Page 4 - World Bank

Cash-strapped Pak makes formal request to IMF for another bailout

Pakistan has made a formal request to IMF for seeking the next bailout package in the range of USD 6 to USD 8 billion with the possibility of augmentation through climate financing, a media report said on Saturday. Cash-strapped Pakistan also requested to dispatch the International Monetary Fund (IMF) review mission next month to firm up details of the next bailout package for three years under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). However, the exact size and timeframe of the new package will only be determined after evolving consensus on the major contours of the next programme in May 2024, Geo News reported from Washington. A high-level Pakistani delegation led by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb is currently visiting Washington to attend the annual spring meetings of the IMF/World Bank. Although Pakistani authorities are pitching a rosy picture of the economy, the IMF in its latest Regional Economic Outlook (REO) released by Middle East and Central Asia (ME and CA) said the ...

Role played by India during G-20 presidency appreciated at IMF meeting

During the annual Spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank there was a widespread appreciation of the role played by India during its G-20 presidency in building consensus on a range of key global issues, a top Indian official has said. India hosted the G20 Summit in New Delhi from September 9-10. The summit adopted a 37-page consensus declaration overcoming major differences on the Russia-Ukraine war and took several steps to ensure the stability of the global economy. There is a widespread appreciation of Indian presidency of the G-20 in building consensus on several issues, relevant for global deployment, conducted of various meetings during the presidency as well as the leaders' summit, Ajay Seth, Economic Affairs Secretary told PTI on Friday on the sidelines of the annual sprint meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Due to the ongoing Lok Sabha election, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is not attending the annual IMF and World Bank ...

Climate change, war, poverty biggest challenges: World Bank's Ajay Banga

There was no shortage of stressors to the global economy when Ajay Banga took charge at the World Bank almost a year ago: inflation eating at nations drowning in debt, a once-in-a-generation pandemic, climate disasters and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Factor in the Israel-Hamas war and rising tensions between powerful nations, and today's agenda is even fuller as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund hold their spring meetings in Washington this week. The world's intertwined challenges of poverty which clearly we have seen great setbacks over the past few years combined with fragility and conflict and violence, combined with climate change, is coming into a perfect storm, Banga said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We need to put all of our efforts into this. Banga highlighted new initiatives being announced at the meetings, including plans to provide 300 million people in Africa with electricity by 2030 and 1.5 billion people worldwide with health care .

President Biden's push for World Bank funds to compete with China stalls

The World Bank's two major lending arms committed a combined $72.8 billion last year, with total cumulative lending since 1945 at nearly $1.4 trillion

Janet Yellen likely to reiterate warnings over China's manufacturing power

With its dominant voice in all of those forums, the US is expected to try to align other countries across Europe, Asia and Latin America to voice concerns over China's output and exports

IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva wins second term ahead of Spring meetings

Georgieva, 70, led IMF's efforts to aid indebted countries through pandemic and has warned about the global economic impact of trade fragmentation caused by worsening US-China relations

IMF under pressure to cut billions of dollars in fees for large borrowers

The IMF released a statement last week saying that "a number" of its board members were open to reviewing policies around surcharges, the fees that it charges nations that borrow more

World Bank allocates $16 mn to support women-led businesses in Afghanistan

The World Bank added that the bank is striving to increase access to financial resources in Afghanistan for small and medium-sized enterprises

World Bank set to issue up to $1 billion in debut hybrid note this year

The G20 group of major economies has urged multilateral lenders to explore hybrid financing structures in a push to try

World Bank lifts India's economic growth forecast for FY25 to 6.6%

Cautions that South Asia Risks "Squandering" Its Demographic Dividend

World Bank to share more data to attract investors to developing countries

Economic growth has slowed in developing countries, with growth falling to barely 4% from 6% in two decades, Banga said

Grasim Industries secures Rs 1,250 cr from International Finance Corp

The investment by IFC, World Bank's private sector arm, will be in the form of a subscription to non-convertible debentures (NCD) issued by Grasim

Do we need a new line to assess poverty based on CES for 2022-23?

At the $3.2 per capita per day poverty line, which the World Bank uses for lower-middle-income countries such as India, poverty rate declined from 53.6% during 2011-12 to 20.8% during 2022-23

Closing gender gap could lift global GDP more than 20%, says World Bank

The report said obstacles that women face in entering the global workforce included barriers to starting businesses, persistent pay gaps and bans on working at night or in jobs deemed 'dangerous'

Poverty rate in India between 4.5-5% in 2022-23; rural poverty at 7.2%: SBI

Meanwhile, urban poverty declined to 4.6 per cent from 13.7 per cent during the same period

World Bank needs to restructure itself, attract private capital: N K Singh

The World Bank needs to reinvent and restructure itself so as to become 'better, bolder and bigger' and harness private capital on the strength of its own balance sheet, said N K Singh, Co-Convenor, Expert Group on MDB Reforms. The World Bank should also look at the possibility of tapping pension funds to increase its capital base and its capacity to fund development projects in developing nations. "Bretton Woods was the first one, it certainly needs to be reinvented, restructured and recreated. But there is no substitute for multilateral cooperation. and that's why better, bolder and bigger," Singh said at a panel discussion at the Raisina Dialogue, 2024. A high-level expert group, led by N K Singh and former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, was set up by the G20 under India's presidency. In its report, the group had proposed a 30-point roadmap to reform Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and triple their lending by 2030, which includes attracting private investors and ...

World Bank, others issue offshore rupee bonds worth $1.4 bn as demand soars

These offshore bonds, with maturities ranging from 4 years to 10 years, are denominated in Indian rupees but settled in U.S. dollars, the sources said

FM asks World Bank officials to lead G20 agenda of strengthening MDBs

FM also suggested the World Bank explore the possibility of implementing Infrastructure Investment Trusts in infrastructure sectors such as roadways

Ukraine needs $486 bn to rebuild after nearly 2 years of war: World Bank

Disruptions to economic output and trade, as well as other war-related costs, such as removing debris, would likely add another $499 billion, it said

World Bank Chief Banga says lender 'wasting time' with too many rules

In addition to focusing the bank more on climate change and its consequences since taking over in June, Banga has often flagged what he sees as slowness and inefficiencies of the institution