Health spending continues to rise faster than economic growth in most OECD countries, maintaining a trend observed since the 1970s. Health spending reached 9.5% of GDP on average in 2009, the most recent year for which figures are available, up from 8.8% in 2008, according to OECD Health Data 2011.

Growth in health spending slowed or fell in real terms in 2010 in almost all OECD countries, reversing a long-term trend of rapid increases, according to OECD Health Data 2012.

OECD Health Working Papers No. 60: Health Spending Growth at Zero: Which Countries, Which Sectors Are Most Affected?

Total health spending has fallen in one of three OECD countries between 2009 and 2011, with those hardest hit by the crisis most affected. This is a sharp reversal from the strong growth in the years prior to the crisis, according to a new OECD report.

Many European countries saw further reductions in health spending in 2013, according to OECD Health Statistics 2015. Health spending continued to shrink in Greece, Italy and Portugal in 2013. Most countries in the European Union reported real per capita health spending below the levels of 2009. Outside of Europe, health spending has been growing at around 2.5% per year since 2010.

The High-Level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth, chaired by H.E. François Hollande and H.E. Jacob Zuma, today delivered its final report and recommendations to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Italy is slowly emerging from a deep and lengthy recession, helped by a range of structural reforms – such as the Jobs Act – and accommodative monetary and fiscal policies, according to a new OECD report.

This note is taken from Chapter 2 of Economic Policy Reforms: Going for Growth 2012.

Global Value Chains (GVCs) are a dominant feature of the world economy that impact growth, jobs and development, but numerous challenges remain to ensure that all countries and all firms have the opportunity to participate and benefit.

The G20 needs to go structural, social, and green! With fiscal and monetary policy room nearly exhausted, structural reforms are the best choices, sometimes the only choice. The OECD battle cry in this regard has been unchanged since 2008: “go structural!”.

Leaders of the G20 countries meeting at their Summit in Brisbane, Australia, have called on the OECD and IMF to monitor their commitment to boost economic growth and create jobs.

Going for Growth 2015: Country note for Australia

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Ukraine expanded 1.50 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the same quarter of the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Ukraine averaged 2.64 percent from 2000 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 14.30 percent in the third quarter of 2004 and a record low of -19.60 percent in the first quarter of 2009. On the production side, services are the biggest sector of Ukrainian economy and account for nearly 68 percent of total GDP, of which the most important are; domestic trade (14 percent) and accommodation and food service (13 percent). Industry accounts for 22 percent of GDP and is divided by manufacturing (11 percent); and agriculture (10 percent). This page provides - Ukraine GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

This note is taken from Chapter 2 of Economic Policy Reforms: Going for Growth 2012.

Cities can generate growth and jobs while becoming greener – this is the message of the OECD’s new Green Growth in Cities report. Drawing on case studies of Paris, Chicago, Kitakyushu and Stockholm, the report identifies green policies that can respond to urban growth priorities and suggests how to implement and finance them.

After two decades of low growth and persistent deflation, Japan is showing signs of renewed economic dynamism. But to regain its primacy as a leading economic powerhouse and raise the well-being of its citizens, Japan needs a structural reform package to narrow the productivity gap with leading OECD countries, notably by increasing the labour participation of women and older citizens.

A moderate expansion is underway in most major advanced and emerging economies, but growth remains weak in the euro area, which runs the risk of prolonged stagnation if further steps are not taken to boost demand, according to the OECD’s latest Interim Economic Assessment.

The Japan-OECD Policy Forum on Urban Development and Green Growth will address cities’ unique role in creating synergies between environmental and economic objectives to advance green growth. Asian cities in particular are at the centre of this challenge. This event is organised as a commemorative event for the 50th Anniversary of Japan's Accession to the OECD.

While the outlook for many OECD countries remains subdued, Emerging Asia is set for healthy growth over the medium term. Annual GDP growth for the ASEAN -10, China and India is forecast to average 6.5% over 2015-19. Growth momentum remains robust in the 10 ASEAN countries, with economic growth averaging 5.6% over 2015-19.

Going for Growth 2015: Key findings for Japan

Achieving strong growth in the global economy remains elusive, with only a modest recovery in advanced economies and slower activity in emerging markets, according to the OECD’s latest Interim Economic Outlook.

The global economy is stuck in a low-growth trap that will require more coordinated and comprehensive use of fiscal, monetary and structural policies to move to a higher growth path and ensure that promises are kept to both young and old, according to the OECD’s latest Global Economic Outlook.

