d

US economy growing steadily but key reforms needed

The US economy is making one of the strongest comebacks in the OECD, but there are risks on the horizon, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Survey of the United States.




d

Improving opportunities for women in the United States

Improving opportunities for women in the United States




d

Boosting Canada’s productivity through greater small business dynamism

A dynamic small business sector can heighten competition and underpin productivity growth, as discussed in the 2016 OECD Economic Survey of Canada and Carey et al. (2016, forthcoming).




d

The UK’s heart is wobbling but there are good reasons to Remain in the Union

Membership of the European Union contributes to the economic prosperity of the United Kingdom.




d

Germany’s economic performance is strong but productivity and investment need a boost

The German economy has steadily recovered from the 2008 global crisis. Thanks to past reforms, the labour market has proved strong and export performance has been impressive.




d

Norway, higher education could deliver more for less

Norway’s predominately public and tuition-free tertiary education system has encouraged participation and generated high attainment rates. However, few Norwegian universities rank high in international comparisons on the basis of research related and other indicators.




d

Enhancing private investment in the Netherlands

Investment has rebounded during the recent economic revival, but from a low level. The investment slump during the crisis was mostly caused by a fall in residential investment. However, business investment has been trending downwards since 1990, holding back capital stock accumulation and productivity.




d

Boosting skills for all in the Netherlands

Strong and adequate skills are essential to support workers’ productivity and to ensure robust employment outcomes. Developing workers’ skills would also increase their personal satisfaction and wages, contributing in making growth more inclusive. The Netherlands performs well in terms of competences of a large part of the population. Moreover, the country has been successful in adjusting the required level of skills over time.




d

Scaling new heights: achievements and future challenges for productivity convergence in Lithuania

GDP per capita in Lithuania rose from one third to two thirds of the OECD average level between 1995 and 2014, despite internal and external crises. Productivity catch-up was critical to this process, although the level of labour productivity also remains around one-third below the OECD average.




d

Insolvency regimes and productivity growth: a framework for analysis

This paper develops an analytical framework to identify the policies relevant for firm exit and the channels through which they shape aggregate productivity growth.




d

The effects of reform scenarios for unemployment benefits and social assistance on financial incentives to work and poverty in Lithuania

In 2015 the Lithuanian government launched an ambitious Social Model reform agenda aimed at balancing flexibility of the labour market and security provided through the system of social protection.




d

The short-term impact of product market reforms: a cross-country firm-level analysis

This paper analyses the effects of product market reforms in the short and medium term across 10 regulated industries and 18 advanced economies for the period 1998-2013 using internationally comparable firm-level data based on Orbis.




d

Tackling the productivity paradox: The OECD Global Forum on Productivity

The nexus of slowing productivity growth and rising inequality is capturing the attention of policymakers and researchers. The productivity slowdown, its causes, and the link with inclusiveness will be discussed on 7-8 July in Lisbon at the first Annual Conference of the new Global Forum on Productivity, which was created by the OECD in collaboration with a number of Member and non-Member countries.




d

Leveraging R&D and innovation policies to foster productivity in Czech Republic

Productivity catch-up along with deeper integration into the global economy played a central role in the convergence of the Czech incomes toward OECD countries before the 2008 financial crisis.




d

Turkey: Challenging times call for pushing ahead with economic reform

Turkey’s economy has proven remarkably resilient in the face of a challenging global economic context. However, further action can be taken to raise productivity and advance the shift to a more balanced, sustainable and stronger growth path that will boost living standards for the entire population, according to the latest OECD Economic Survey of Turkey.




d

Tackling the three main challenges in Costa Rica: fiscal reform, reverting the slowdown in productivity and reducing inequality

Costa Rica’s economic, social and environmental achievements are impressive. It has succeeded in combining rising living standards, virtually universal health care, pension and primary education systems with sustainable use of natural resources.




d

Governments should use tax systems to drive inclusive growth agenda

Governments should use tax policy to drive forward economic agendas that seek to boost growth while sharing the benefits more evenly within society, according to a new OECD report.




