IMF Podcasts

Sub-Saharan Africa is slowly emerging from four turbulent years with higher growth expected for nearly two thirds of countries in the region. But while inflation has almost halved and debt has broadly stabilized, economies are still grappling with financing shortages and impending debt repayments. Wenjie Chen is deputy head of the team that publishes the Regional Economic Outlook for sub-Saharan Africa. In this podcast, she says the surging global demand for critical minerals key to renewable energy systems could help the region overcome the ongoing funding squeeze. Transcript: https://bit.ly/3WbU6iT Read the full report at IMF.org

Fabio Natalucci and Jason Wu from the GFSR team discuss risks like debt, struggling real estate in China and the US, and cybersecurity in the face of decreasing inflation. They analyze challenges in managing inflation, stability of the global financial system, and emerging market resilience. The podcast also covers debt risks, fiscal concerns, and cybersecurity threats in the financial sector.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva discusses the global economic landscape, fiscal policies, climate transition, and trade dynamics in the 2020s. Topics include macroeconomic foundations, fiscal prudence, green and digital transitions, and the impact of geopolitical events on supply chains.

Even optimal economic policies create winners and losers, and that's where politics steps in. Trade liberalization is an example of a policy that can make a country better off as a whole, but what happens to workers who lose out to cheaper goods? Jeffry Frieden says while politics is often messy, it's how society puts a value on things economists can't measure. Frieden is a Professor of Government at Harvard University. Transcript: https://bit.ly/4cU34qZ Read A Place for Politics at IMF.org/fandd

For decades, the standard labor market model has been ruled by supply and demand, but a younger generation of labor economists is questioning that approach. Suresh Naidu is a Professor of Economics and International Public Affairs at Columbia University. He says while the supply and demand model is not wrong, it only tells part of the story. In this podcast, Naidu and journalist Rhoda Metcalfe discuss why today's labor market model sometimes fails to reflect the real world. Transcript: https://bit.ly/4aHBqvz

It wasn't that long ago when retiring in one's 50s was an achievable goal. But with life expectancy steadily rising and pension systems doomed to fall short, the prospects for an early retirement are fading fast. Olivia Mitchell wrote the book on retirement and modern pension research and has spent her career helping people improve their financial literacy. Mitchell is a Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She sat down with journalist Rhoda Metcalfe to discuss the challenges of today's economy for Americans planning their golden years. Transcript: https://bit.ly/49snKUp

Exploring Keynes' economic forecasts, the impact of technology on living standards, and the necessity of proactive measures amidst economic concerns. Emphasizing the crucial shift towards a new climate economy, circular economy, technological innovation, and the future of multilateralism. Kristalina Georgieva delivers a speech inspired by Keynes' lectures at King's College, Cambridge.

Behavioral economist Ulrike Malmendier discusses how past experiences shape financial decisions, linking upbringing on opposite sides of the Berlin Wall to investment behaviors. Insights on overconfidence in CEOs and the impact of personal experiences on economic models and inequality.

Countless resources and billions of dollars have been directed at poverty alleviation over the decades and yet almost 10 percent of the world's population is still struggling to survive... not only in developing countries but in rich countries too. Why do so many anti-poverty efforts fall short? Martin Kalisa says there is more to poverty than income, and poor people can help design projects that are more likely to succeed. Kalisa is the Deputy Director of ATD Fourth World, an anti-poverty organization that builds research teams that include poor people to better understand their needs. Kalisa took part in a conference on the Hidden Dimensions of Poverty hosted by the World Bank and the IMF. Transcript: https://bit.ly/4a3Hcra

Industrial policy had its heyday in the 1950s and 60s when governments moved to boost national competitiveness amid burgeoning global trade. Economists have been predicting the return of industrial policy of late- and there's no question it's back, but what does today's industrial policy look like? Michele Ruta is a trade expert at the IMF, and along with some colleagues compiled a new dataset that shows the extent to which new industrial policies are being used and what their real impact might be on the global economy. Transcript: https://bit.ly/49LjmQW Check out the IMF's global trade webpage: IMF.org/en/Topics/Trade