Download or read book The Challenges of Economic Integration and Currency Unification by the GCC Countries written by Mubārak ibn Bakr Dawsarī and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 71 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book On a Common Currency for the GCC Countries written by Mr.Esteban Jadresic and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2002-12-01 with total page 27 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper assesses the eventual replacement of the currencies of the GCC countries with a common currency. It concludes that a properly implemented currency union may contribute to enhance economic efficiency in the region, deepen regional integration, and develop its non-oil economy. However, it cautions that a currency union should be seen as only one component of a much broader integration effort. This should include the removal of the distortions that inhibit intraregional trade and investment, agreements on policy frameworks to ensure macroeconomic stability, and further political integration. The paper also addresses the choice of exchange rate arrangement for the unified currency.

Download or read book The Issue of Regional Currency Unification written by Mohammad Althabity and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The proposed currency unification in the GCC region is believed by the GCC Council to be the solution to streamlining international trade in the region and improving the region's economy as a whole. However, there are possible problems that the region's economies could incur with the implementation of currency unification, both in the short term and the long term. This research paper used both qualitative and quantitative research methods to take a closer look at the plans to create a single GCC currency and what the ramifications of these plans could be. The results of the study showed that implementation of the plans could lead to political and economic obstacles both in the short term and the long term. One conclusion of the paper is that the formation of the currency union would lead to the loss of a country's sovereignty in relation to the control of its monetary policies and activities.

Download or read book Economic Integration in the GCC written by World Bank and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study discusses the status of economic integration of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries among themselves, with the larger Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and globally. It also assesses the main challenges to further integration. The GCC is the most advanced example of sub regional integration in the MENA region, and its objectives are among the most ambitious in the developing world. It has evolved well beyond a focus on free trade in goods to embrace high levels of cross-national labor and capital mobility, and the progressive opening of many sectors within each economy to all member states. The GCC has made good progress on regional integration since its establishment in 1981. Integration efforts have gained considerable momentum following the ratification of the Unified economic agreement in 2001, the signing of the customs union agreement in 2003, and the adoption of the common market agreement in 2008. Under the customs union agreement, member countries have eliminated intraregional tariffs, unified external tariffs, and eased trade restrictions, bringing about a notable increase in the value of goods traded among member states.

Download or read book Economic Prospects and Policy Challenges for the GCC Countries 2021 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2021-12-15 with total page 39 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: GCC policymakers moved quickly to mitigate the health and economic impacts of twin COVID-19 and oil price shocks. Infection rates have declined across the GCC to well below previous peaks, though countries have experienced successive waves of the virus, and economic recoveries have begun to take hold. Nevertheless, GCC policymakers must navigate a challenging and uncertain landscape. The pandemic continues to cloud the global outlook as countries are in different phases of recovery, with varied growth prospects and policy space

Download or read book The Problems Of Arab Economic Development And Integration written by Adda Guecioueur and published by Westview Press. This book was released on 1984-02-19 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Economic Integration in the GCC written by Weltbank and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study discusses the status of economic integration of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries among themselves, with the larger Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and globally. It also assesses the main challenges to further integration. The GCC is the most advanced example of sub regional integration in the MENA region, and its objectives are among the most ambitious in the developing world. It has evolved well beyond a focus on free trade in goods to embrace high levels of cross-national labor and capital mobility, and the progressive opening of many sectors within each economy to all member states. The GCC has made good progress on regional integration since its establishment in 1981. Integration efforts have gained considerable momentum following the ratification of the Unified economic agreement in 2001, the signing of the customs union agreement in 2003, and the adoption of the common market agreement in 2008. Under the customs union agreement, member countries have eliminated intraregional tariffs, unified external tariffs, and eased trade restrictions, bringing about a notable increase in the value of goods traded among member states.

Download or read book Gulf Cooperation Council Monetary Unification written by Yahya Alyafai and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this report, I investigate the possibility of a monetary unification among the Arab States. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states that include Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Kuwait and Oman are coming together on the basis of common ethnicity, religion, culture, traditions, and monetary issues. This research will discuss different factors upon which the monetary unification and the birth of a new currency depend. For comparison to the Euro, I closely examined different factors such as inflation rates, exchange rates, trade, etc. over the past decade. As stated, this examination was done to see how these factors compare with those of the Euro region to determine if a similar monetary unification among the GCC states is possible. The target date for launching the new GCC currency was January 1, 2010; however that date has long passed. Although the above mentioned factors are favorable to currency unification of the GCC states, ample time is necessary to achieve such a herculean feat. After all, the Europeans did not achieve the unification of the Euro in one night. One hurdle to unification is that the GCC states still need to control the inflation rates in their own economies. Other economic factors, such as trade, have been favorable for all the GCC states, and all the states have been doing well in terms of the U.S. dollar (USD). Although unification may not have met the January 1, 2010 goal, the GCC will still be observing the economic factors and considering other possible scenarios. All the GCC countries vow to achieve this unification.