d

Scaling new heights: achievements and future challenges for productivity convergence in Lithuania

GDP per capita in Lithuania rose from one third to two thirds of the OECD average level between 1995 and 2014, despite internal and external crises. Productivity catch-up was critical to this process, although the level of labour productivity also remains around one-third below the OECD average.




d

Insolvency regimes and productivity growth: a framework for analysis

This paper develops an analytical framework to identify the policies relevant for firm exit and the channels through which they shape aggregate productivity growth.




d

The effects of reform scenarios for unemployment benefits and social assistance on financial incentives to work and poverty in Lithuania

In 2015 the Lithuanian government launched an ambitious Social Model reform agenda aimed at balancing flexibility of the labour market and security provided through the system of social protection.




d

The short-term impact of product market reforms: a cross-country firm-level analysis

This paper analyses the effects of product market reforms in the short and medium term across 10 regulated industries and 18 advanced economies for the period 1998-2013 using internationally comparable firm-level data based on Orbis.




d

Estimating the distributional impact of the Greek crisis (2009-2014)

This paper analyses the effects of the Greek crisis on inequality and poverty in 2009-2014 using the micro-simulation model EUROMOD.




d

Boosting productivity through greater small business dynamism in Canada

Small business dynamism is a feature of an SME sector that contributes to overall productivity growth, not an end in itself.




d

Costa Rica: boosting productivity to sustain income convergence

Boosting national productivity to sustain the convergence process towards OECD countries living standards will hinge on creating the right conditions for domestic firms to thrive and become more innovative and productive, while maintaining the long-standing commitment to open international markets and investment.




d

Boosting productivity in Finland

Reviving productivity requires improving framework conditions further so labour and capital can more easily move to the most dynamic sectors and firms, making the tax system more growth-friendly, and supporting innovation, basic research and young firms’ financing.




d

Employment and skills in Finland

Policies to speed up tertiary graduation, improve work incentives and activation of the unemployed and postpone labour market exit are necessary to bring the employment rate closer to the level of other Nordics




d

Age, skills and labour market outcomes in Finland

Macro-simulations benchmarking employment in Finland to the Nordic average show that closing the large gaps in labour participation vis-à-vis the other Nordics across genders and age groups would boost employment significantly.




d

Pump-priming productivity through reform: the case of Lithuania

In the past two decades, the income level in Lithuania has steadily risen toward that of OECD countries. Between 1995 and 2013, GDP per capita rose from one third to two thirds of the OECD average. Productivity catch-up was critical to this process, aided by enhanced integration into the global economy which enabled the adoption of more advanced production technologies from abroad.




d

Strengthening competition in network sectors and the internal market in Canada

Canada’s productivity performance has lagged that of many other OECD countries, despite some improvement in recent years.




d

OECD to help put innovation at heart of G20 global growth strategy

Leaders of the G20 countries meeting at their Summit in Hangzhou, China, have called on the OECD to help develop an agenda to build a stronger, more innovative and inclusive world economy.




d

Enhancing Greek exports is key to jobs and growth

With weak domestic demand and a relatively low export share in the economy there is much potential to raise exports. Despite a recent pick-up Greek export performance deteriorated in the last decade particularly in the service sector and by much more than in the Euro area on average




d

OECD warns weak trade and financial distortions damage global growth prospects

Weak trade growth and financial distortions are exacerbating slow global economic growth, according to the OECD’s latest Interim Economic Outlook.




d

Achieving and sharing the benefits of globalisation

Yesterday’s OECD Interim Economic Outlook warns that trade growth is slowing, contributing to another slowing of global GDP growth in 2016 and with few signs of improvement for 2017.




d

Does Fiscal Decentralisation Foster Regional Convergence?

