism Policies for Sustainable and Inclusive Growth

Paris, 2-3 October 2017: The meeting will bring together Ministers, high level policy makers and industry leaders to discuss ways to deliver more sustainable and inclusive tourism growth. Held to mark the occasion of the 100th meeting of the OECD Tourism Committee, the high-level meeting will facilitate an open discussion between countries on the long-term strategic objectives for tourism development.




v

Rethink tourism policy for sustainable and socially inclusive growth, says OECD as ministers meet

Governments need to rethink their tourism policies to encourage more diversity, reduce concentration in high-density destinations and put in place long-term strategies that are ecologically sustainable and socially inclusive, according to the OECD.




v

Investing in innovation and skills: Thriving in global value chains

This paper synthesises the main policy implications of OECD work focusing on the interplay between participation and positioning in global value chains (GVCs), employment demand and supply, and workforce skills endowment.




v

International trade, foreign direct investment and global value chains

Evidence on the role played by investment in global value chains (GVCs) can assist policy work on GVCs, trade, investment and development. Drawing on new and improved measures of trade and investment, these country notes provide relevant statistical information from OECD databases on trade, investment, the activities of multinational enterprises and global value chains.




v

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, in London on 6 November 2017

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, will be in London on 6 November 2017 to attend the Confederation of British Industry Annual Conference, where he will deliver remarks at the Business debate on How to ensure globalisation is a positive force. While in London, the Secretary-General will hold bilateral meetings with several high level officials.




v

Inventory of investment measures taken between 16 February 2017 and 15 September 2017

The “Freedom of Investment" (FOI) process hosted by the OECD Investment Committee monitors investment policy developments in the 58 economies that participate in the process. This report covers investment measures taken between 16 February 2017 and 15 September 2017.




v

Zombie firms and weak productivity: what role for policy?

Weak productivity growth is a major problem afflicting most societies. It curbs growth in incomes and endangers the sustainability of social security systems. An important, but often ignored, source of the productivity slowdown is the increasing prevalence of weakly productive firms and, among them, “zombie firms” – in essence firms that would typically exit or be forced to restructure in a competitive market.




v

Due diligence guidance on stakeholder engagement in extractive industries

When companies involve stakeholders, such as local communities, in their decision making, it enables them to identify, and account for the impacts of their activities, and contribute to positive social and economic development. To address the challenges raised when engaging with stakeholders, the OECD is preparing a user guide on how to undertake due diligence in engaging with stakeholders for mining, oil and gas enterprises.




v

Steel Market Developments Q4 2017

This document provides an overview of recent steel market developments, as well as additional information about financial vulnerabilities, the latest developments in global steelmaking capacity and a brief overview of developments in selected downstream sectors.




v

A portrait of innovative start-ups across countries

This paper presents new cross-country descriptive evidence on innovative start-ups and related venture capital investments drawing upon Crunchbase, a new dataset that is unprecedented in terms of scope and comprehensiveness. The analysis employs a mix of different statistical techniques.




v

OECD and FAO call for responsible investment in agriculture

16 February 2018 - OECD and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched a pilot project in Paris today to kick-start the practical application of the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains with 30 leading enterprises.