Unemployment is still above 8% in Latvia and contributes to poverty, in part because many unemployed have been without a job for an extended period of time.

celand has been experiencing a tourism boom. The number of tourists visiting annually quadrupled between 2010 and 2016 and shows continued strength. The tourism sector is now the major export earner and is also creating new jobs and supporting new businesses.

OECD CLIs point to stable growth momentum in the OECD area

Luxembourg’s workforce is highly skilled, reflecting the concentration in the country of sophisticated firms in the financial sector and other top-end international services.

Luxembourg’s large foreign-born population is a pillar of the country’s prosperity: they have brought skills and knowledge to many sectors of the economy.

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

While overall poverty is relatively low in France, it can be highly concentrated at the neighbourhood level.

The U.K. economy has weakened in the aftermath of the decision to leave the European Union. Maintaining close ties with the EU and implementing policies to boost productivity will be crucial for maintaining future living standards, according to a new report from the OECD.

Growth has become more inclusive in recent years in Colombia. Strong growth and targeted social policies have reduced absolute poverty.

Over the past decade, sound macroeconomic policies and an improved business environment have helped generate relatively strong GDP growth.

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.

While the Slovenian economy has been successful in bounding forward, it has taken hard falls in the past, and a lack of resilience means it has taken a long time to recover.

The peace agreement will boost economic growth, but to share it fairly Colombia must also achieve better educational outcomes and bring more people into the more productive formal economy.

OECD annual inflation nudges up to 2.3% in September 2017

OECD CLIs continue to point to stable growth momentum

The Swiss economy has shown considerable resilience to shocks, but economic growth remains slow, and per capita income levels still hover at levels attained before the global economic crisis. Further reforms are needed to restore productivity growth, boost incomes and ensure that today’s high living standards and levels of well-being are passed on to future generations, according to a new report from the OECD.

Building on a large volume of cross-country research, the OECD project on “Exit Policies and Productivity Growth” presents new evidence on policies affecting the exit and restructuring of weak firm and the channels through which they shape aggregate productivity growth.

The database contains indicators capturing structural policies (including institutions, framework condition policies and policies specifically related to labour markets and drivers of productivity and investment such as trade, skills and innovation).

Austria’s transition to a digital economy and society is slower than in other high-income small open European economies.

Digitalisation is one of the megatrends affecting societies and labour markets, alongside demographic change and globalisation.

Higher living standards and well-being, as well as convergence with more advanced economies, will depend on achieving higher productivity, which in turn would be boosted by more investment in capital.

This paper explores the connection between “zombie” firms (firms that would typically exit in a competitive market) and bank health and the consequences for aggregate productivity in 11 European countries.

This paper focusses on the link between urbanisation and consumption behaviour in China.

Since the crisis, Estonia has experienced one of the most pronounced declines in the ratio of non-residential investment to GDP in the OECD.

Estonia is highly integrated into the global trade system: it exports approximately 80% of GDP and around half of domestic employment is sustained by foreign demand.

Assuming that immigrants select destinations according to absolute returns to their observable and unobservable human capital, I present a human capital model of migration accounting for taxes, transfers and limited portability of skills.

Iceland has high living standards, low poverty, high inclusiveness and one of the most sustainable pension systems.

OECD sees global economy strengthening, but says further policy action needed to catalyse the private sector for stronger and more inclusive growth

The paper describes the fiscal framework used in long-term economic scenarios, with some emphasis on revisions made since the 2013 vintage of the long-term model.

This paper analyses for 34 OECD countries the extent to which the calculation of aggregate multi-factor productivity (MFP) is sensitive to alternative parameterisations.

This paper estimates and quantifies the impact of structural reforms on per capita income for a large set of OECD and non-OECD countries.

OECD annual inflation down to 2.2% in October 2017, as energy price inflation slows

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.

Stable growth momentum going forward in the OECD area

This paper analyses how technological progress embodied in capital goods raises productivity and income, while at the same time it can modify the allocation of consumption, investment and the capital stock.

The mixed growth performance of emerging market economies has revived angst about a "middle-income trap".

Switzerland makes more use of its human resources than most other OECD countries. Labour force participation is high and the unemployment rate low for most segments of society.

Swiss GDP per capita stands amongst the top OECD performers. However, to face medium-term challenges productivity developments will be key to allow the country to maintain its enviable position.

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.

The Norwegian economy is performing well, despite low oil prices. Further reforms will be needed to diversify the economy, improve public spending efficiency and ensure that today’s high levels of income, well-being and equality are passed on to future generations, according to a new report from the OECD.

Business dynamism and sound management of natural resources wealth has helped propel Norway among the highest levels of GDP per capita in the world. Combined with its “Nordic model” ensuring inclusiveness and low inequality, Norway exhibits impressive levels of well-being in many dimensions.

This paper investigates the effect of export entry on productivity, employment and wages of Latvian and Estonian firms in the context of global value chain (GVC).

Lowering high levels of unemployment and inequality are amongst the largest challenges facing South Africa.

Deepening regional integration within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) will raise potential growth for all member countries.

A favourable business environment is crucial to boosting Belgium’s productivity and inclusiveness and to sustain improvements in long-term economic prosperity.

A highly educated and skilled workforce has been an important driver of productivity performance and prosperity in Belgium.

Can reforms that shift the balance among different taxes in the revenue mix lastingly influence the overall prosperity of an economy and the distribution of income across households?

Redistribution is quantified as the relative reduction in market income inequality achieved by personal income taxes, employees’ social security contributions and cash transfers, based on household-level micro data.

In its latest Economic Survey for Norway , the OECD underscores the importance of policy facilitating transition away from oil-related activities and helping businesses seize opportunities from digitalisation and globalisation, through providing i) macroeconomic and financial stability, and ii) improvements to structural-policy settings.

Switzerland is among the leaders in many global rankings including on R&D, innovation, infrastructure, universities and competitiveness. It is well integrated in global value chains, specialised in some high-value-added activities and home of many large multinationals. These factors should contribute to high, and rising, labour productivity.