Across the OECD, GDP per capita is converging. In contrast, regional disparities – or differences in GDP per capita across jurisdictions – are rising, mainly as a result of widening productivity differences. Fiscal decentralisation could help reduce them again. According to new OECD research, assigning more ownsource revenue to sub-national governments dampens regional GDP disparities and underpins regional convergence.




d

Product market reforms under the microscope

Given the secular decline in productivity growth and the persistent weakness of the economic recovery in many advanced economies, increased attention is being paid to the potential role of structural reforms for restoring economic growth.




d

Cardiac arrest or dizzy spell: Why is world trade so weak, what can policy do about it?

World trade growth was rapid in the two decades prior to the global financial crisis but has halved subsequently.




d

MENA countries need structural reforms to spur trade, investment, jobs and trust

Middle Eastern and North African countries should press ahead with further economic and structural reforms to boost flagging trade and investment, restore public trust and create jobs for the region’s young population, the OECD told ministers from the region today.




d

Inefficient insolvency regimes: a barrier to creative destruction?

A key recent OECD work, the "Future of Productivity" implies that inefficient firms increasingly linger as opposed to exit the market, despite their inability to adopt new technologies.




d

Raising Korea’s productivity through innovation and structural reform

Raising productivity requires addressing a wide range of policies that affect resource allocation, the creation and diffusion of technology, human capital and the creation and financing of start-ups.




d

Unleashing private sector productivity in the United States

Productivity growth has been sluggish since the Great Recession and had been slowing before it.




d

The skills of Polish emigrants – evidence from PIAAC

Based on the OECD data from the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) this paper sheds light on the skills of migrants.




d

Realising and expanding opportunities in the United States

Measures that enable the acquisition of new skills and reduce mismatches between the demand and supply of existing skills can boost US economic growth and make its benefits more inclusive.




d

Advance warning indicators of past severe GDP per capita recessions in Turkey

The global financial crisis and its high economic and social costs have revived academic and policy interest in “early warning indicators” of crises. This paper aims to investigate the performance of vulnerability indicators as advance warning indicators of past severe GDP per capita recessions in Turkey.




d

The estimation of financial conditions indices for the major OECD countries

This paper seeks to provide up to date financial conditions indices for six countries, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as the euro area, updating earlier results by the OECD.




d

Mind the gaps: boost early childcare education and care in Costa Rica

Costa Rican well-being indicators are comparable or even above the OECD average in several dimensions (OECD, 2016a). Nevertheless, gaps with OECD countries are large in two dimensions: labour market participation and education.




d

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría presents new OECD studies with economic and social recommendations to Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski

Economic and social reforms undertaken over the past two decades have driven Peruvian efforts to achieve sustainable economic growth and important reductions in poverty. Against a context of weak global growth, Peru will need to diversify its economy, boost skills, reinforce productivity across the labour force and unleash the potential of all regions in order to spur more inclusive national growth.




d

Tax reforms, more efficient public spending and better public governance, keys to consolidating Indonesia’s strong economic progress

Indonesia has undergone an extraordinary transformation over the past two decades, benefiting from strong growth that has lifted millions out of poverty and allowed important progress in areas such as health and education. But low levels of public spending and tax revenue are undermining the quality of social services and exacerbating infrastructure gaps, according to the OECD.




d

Global Forum on Environment and Economic Growth

This Global Forum, held on 24-25 October 2016, aimed to shed light on the links between environment and economic growth, and the toolkits to quantify these links. It provided a platform to explore how a well-managed natural environment can contribute to economic growth and how an effective and efficient regulatory system can best be designed?




d

Funding priority spending will become increasingly challenging in Indonesia

As described in the 2016 OECD Economic Survey of Indonesia, economic growth is expected to pick up over the course of 2016 and into 2017. Despite persistently weak external conditions, confidence is returning, with inflation moderating, a stable rupiah and government investment in infrastructure gathering pace.




d

Labour mobility in the European Union: a need for more recognition of foreign qualifications

Labour market mobility in the European Union is increasing, but it remains too low to provide sufficient adjustment in the face of diverging labour market developments.