Download or read book Challenges of Growth and Globalization in the Middle East and North Africa written by Mr.Hamid R Davoodi and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2003-09-05 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is an economically diverse region. Despite undertaking economic reforms in many countries, and having considerable success in avoiding crises and achieving macroeconomic stability, the region’s economic performance in the past 30 years has been below potential. This paper takes stock of the region’s relatively weak performance, explores the reasons for this out come, and proposes an agenda for urgent reforms.

Download or read book Essays on the Economic Integration of the Cooperation Council of the Arab States of the Gulf written by Adham Al Said and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: [Truncated abstract] Economic integration is a process through which a group of countries seek cooperation and standardisation in a wide range of policies. These policies affect both domestic and regional economies through the movement of goods, services, and factors of production. In some cases economic integration is of deeper form, such that supernational institutions are developed to achieve its objectives. Economic Integration takes a number of forms such as Free Trade Areas, Customs Union, Common Market, or a Monetary Union. Today the World Trade Organisation (WTO), originally The General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT), dubs these agreements as Regional Trade Agreements (RTA). The post-war trading system has been marked with two conflicting forces, multilateralism and regionalism. The GATT, signed in 1947, formalised the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) approach in international trade according to which countries pass preferential trade policy equally to all trading partners. However, within the multilateral trade liberalisation framework, concessions were given for restricted MFN based agreements. Article XXIV of the original GATT Agreement allowed certain types of trade agreements within a subset of countries that may be discriminatory in nature. These agreements became known as Preferential Trade Agreements or PTAs. The 21st century has experienced a substantial increase in the number of RTAs. A great number of these RTAs involve more than two countries. This phenomenon has become to be known as New Regionalism. The underlying motives for creating RTAs shifted substantially from the traditional view of trade liberalisation. The implications of these RTAs have become more significant as deeper integration is sought for purposes of development. The importance of RTAs is stressed further where developing countries are becoming more involved in the process. These agreements are part of the international trading system today and they are here to stay. This thesis analyses the rationale for the creation of RTAs and their potential effects on the countries involved. It is concerned with measuring the effectiveness of these RTAs using a barometer made up of three components, trade, incomes and growth, and prices. This is applied to a specific RTA, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC); a group of six major oil producing developing countries. Since the 1980s, the GCC countries, located on the Persian Gulf, have been and are undergoing a long-term economic integration process. This project involves creating a Free Trade Area, Customs Union, Common Market, and a Monetary Union. After a long period of slow paced economic integration, the GCC has recently invigorated the process. Currently, its progress is at the Common Market stage of integration. The GCC aims to achieve a monetary union within the foreseeable future but faces a number of challenges to the achievement of this goal. The GCC provides a unique economic integration experience and there are many factors that make it a likely candidate for overall success. This thesis provides an economic analysis of the experience thus far...

Download or read book Economic Diversification in the GCC written by Mr.Tim Callen and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2014-12-23 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abstract: The economies of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are heavily reliant on oil. Greater economic diversification would reduce their exposure to volatility and uncertainty in the global oil market, help create jobs in the private sector, increase productivity and sustainable growth, and help create the non-oil economy that will be needed in the future when oil revenues start to dwindle. The GCC countries have followed many of the standard policies that are usually thought to promote more diversified economies, including reforms to improve the business climate, the development of domestic infrastructure, financial deepening, and improvements in education. Nevertheless, success to date has been limited. This paper argues that increased diversification will require realigning incentives for firms and workers in the economies—fixing these incentives is the “missing link” in the GCC countries’ diversification strategies. At present, producing non-tradables is less risky and more profitable for firms as they can benefit from the easy availability of low-wage foreign labor and the rapid growth in government spending, while the continued availability of high-paying and secure public sector jobs discourages nationals from pursuing entrepreneurship and private sector employment. Measures to begin to address these incentive issues could include limiting and reorienting government spending, strengthening private sector competition, providing guarantees and financial support for those firms engaged in export activity, and implementing labor market reforms to make nationals more competitive for private sector employment.

