Showing 1 - 10 of 40
2026 will be a year of debt struggles
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 08/01/2026
» Forget GDP growth. Forget tourist arrivals. Forget export figures. In 2026, Thailand's overriding economic challenge will not be growth but debt repayment.
Renminbi debt in a dollar-denominated world
Oped, Paola Subacchi, Published on 25/09/2025
» When governments borrow on international markets, they do so overwhelmingly in US dollars. Roughly two-thirds of international debt issuance is denominated in foreign currencies, of which nearly half is in dollars and about 40% is in euros. The rest is spread across other currencies, including the Chinese renminbi.
Thai SMEs are in need of a lifeline
Oped, Dai Kadomae, Published on 07/08/2025
» Thailand's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are quietly suffering through a credit crunch with far-reaching implications. Despite accounting for over 90% of registered businesses, SMEs are finding it harder than ever to access capital. The economic recovery has been uneven, and traditional lenders -- still cautious after the pandemic -- are reducing risk exposure. But the core issue is not merely liquidity; it is the absence of a national system for reviving viable but stressed firms.
New approach to debt required
Oped, Kate Hampton & Hannah Wanjie Ryder, Published on 11/02/2025
» The world is in the midst of a financing crisis. As world leaders work to mobilise trillions of dollars to meet climate and development goals, expensive public debt is limiting governments' ability to make long-term investments. A long-term framework for low-interest financing of global public goods is urgently needed.
Developing nations face solvency crisis
Oped, Anne O. Krueger, Published on 08/01/2025
» High debt levels are again setting off alarm bells worldwide. In developed countries, attention is focused on the rapid increase in public debt, while developing economies are struggling to service their external obligations amid slowing growth and stagnating exports.
Key to unlocking trade benefits
Oped, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala & Makhtar Diop, Published on 29/10/2024
» Supply chains form the backbone of international commerce, representing over half the value of global merchandise trade. They also create large numbers of jobs and lower the bar for countries and companies to participate in the world economy. But the finance underpinning supply chains is inadequate, leaving too many small businesses in emerging and developing economies cut off from the benefits of global trade.
Moving towards a fifth world order
Oped, Gordon Brown & Mohamed A El-Erian, Published on 26/10/2024
» The Bretton Woods institutions -- the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank -- are now 80 years old. But they are as under-resourced and poorly supported by national governments as at any time in their history. Their predicament is perhaps the clearest sign that economic and financial multilateralism is fragmenting along with the global economy. Worse, this fragmentation comes at a time of rising international tensions, financial fragility, sputtering growth, rising poverty, and mounting reconstruction bills in Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine, and elsewhere.
Lease plan caveats
Oped, Postbag, Published on 26/06/2024
» Re: "PM allays foreign lease fears", (BP, June 24). Given that attempts by previous governments to allow foreign land ownership and the moribund condition of the property market, PM Srettha's initiative to introduce 99-year leases as an alternative to freehold is laudable.
The 'billions to trillions' charade
Oped, Jayati Ghosh, Published on 23/05/2024
» The international development sector has become fixated on calculating financing gaps. Hardly a day goes by without new estimates of the funds low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) need to meet their climate targets and achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Aid must reflect vulnerabilities
Oped, Patrick Guillaumont, Abdoul Salam Bello & Arnaud Buissé, Published on 13/02/2024
» Last October, at the Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund in Marrakesh, member countries emphasised the urgency of scaling up development finance. In recent years, an extraordinary confluence of health, climate, and security crises has worsened global inequalities and eroded the economic and social gains of the last few decades, especially in many African countries.