Hot Topics

This page (www.oecd.org/hottopics) lists OECD documents, key reports, multimedia and articles from the world's media on key global issues.  If you want to know more about these topics and the latest developments, please use the links as indicated for each of the topics.

Agriculture, biofuels and food prices
www.oecd.org/agriculture

• Biofuel policies in OECD countries costly and ineffective, says OECD report
  Government support of  biofuel production in OECD countries is costly, has a limited impact on reducing greenhouse gases and improving energy security, and has a significant impact on world crop prices, according to a new study of policies to promote greater production and use of biofuel in OECD countries.
  16/07/2008
• Farm policy reform urgent amid rising world food prices
  The rise in global food prices has made further reform of market-distorting farm policies all the more urgent, says new OECD report Agricultural Policies in OECD Countries.
  26/06/2008
• Aid, development and policy reforms needed to lessen impact of high food prices (pdf 0.25Mb)
  What has caused the recent sharp rises in world food prices? What will be the impact on the poor? These questions are discussed in a policy paper presented to ministers from OECD countries on June 5 2008.
  16/06/2008
• OECD and FAO see agricultural commodity prices remaining high and growing more volatile
  Agricultural commodity prices should ease from their recent record peaks but over the next 10 years they are expected to average well above the mean of the past decade, according to the latest Agricultural Outlook from OECD and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.
  29/05/2008
• The rising cost of food - Financial Times
  News articles, analysis and interactive features on rising food prices and their impact.
• Rising food prices and developing countries
  "We must engage our knowledge and inventiveness to help the most vulnerable countries in addressing their long-term food security issues, while turning their agricultural sectors, where possible, into genuine engines of development," said Secretary-General Angel Gurría in a speech in Paris.
  21/05/2008
• Trade agreement needed now - article by Angel Gurria - International Herald Tribune
  Governments around the world face weakening economies and soaring food prices.
  26/04/2008
• Are biofuels as green as they seem? (Video)
  Interview with Martin Von Lampe, OECD agricultural Policy Analyst and author of a report on biofuels, and Fatih Birol, Chief Economist, International Energy Agency.
  01/05/2008
• Biofuels and food prices
  Summary of a meeting of international experts with UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
  23/04/2008
• Biofuels: is the cure worse than the disease? (pdf .6 Mb)
  Paper prepared for a meeting of the Round Table on Sustainable Development looking at the technical and economic potential of biofuels.
  11/09/2007 

Climate change and the environment
www.oecd.org/env/cc

• Economics of climate change
  Speech by Secretary-General Angel Gurría on the economics of climate change at Chatham House, UK.
  30/06/2008
• 2008 Environmental Outlook - how much will it cost to address today's key environmental problems?
  Solutions to the key environmental challenges are available, achievable and affordable, especially when compared to the expected economic growth and the costs and consequences of inaction.
  05/03/2008
• What are OECD countries doing to fight climate change?
  Environment ministers from Denmark, France, Italy, Japan and Mexico explain their national efforts.
  27/04/2008
• Tackling climate change
  OECD Observer editorial by Secretary-General Angel Gurría on the need for action.
  22/04/2008
• Science of climate change - Financial Times 
  News articles, analysis and interactive features on the science of climate change.
• Climate change and flooding
  The impact of climate change and urban development could more than triple the number of people around the world exposed to coastal flooding by 2070.

Corruption
www.oecd.org/corruption

• Mixed messages on fighting foreign bribery, says Transparency International
  A new report on corruption says fewer than half the countries that have signed the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention are taking steps to stamp it out.
  24/06/2008
• OECD work on corruption (video)
  Why fighting corruption is vital for economic and social development.
• OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions
  Information on the Convention, country monitoring reports and more.
• More commitment needed to fight international corruption
  "Much more needs to be done" to fight international corruption, said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría at a conference in Rome to mark the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.
  21/11/2007

Development and Africa
www.oecd.org/development

• Overseas development aid in 2007
  Most donors are not on track to meet their stated commitments to scale up overseas development aid and will need to make unprecedented increases to meet the targets they have set for 2010.
  04/04/2008
• Development Co-operation Report 2007
  Increased development aid is helping very poor countries. But despite efforts by donor and recipient countries to use aid more effectively, progress is modest and problems such as inequality and climate change are growing.
  14/02/2008
• African Economic Outlook 2008
  Africa’s average real GDP grew by 5.7 per cent in 2007 and is expected to rise to about 6 per cent in 2008 and in 2009.
  13/05/2008
• Policy Framework for Investment
  Helping to create an environment that is attractive to domestic and foreign investors and that enhances the benefits of investment to society.
• More OECD work with Africa

