This document describes and discusses a new supply side framework that quantifies the impact of structural reforms on per capita income in OECD countries.

This document describes and discusses a new supply side framework that quantifies the impact of structural reforms on per capita income in OECD countries.

Equality, a long-standing hallmark of Swedish society, carries multiple benefits in terms of economic performance, trust, opportunity and well-being.

The global economy is expected to pick up moderately but greater efforts are needed to ensure that the benefits from growth and globalisation are more widely shared, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook.

This paper investigates the relationship linking investment (capital stock) and structural policies.

Empirical research on the drivers of multi-factor productivity (MFP) is abundant at the firm- and industry level but surprisingly little research has been conducted on the determinants of MFP at the macroeconomic level.

The New Zealand economy continues enjoying a strong, broad-based expansion, driven by booming tourism, high net inward migration, solid construction activity and supportive monetary policy.

New Zealand has experienced robust economic growth since 2012, buoyed by record levels of inward migration and strong terms of trade. Employment has expanded vigorously, reversing much of the increase in unemployment since the onset of the global financial crisis.

Productivity growth will be the main driver of global economic growth and prosperity over the coming decades. For New Zealand, this represents both a challenge and an opportunity, as NZ productivity is below that of leading OECD countries.

New Zealand enjoyed strong economic growth during 2016, driven by high net inward migration, solid construction activity, booming tourism and supportive monetary policy, although in per capita terms growth has been more in line with that in other advanced economies.

The South African economy has registered tremendous progress over the past two decades, boosting living standards and lifting millions out of poverty nationwide.

Modernisation has mainly been achieved by training young Slovenians to fill new occupations. In contrast, those with obsolete skills tend to retire or become unemployed rather than retrain, leaving Slovenia with persistent long-term unemployment, and amongst the lowest employment rates of older workers in the OECD.

New Zealand ranks highly on most indicators of well-being, but incomes are below the OECD average due to low labour productivity.

Technological change is increasing the productivity of highly skilled workers but creating more challenging labour-market conditions for their low-skilled counterparts.

Slovenia has continued to shift from traditional manufacturing to business services and high-tech production. However, not all Slovenians have been included in this progress.

The personal tax system has a large influence on incentives to work, save and invest and hence growth. At the same time it is a key policy lever for income redistribution.

Services comprise a growing share of international trade. Yet detailed statistics on which countries trade which services with which partners remain patchy.

The Tunisian economy is recovering, driven by good harvests and strong performance in the tourism sector, but further reforms are needed to ensure sustainable growth and higher living standards for all Tunisians, according to a new report from the OECD.

What is the relevant perspective for evaluating people’s living standards in advanced countries? According to standard assessments of inequality it is fellow citizens within the country.

Markets and commentators are speculating that there may be a sustained pick-up in inflation in the United States, after years of subdued price pressures. Along with continued solid US jobs growth and low unemployment, there are tentative signs of higher wage growth and the fiscal stimulus will also boost short-term growth. Global growth is also getting stronger.

The analysis suggests that countries with a counter-cyclical fiscal stance typically have a public spending structure that is more supportive of inclusive growth.

“Urgent and concerted effort” is needed from governments to drive more inclusive, sustainable economic growth that benefits everyone in society, according to a new OECD report.

OECD appoints Laurence Boone as new Chief Economist

The Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes has released peer review reports assessing the tax systems of 13 jurisdictions for information exchange.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría will present two new major publications on Brazil during news conferences on 22 October in Brasilia. He will also hold a series of high-level meetings with Brazilian government officials.

Brazil has made remarkable progress in reducing poverty and inequality. This reduction is explained by strong growth but also by effective social policies. Besides growth, public services and cash transfers have played the biggest role, the latter notably through the successful "Bolsa Familia" programme.

Tax revenues in Latin American countries continue to rise but are lower as a proportion of their national incomes than in most OECD countries. Revenue Statistics in Latin America 2012 shows that Argentina and Brazil have the highest tax revenue to GDP ratio, while Guatemala and Dominican Republic stand at the lower end.