Download or read book Monetary Union Among Member Countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council written by Mr.Ugo Fasano-Filho and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2003-08-29 with total page 80 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The six member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)--Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates--have made important progress toward economic and financial integration, with the aim of establishing an economic and monetary union. This paper provides a detailed analysis of the economic performance and policies of the GCC countries during 1990-2002. Drawing on the lessons from the experience of selected currency and monetary unions in Africa, Europe, and the Caribbean, it assesses the potential costs and benefits of a common currency for GCC countries and also reviews the options for implementing a monetary union among these countries.

Download or read book Global Trends 2040 written by National Intelligence Council and published by Cosimo Reports. This book was released on 2021-03 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.

Download or read book The East African Community written by Ms.Catherine McAuliffe and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2012-11-14 with total page 55 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The East African Community (EAC) has been among the fastest growing regions in sub-Saharan Africa in the past decade or so. Nonetheless, the recent growth path will not be enough to achieve middle-income status and substantial poverty reduction by the end of the decade—the ambition of most countries in the region. This paper builds on methodologies established in the growth literature to identify a group of countries that achieved growth accelerations and sustained growth to use as benchmarks to evaluate the prospects, and potential constraints, for EAC countries to translate their recent growth upturn into sustained high growth. We find that EAC countries compare favorably to the group of sustained growth countries—macroeconomic and government stability, favorable business climate, and strong institutions—but important differences remain. EAC countries have a smaller share of exports, lower degree of financial deepening, lower levels of domestic savings, higher reliance on donor aid, and limited physical infrastructure and human capital. Policy choices to address some of these shortcomings could make a difference in whether the EAC follows the path of sustained growth or follows other countries where growth upturns later fizzled out.

Download or read book Regional Integration and Economic Development in South Asia written by Sultan Hafeez Rahman and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2012-04-01 with total page 425 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: South Asian leaders have made it a priority to tackle key regional issues such as poverty, environment degradation, trade and investment barriers and food insecurity, among others.

Download or read book The Globalization Paradox written by Dani Rodrik and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2012-05-17 with total page 442 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For a century, economists have driven forward the cause of globalization in financial institutions, labour markets, and trade. Yet there have been consistent warning signs that a global economy and free trade might not always be advantageous. Where are the pressure points? What could be done about them? Dani Rodrik examines the back-story from its seventeenth-century origins through the milestones of the gold standard, the Bretton Woods Agreement, and the Washington Consensus, to the present day. Although economic globalization has enabled unprecedented levels of prosperity in advanced countries and has been a boon to hundreds of millions of poor workers in China and elsewhere in Asia, it is a concept that rests on shaky pillars, he contends. Its long-term sustainability is not a given. The heart of Rodrik’s argument is a fundamental 'trilemma': that we cannot simultaneously pursue democracy, national self-determination, and economic globalization. Give too much power to governments, and you have protectionism. Give markets too much freedom, and you have an unstable world economy with little social and political support from those it is supposed to help. Rodrik argues for smart globalization, not maximum globalization.

Download or read book Arab Regional Organizations written by and published by Transaction Publishers. This book was released on 1992-01-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the past four decades the Arab nations have exercised an enormous political and economic influence on world events. Much of that impact has been exerted not through the direct actions of individual governments but collectively or indirectly through pan-Arab organizations, economic associations such as OPEC, or through international agencies including the United Nations and the International Monetary Fund. "Arab Regional Organizations "is a fully annotated bibliographic guide to the functions, infrastructures, and effectiveness of Arab organizational activity. The organizations covered in this volume have grown in importance in lockstep with developments in the Middle East. This is particularly so in the areas of economics and energy where there has been the establishment of national control over the oil industry and a consequent economic boom. Institutions such as the Gulf Cooperation Council have also become vital to the continued politcal stability of the member states and to the strategic importance of the region as illustrated by the Iran-Iraq war and the Persian Gulf War. The book also takes note of the special economic importance of organizations such as the Kuwait, Saudi, and Abu Dhabi Funds. These perform a major role among developing nations because of their project aid and technical assistance programs. "Arab Regional Organizations "covers a variety of subjects but concentrates on economics, energy, politics, and development subjects. A lengthy introductory section is designed to provide readers with the background of each organization and to direct them to other sources of information. A supplementary section deals with the effects of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the Gulf War. Researchers, librarians, economists, political scientists, and Middle East specialists will find this volume an invaluable guide to the literature of the region.