This paper synthesises the main policy implications of OECD work focusing on the interplay between participation and positioning in global value chains (GVCs), employment demand and supply, and workforce skills endowment.

Evidence on the role played by investment in global value chains (GVCs) can assist policy work on GVCs, trade, investment and development. Drawing on new and improved measures of trade and investment, these country notes provide relevant statistical information from OECD databases on trade, investment, the activities of multinational enterprises and global value chains.

Global FDI flows decreased by 3% to USD 788 billion in the first half of 2017 compared to the second half of 2016. The overall decrease was due to an 11% drop in Q2 after increasing 3% in Q1.Inflows to the EU decreased by 46%, partly due to a drop in the United Kingdom from the very high levels recorded in the second half of 2016, while outflows decreased by a more modest 12%.

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, will be in London on 6 November 2017 to attend the Confederation of British Industry Annual Conference, where he will deliver remarks at the Business debate on How to ensure globalisation is a positive force. While in London, the Secretary-General will hold bilateral meetings with several high level officials.

When economic shocks occur, economic agents are expected to react to reduce the negative impact or amplify the positive effects. The ability of a country to contain economic losses can be defined as the resilience to economic shocks. Using the OECD Inter-Country Input-Output tables, this paper investigates the relationship between changes in final demand and production structures for 61 economies.

The “Freedom of Investment" (FOI) process hosted by the OECD Investment Committee monitors investment policy developments in the 58 economies that participate in the process. This report covers investment measures taken between 16 February 2017 and 15 September 2017.

The OECD welcomes the outcomes of today's Ministerial meeting of the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity, and congratulates Germany on this important achievement on the last day of its G20 Presidency. The Global Forum was created by G20 Leaders, at their Hangzhou summit in September of last year. The OECD is honoured to be serving the Global Forum as its Facilitator and to contribute to its achievements to date.

Weak productivity growth is a major problem afflicting most societies. It curbs growth in incomes and endangers the sustainability of social security systems. An important, but often ignored, source of the productivity slowdown is the increasing prevalence of weakly productive firms and, among them, “zombie firms” – in essence firms that would typically exit or be forced to restructure in a competitive market.

7 December 2017, Paris - This workshop addressed the growing demand for transparency and information on how companies deal with human rights, environmental, social and other "non-financial" issues with a particular focus on how companies are identifying and addressing impacts in their supply chains.

30/01/2018 - The China National Textile and Apparel Council (CNTAC) and the OECD today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that sets out their commitment to intensify co-operation to promote responsible business in global textile and apparel supply chains.

When companies involve stakeholders, such as local communities, in their decision making, it enables them to identify, and account for the impacts of their activities, and contribute to positive social and economic development. To address the challenges raised when engaging with stakeholders, the OECD is preparing a user guide on how to undertake due diligence in engaging with stakeholders for mining, oil and gas enterprises.

This report is part of a series of assessments on Colombian gold supply chains and the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas. It analyses conditions of mineral extraction and related risks.

This document provides an overview of recent steel market developments, as well as additional information about financial vulnerabilities, the latest developments in global steelmaking capacity and a brief overview of developments in selected downstream sectors.

This paper presents new cross-country descriptive evidence on innovative start-ups and related venture capital investments drawing upon Crunchbase, a new dataset that is unprecedented in terms of scope and comprehensiveness. The analysis employs a mix of different statistical techniques.

16 February 2018 - OECD and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched a pilot project in Paris today to kick-start the practical application of the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains with 30 leading enterprises.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly turning to alternative sources of financing, while new bank lending is declining in a number of countries. Many SMEs remain over-reliant on bank credit, however, and the take-up of instruments other than straight debt varies greatly from one country to another, according to a new OECD report.

22-23 February 2018 (Mexico City): The Ministerial Conference on SMEs will offer a crucial platform for addressing how governments can provide SMEs with the right conditions to maximise their contributions to productivity growth and social inclusion.

In order to safeguard their competitiveness in an increasingly digitalised global economy, governments across OECD and emerging economies are implementing a range of policy measures/programmes to support investment in and use of robotics. This paper assesses the extent to which robotics impact the organisation of production through offshoring and backshoring.

Inconsistent penalties, insufficient checks on small parcels, and a lack of information on shipments in free trade zones allow criminal networks to traffic billions of dollars worth of fake and prohibited goods each year. Today, the OECD introduced a new phase in its efforts to help governments counter these enforcement gaps and better protect consumers and businesses.

The OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría called on the governments of steel-producing economies to address the root causes of today’s steel crisis through multilateral approaches, and in particular through the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity.

The OECD Steel Committee Chair statement was issued today by Lieven Top, Chairman of the OECD Steel Committee, following a meeting of the Committee in Paris on March 5-6, 2018.

Rapid growth in free trade zones – where economic activity is driven by reduced taxes and customs controls, light regulation and limited oversight – is unintentionally fostering growth in counterfeit goods trafficking, according to a new report by the OECD and the EU’s Intellectual Property Office.

The digital transformation has positive impacts on productivity for many firms, but has not yet translated into stronger productivity growth at the economy-wide level. This background report for the March 2018 G7 Innovation Ministers' meeting focuses on the impacts of digital transformation on jobs and productivity.