The OECD launched today the Programme of Work with Brazil which sets out joint activities for the next two years and will strengthen cooperation between the Organisation and the Brazilian Government.

As part of continuing efforts to boost transparency by multinational enterprises (MNEs), Brazil, Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man and Latvia signed today the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA) for the automatic exchange of Country-by-Country reports, bringing the total number of signatories to 49.

Latin America and the Caribbean’s (LAC) GDP will shrink by between 0.9% and 1% in 2016, according to the latest estimates, the second consecutive year of negative growth and a rate of contraction the region has not seen since the early 1980s. According to the Latin American Economic Outlook 2017, the region should recover in 2017, but with modest GDP growth of between 1.5% and 2%, below expected growth in advanced economies.

Brazil is steadily investing in the creation of rules and regulations to converge to governance standards already consolidated in developed countries. Complying with these international standards is indispensable if Brazilian companies intend to operate on a global scale.

This event explored the prospects of providing innovative, actionable information and advice to policymakers and other stakeholders, based on the results of contemporary research on complex dynamic systems.

This report compares urbanisation trends on the basis of a common methodology which helps cross-country comparison of the socio-economic and environmental performance of metropolitan areas in 28 OECD countries.

Europe is putting in place a new system of fiscal rules following the euro area sovereign debt crisis and decades of rising government to debt-to-GDP ratios. These include the so-called "six pack" to upgrade the Stability and Growth Pact to a new Treaty incorporating the "fiscal compact".

This new publication looks at how renewable energy can bring the greatest benefits to host regions.

Newsletter on regional development for autumn 2013.

On 19 September 1893 New Zealand became the first self-governing country in the world to grant the right to vote to all adult women. New Zealand's Permanent Representative to the OECD Rosemary Banks says the 120th anniversary of this decision is an time to reflect on that achievement.

Using panel data for OECD countries, this study investigates the extent to which changes in government spending on education, health and other areas influence long-term growth.

This is the spring 2014 edition of the regional development policy newsletter.

Since around 2007, the country has been enjoying an “energy renaissance” thanks to its abundant stocks of shale oil and gas. The resurgence in oil and gas production is beginning to create discernible economic impacts and has changed the landscape for natural gas prices in the United States, boosting competitiveness.

This study analyses the economic rent generated by the exploitation of a non-renewable resource, and the taxation of this rent.

An overview of vents and reports on Regional Development Policy for Autumn 2014.

This paper estimates the elasticities of government revenue and expenditure items with respect to the output gap for European Union (EU) countries. These elasticities are used by the European Commission, as part of the EU fiscal surveillance process, to calculate the semi-elasticity of the budget balance as a percentage of GDP with respect to the output gap.

The tramitesmetepec.mx website organises formalities by “life events”, facilitating the search of information for citizens and entrepreneurs, and reducing the cost of regulatory compliance.

Rapid population growth, ageing infrastructure and new weather risks are straining the ability of cities in OECD countries to provide clean water and to protect against floods and droughts, according to a new OECD report. Cities will need large-scale investment and more effective tariffs and taxes to pay for upgrades to water systems.

Colombia has engaged in a sustained process of fiscal decentralisation over the past decades. Evidence is presented that the current framework is conducive to fiscal sustainability, especially after the reforms in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Newsletter for OECD Regional Development Policy giving an overview of projects from January-June 2015.

Ensuring that permanent spending or tax cuts are implemented in a sustainable manner would encourage the strong fiscal position that New Zealand needs to meet potentially large macroeconomic shocks and long-run ageing-related costs.

This paper analyses income inequality in Ireland using a new panel dataset based on the administrative tax records of the Revenue Commissioners for Ireland.

This paper re-estimates the elasticities of government revenue and expenditure items with respect to the output gap for OECD countries. These elasticities are used by the OECD to calculate cyclically adjusted fiscal balances. The study updates the earlier 2005 study using the most recent datasets and tax codes, the coverage being confined in this paper to 35 countries, the 34 OECD member states and Latvia.