The Japanese economy has gained momentum and is creating jobs, according to a new OECD report. The latest OECD Economic Survey of Japan, presented in Tokyo by OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría, says that per capita growth rates in recent years have matched those across the OECD – a major improvement. The Survey underlines the key role Abenomics has played in the economic revival.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Luxembourg expanded 3.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the same quarter of the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Luxembourg averaged 3.50 percent from 1996 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 12.10 percent in the first quarter of 2000 and a record low of -7 percent in the second quarter of 2009. On the expenditure side, external balance of exports and imports is the main component of GDP and accounts for 35 percent of its total use, as exports of goods and services account for 200 percent while imports account for 165 percent. It is followed by household consumption (30 percent of GDP) gross fixed capital formation (18 percent) and government expenditure (17 percent). This page provides - Luxembourg GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Myanmar expanded 6.80 percent in 2018 from the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Myanmar averaged 8.65 percent from 1994 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 13.84 percent in 2003 and a record low of 3.60 percent in 2008. Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is the poorest country in Southeast Asia. Myanmar was under a military regime for decades, yet since 2011, a transition to democracy has been taking place. The new, civilian led, reformist government has taken charge and the country has began to open up to foreign direct investment. Myanmar’s economy is pretty diversified. The most important sector of the economy is services, which has been growing steadily in the last few years, and now account for over 38 percent of GDP. The share of agriculture has been declining, and now represents 36 percent of GDP. Finally, industry contributes the remaining 26 percent of GDP. This page provides - Myanmar GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

This note is taken from Chapter 2 of Economic Policy Reforms: Going for Growth 2011.

Austria should eliminate subsidies which encourage early retirement and target social transfers more effectively, according to the OECD’s latest economic survey.

This note is taken from Chapter 2 of Economic Policy Reforms: Going for Growth 2012.

Going for Growth 2015: Key findings for Austria

The Austrian economy is strengthening, supported by recent tax reform and a pick-up in international trade. With business and household confidence rising and the short-term outlook favourable, policymakers should enact deeper structural reforms that will improve both fiscal sustainability and social cohesion.

This paper investigates whether countries that had controls on inflows in place prior to the crisis were less vulnerable during the global financial crisis. More generally, it examines economic growth effects of such controls over the entire economic cycle, finding that capital restrictions on inflows (particularly debt liabilities) may be useful in good times but may have adverse effects in a crisis.

The 2013 Forum was held on 5-6 December and discussed how governments can improve their investment policy framework to reduce the risk and attract long-term private finance in support of green growth.

The OECD’s Annual Meeting at Ministerial Level reinforced member governments’ support across a broad range of key OECD work.

Further structural reforms are needed to help the business sector boost productivity growth and overcome the key challenges of sluggish investment in advanced economies and excess capacity in emerging economies, according to a new OECD report.

Leaders of the G20 countries meeting at their Summit in Hangzhou, China, have called on the OECD to help develop an agenda to build a stronger, more innovative and inclusive world economy.

Certain growth-promoting policies can have negative side-effects by increasing the vulnerability of economies to financial crises. Typical examples are greater openness to financial flows or more liberalised financial markets.

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

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Nepal expanded 7.10 percent in 2018 from the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Nepal averaged 4.61 percent from 1993 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 8.60 percent in 1993 and a record low of 0.10 percent in 2001. Nepal is one of the least developed countries in the world and relies extensively on foreign aid. The main sector of the economy is agriculture, which employs over 70 percent of the population and accounts for 33 percent of GDP. As Nepal is home to the highest mountains in the world, tourism has been steadily growing in importance and is an important source of revenue. Also, the country has been working on exploiting hydroelectric power. Although Nepalese economy has been steadily growing in recent years, lack of governmental institutions, growing population and remnants of social instability are sources of concern. This page provides - Nepal GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Rwanda expanded 8.40 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the same quarter of the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Rwanda averaged 7.58 percent from 2000 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 13.40 percent in the first quarter of 2007 and a record low of 0.30 percent in the first quarter of 2017. Services is the largest sector of the Rwanda's economy and accounts for 53 percent of total GDP. Within services, the most important sub-sectors are: real estate activities (8 percent), wholesale and retail trade (8 percent), cultural, domestic & other services (6 percent), administrative and support service activities and public administration and defence; and compulsory social security (5 percent each). Agriculture, forestry and fishing account for 29 percent of GDP, with food crops contributing 17 percent. The industrial sector constitutes 18 percent of the GDP, with construction (7 percent) and manufacturing (6 percent) accounting for the largest shares. On the expenditure side, household consumption is the main component of GDP and accounts for 76 percent of its total use, followed by gross fixed capital formation (28 percent) and government expenditure (16 percent). Exports of goods and services account for 19 percent of GDP while imports account for 39 percent, subtracting 20 percent of total GDP. The major source of foreign trade is coffee, tea, tin cassiterite, wolframite and pyrethrum. This page provides the latest reported value for - Rwanda GDP Annual Growth Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This note is taken from Chapter 2 of Economic Policy Reforms: Going for Growth 2012.