Financial markets, investment and sovereign wealth funds
www.oecd.org/daf

• FDI from OECD countries jumps 50% in 2007 but set to fall in 2008
  Foreign direct investment (FDI) outflows from OECD countries in 2007 leapt to a record USD 1.82 trillion from USD 1.2 trillion in 2006 but are projected to fall sharply in 2008, according to estimates from the OECD.
  24/06/2008
• OECD scrutinises state-owned groups - Financial Times
  The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has launched an initiative to scrutinise the dominant role of state-owned companies abroad with the aim of setting out guidance on best practice and reform.
  20/06/2008
• OECD Outlook sees weak growth and inflation remaining high
  Growth is weakening and inflation is likely to remain high across most OECD countries, according to the Economic Outlook. US activity will stay flat through 2008 while the Euro area economy growth will be restrained by tighter credit and lower export market growth.
  04/06/2008
• OECD warning as stagflation goes global - The Daily Telegraph
  The OECD Composite Leading Indicators (CLI) picked up a sharp deterioration in the eurozone in March, notably in Italy and France where the advance signals are falling even faster than in Britain.
  18/05/2008
• Reform of financial markets
  Fundamental reform of the financial system and its regulation is needed to address the issues highlighted by the current financial markets crisis, according to the OECD Financial Markets Committee.
  15/04/2008
• Subprime crisis: size, deleveraging and some policy options
  This report reviews previous estimates of losses from subprime mortgages and indicates these could amount to between US$ 350 and 420 billion, what the losses mean for deleveraging in the economy and what policy options there are to deal with the negative economic consequences of deleveraging.
  15/04/2008
• Sovereign wealth funds an opportunity, not a threat - The Guardian
  Opinion piece by OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría.
  09/04/2008
• OECD countries stay open to commercial investments by sovereign wealth funds
  OECD countries are committed to keeping their investment frontiers open to sovereign wealth funds as long as these funds invest for commercial, not political ends.
  09/04/2008
• Preventing investment protectionism
  A growing number of countries have reassessed their international investment policies in response to national security concerns and the emergence of new categories of foreign investors, including Sovereign Wealth Funds.
  07/02/2008

Globalisation and employment

• Labour market discrimination still a big problem in OECD countries
  Women are 20% less likely than men to have a paid job in OECD countries and they earn on average 17% less than men, according to the latest edition of OECD’s Employment Outlook.
  02/07/2008
• Workers of the world on the move - Financial Times
  Articles and interactive map on the growth of the global jobs market.
  24/06/2008
• Embracing globalisation in the 21st century: a dialogue on the Nordic approach
  OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría talks about the lessons to be learnt from the Nordic approach to globalisation.
  21/05/2008
• The contribution of labour market and employment policies to addressing the needs of vulnerable workers and areas in a globalising economy
  Domestic policies are instrumental for enhancing the benefits from globalisation while addressing the needs of vulnerable workers and areas, said Mr. Gurría in a speech to G8 Employment and Labour ministers in Niigata.
  13/05/2008
• The Challenges of Globalisation and the OECD: Working for a More Balanced and Inclusive World
  A speech by Mr. Gurría on the need to produce a more inclusive and sustainable globalisation.
  09/04/2008
• Benefits and Wages 2007
  Faced with labour shortages and pressures on pension funding due to ageing populations, one in three OECD countries has cut unemployment benefits in the last six years with a view to encouraging unemployed people to find jobs.
  13/12/2007

Internet economy
www.oecd.org/sti

• OECD ministers agree to make Internet safer, more widely used - Agence France Presse
  Ministers and officials from leading industrial nations agreed Wednesday to make the Internet safer and more accessible, to strengthen its role as a driving force in the global economy.
  18/06/2008
• OECD proposes roadmap for the future of the Internet economy
  The OECD is to work with developed and developing countries and international organisations to improve policies for the Internet economy and increase international co-operation on issues such as cybercrime and security.
  18/06/2008
• OECD broadband up 18% in 2007 but new report says more could be done
  Governments need to promote competition and give consumers more choices. They should encourage new networks, particularly upgrades to fibre-optic lines.
  19/05/2008
• Governments and business must tackle Internet address shortage together
  Governments and business must work together more effectively and urgently to meet the growing demand for Internet addresses and secure the future of the Internet economy.
  15/05/2008
• Economic and social impact of Internet in developing countries
  Where will the next billion Internet users will come from and what impact will they have on the Internet as we know it today? Read the online debate held on this issue here.
  14/02/2008

Tax
www.oecd.org/tax

• Fighting offshore tax evasion (video)
  Grace Perez-Navarro, deputy-director of OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy and Administration, addresses harmful tax practices, including tax havens, by improving transparency and establishing effective exchange of information.
  26/03/2008
• Jurisdictions committed to transparency and effective exchange of information
  Information on international standards for transparency and effective exchange of information in tax matters.
• Tax disclosures in Germany part of a broader challenge, says OECD Secretary-General
  Disclosures concerning alleged widespread tax evasion by German citizens through Liechtenstein highlight a much broader challenge in today's globalised economy: how to respond to countries and territories that seek to profit from tax dodging by residents of other jurisdictions.
  19/02/2008
• Revenue Statistics 2007
  The average tax burden in OECD countries, measured as the ratio of tax to gross domestic product (GDP), is back up to the same levels as in 2000 after a brief reduction between 2001 and 2004.
  17/11/2007

See also:

• Topics: the complete list of key areas of work of the Organisation
• Index: an alphabetical list of topics, resources, key documents and publications.
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