Quick Links on the Economy by Dr. Douglas O. Walker

Important meetings on the state of the world economy and the global financial system took place this weekend. Here are some links on these discussions and recent analyzes of the world economy by international agencies:

1. A meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bank governors took place in Iqaluit, Ontario, on 5 and 6 February 2010, to review the state of the world economy, global financial reform, the Millennium Development Goals, and the tragedy of Haiti. The Chairman's summary of the meeting can be found here.
2. Word is circulating on many financial blogs that the world's central bankers have converged on Sidney, Australia, for a secret meeting amid renewed concerns about global growth and sovereign debt. Supposedly organized by the Bank for International Settlements, the secretive central bankers' central bank, the meeting is expected to include central bank governors from the Peoples Bank of China, the Bank of Japan, and the Reserve Bank of India in addition to monetary authorities from Europe and the U.S. High on the list of concerns is Greece, Portugal, Spain and Dubai. The only newspaper reporting on the meeting is the Australian newspaper The Herald Sun. Not surprisingly, there is no word of this meeting on the Bank for International Settlement's web site. Take the rumors for what they are worth.
3. In contrast to the doom and gloom of the blogs, the Managing Director of the IMF, Mr. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, recently went to a conference in Israel and pronounced the world economy on the mend, reviving but fragile.
4. The World Bank, too, sees the world economy as improving but says it will be a long road to recovery.
5. Finally, the United Nations released its assessment of the state and prospects for the world economy late last month. It can be found here.