Free Republic

As Paul Wolfowitz battles to keep his position as president of the World Bank after a nepotism scandal, speculation mounts that the U.S. may lose its hegemony over appointing the poverty-fighting institution's leader. More - that perhaps it should stop appointing Americans. The Wall Street Journal became the second publication of repute to suggest Stanley Fischer for the position. His isn't the first name the paper suggests, but it makes a case that he's unique, in being a non-American born American that the member coutries of the World Bank might find "less divisive". The first was the London-based weekly The...

The Bank of Israel lowered its benchmark interest rate on Monday to an all-time low of 0.1 percent on Monday. The move came as a surprise, after 11 of 12 economists polled by Reuters had expected the central bank to stand pat. The central bank cut the rate to signal its determination to push back against the negative inflation holding down the market towards its intended annual target of one to three percent. Lowering the interest rate theoretically leads to an increase in demand within the market and helps increase prices towards the inflation target which the Bank of Israel...

Jun. 17, 2003 Official unemployment remains at 10.8%, real figure may exceed 20% By MATI WAGNER April's unemployment rate remained at the March level of 10.8 percent, representing 281,400 unemployed, the Central Bureau of Statistics reported Monday. Bank of Israel economists said the unemployment rate would reach a record 11.5%-12%, or approximately 313,300 people, by the end of the year. The unemployment rate has been rising on average by 0.1% per month since the beginning of the year, amounting to a 0.4% rise since December 2002, reflecting an additional 20,420 unemployed. The number of unemployed has risen by 15,630 since...

IMF report urges Israel to cut budget, interest rates “The restoration of peace, given Israel's strong fundamentals, would yield substantial economic gains to the region as a whole.” Globes correspondent 13 Mar 03 17:22The International Monetary Fund (IMF) today released its annual review of the Israeli economy, in which it urged expenditure cuts from the government and small interest rate cuts from the Bank of Israel The report reads, “On March 7, 2003, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Israel” Background ”The Israeli economy is in the midst of a deep...