29/03/2018 - The OECD Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct is seeking candidates for a new Chairs to assist in implementing and promoting the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

The consultation on appointing authorities and the selection of arbitrators in investor-state dispute settlement paper and comments received are being made available in order to foster informed public and inter-governmental debate.

The OECD Due Diligence Guidance is being used as the basis and benchmark by many industry initiatives created to ensure the responsible sourcing of minerals. This report presents the findings of a pilot alignment assessment of five industry programmes against the recommendations of the OECD Guidance to gauge the coherence, effectiveness and credibility of these initiatives.

Many governments seek to promote and facilitate inward investments that they expect will benefit their economy. This paper looks at the merits of an international framework to facilitate investment in support of sustainable and inclusive growth.

This paper examines the implications of digitalisation and digital technologies for international investment and investment policy, with a particular focus on digital policies relating to national security and digital policies directed at business operations.

L’OCDE a mis au point un cadre pour l’évaluation de la qualité des statistiques macroéconomiquesqui se concentre sur sept dimensions de la qualité : la pertinence, la précision, la crédibilité, l’actualité, l’accessibilité, l’interprétabilité et la cohérence. Le présent rapport utilise ce cadre pour évaluer les statistiques d’IDI du Maroc.

Ministers from OECD and developing economies have committed to step up their efforts to promote responsible business conduct by companies in order to drive more inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Governments adhering to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are required to set up a National Contact Point (NCP) that functions in a visible, accessible, transparent and accountable manner. This report contains a peer review of the Chilean NCP, mapping its strengths and accomplishments and also identifying opportunities for improvement.

Governments adhering to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are required to set up a National Contact Point that functions in a visible, accessible, transparent and accountable manner. This report contains a peer review of the French NCP, mapping its strengths and accomplishments and also identifying opportunities for improvement.

Governments adhering to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are required to set up a National Contact Point (NCP) that functions in a visible, accessible, transparent and accountable manner. This report contains a peer review of the German NCP, mapping its strengths and accomplishments and also identifying opportunities for improvement.

This study explores the role of the National Contact Points in dealing with cases relating to the implementation of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises with a particular focus on labour issues and social dialogue.

Global trade in fake Italian goods such as luxury handbags, watches, foodstuffs and car parts is taking a bite out of Italy’s economy equivalent to around 1-2% of GDP in terms of lost sales, according to a new OECD report.

20 June 2018 - This Liber Amicorum was prepared for Roel Nieuwenkamp. It offers a wide-ranging and comprehensive message to governments, business, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to collectively widen and deepen the adherence and practice of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises worldwide.

Weak labour productivity growth continues to mark the world’s advanced economies and risks compromising improvements in living standards, says a new OECD report.

ASEAN countries have made progress in SME policies – especially on GVC integration, business development and e-commerce – but future productivity growth will depend on continued reforms, says new joint OECD-ERIA-ASEAN report

A new OECD report, the 2018 Business and Finance Outlook, highlights a number of major risks having the potential to disrupt global economic growth. It notes that the gradual normalisation of monetary policy in an environment of growing debt will be a major test of whether the Basel III regulatory reforms have achieved their goal of ensuring safety and soundness in the financial system.

As only a tiny proportion of new firms eventually grow, policy makers face two alternatives: target specific firms predicted to be highly innovative in the future, or foster experimentation among firms and streamline both entry and exit. The Italian "Start-Up Act" combines these two approaches with an eclectic mix of policy tools.

Considerato che solo una minima parte delle nuove imprese riesce a svilupparsi, i decisori pubblici si trovano di fronte a un'alternativa: concentrarsi sulle imprese che presentano un alto potenziale di innovazione, o favorire la sperimentazione e semplificare sia l'ingresso che l'uscita delle imprese dal mercato. Lo "Startup Act" combina i due approcci con un mix eclettico di strumenti di policy.

A steady economic expansion in Indonesia is boosting living standards, curbing poverty and offering millions of people greater access to public services.

The world’s consumption of raw materials is set to nearly double by 2060 as the global economy expands and living standards rise, placing twice the pressure on the environment that we are seeing today, according to a new OECD report.

This report provides an inventory of existing practices in Investment Promotion Agencies across 32 OECD countries. It covers a wide range of areas pertaining to investment promotion and facilitation with a view to enhancing peer-learning amongst practitioners.

This report provides an inventory of existing practices in Investment Promotion Agencies across 32 OECD countries. It covers a wide range of areas pertaining to investment promotion and facilitation with a view to enhancing peer-learning amongst practitioners.

Business and government should work more closely together to reduce inequality and foster inclusive growth. To help achieve this, at the Paris Peace Forum, Gabriela Ramos, OECD Chief of Staff, G7/G20 Sherpa and leader of the OECD’s Inclusive Growth Initiative, and Emmanuel Faber, Chairman & CEO of Danone, launched the Business for Inclusive Growth (B4IG) Platform.

70 years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, our recognition of the “inherent dignity of all members of the human family as the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world” has further strengthened the alignment between responsible business conduct and human rights.

As part of the implementation strategy for the recently adopted OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector, the OECD is conducting a series of surveys that target SMEs operating within the sector.

This joint OECD-UNIDO report identifies investment and related policies to enhance linkages between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Southeast Asia and multinational enterprises (MNEs) and their impacts on SME outcomes in Southeast Asia.

This report builds on national reviews of seven countries in Southeast Asia. It looks at common challenges across the region and at the interplay between regional initiatives and national reforms.