This paper discusses the results of the 2011-2012 OECD LEED study of measuring green growth in the Benelux countries (Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg). The study paid particular attention to the challenges of measuring the transition to a low-carbon economy in cross-border areas as they have additional levels of complexity when it comes to measuring and monitoring their low-carbon transition.

The Belgian economy has returned to growth and continues scoring well on broader measures of well-being, but further reforms will be needed to secure fiscal sustainability while promoting employment and competitiveness, according to the latest OECD Economic Survey of Belgium 2015.

Going for Growth 2015: Key findings for Belgium

A combination of market-based policies and a redistributive welfare state have boosted Belgium’s per-capita GDP to well above the average of OECD countries and raised well-being, according to a new OECD report.

Belgium’s tax, labour, pension and education reforms have improved the potential for stronger, sustainable and inclusive growth over the long term. Keeping up this momentum on structural reforms is key to energise the economy and keep it resilient to external risks and uncertainties, according to a new OECD report.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Brunei expanded 7.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the same quarter of the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Brunei averaged 0.40 percent from 2004 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 7.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 and a record low of -8.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2013. Brunei is the fourth-largest oil producer in Southeast Asia. Oil accounts for around 62 percent of GDP and is the source of 90 percent of government revenues. Yet, in recent years, oil production has declined and, as a result, growth has slowed down. In order to strengthen Brunei’s long-term prospects, the government has been trying to diversify the economy by using oil revenues to invest in non-oil industries like Islamic banking and by attracting foreign direct investments. Focus on eco-tourism has also been high, given that 70 percent of the country’ is covered by tropical forest. This page provides - Brunei GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Malawi expanded 5 percent in 2019 from the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Malawi averaged 4.43 percent from 1994 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 16.70 percent in 1995 and a record low of -10 percent in 1994. Geographically landlocked, Malawi is one of the least developed countries in the world. Malawi’s economy relies mostly on grants from foreign donors. Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy and accounts for 80 percent of the labour force and 80 percent of exports. Serious deficiencies in the public sector, telecommunications and infrastructures are an obstacle to growth. This page provides - Malawi GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Greece expanded 1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the same quarter of the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Greece averaged 0.94 percent from 1996 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 6.80 percent in the fourth quarter of 2003 and a record low of -10.30 percent in the first quarter of 2011. In Greece, household consumption is the main component of GDP and accounts for 72 percent of its total use, followed by government expenditure (20 percent) and gross fixed capital formation (12 percent). Exports of goods and services account for 33 percent of GDP while imports account for 35 percent, subtracting 2 percent of total GDP. This page provides the latest reported value for - Greece GDP Annual Growth Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Cyprus expanded 3.20 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 over the same quarter of the previous year. GDP Annual Growth Rate in Cyprus averaged 2.53 percent from 1996 until 2019, reaching an all time high of 7.20 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016 and a record low of -7.50 percent in the second quarter of 2013. Services including tourism, financial services, and real estate are considered as the backbone of the Cyprus economy, accounting for nearly 80 percent of GDP. Industry accounts for only 10 percent and agriculture for 2 percent. On the expenditure side, household consumption is the main component of GDP and accounts for 70 percent of its total use, followed by government expenditure (16 percent) and gross fixed capital formation (11 percent). Exports of goods and services account for 55 percent of GDP while imports account for 53 percent, adding 2 percent of total GDP. This page provides - Cyprus GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The European Union faces serious challenges today, with public finances in poor shape, weak long-term growth prospects and an unemployment level close to 10%. In this context, the regional policy can play a crucial role to unleash the growth potential of our economies, says OECD Secretary-General.