Commentary

The European Union Statistical Agency (Eurostat) has just released data showing that economic growth in the Eurozone decreased in the third quarter of 2023. However, the Eurozone inflation in October fell to its lowest level in two years. The fight against inflation may have negative impact on growth, but the EU believes it can achieve the goal of bringing inflation down to 2%.

The World Bank (WB) warns that if the conflict between Israel and the Islamic movement Hamas spreads throughout the region, it could lead to a price shock for oil and agricultural products. The global economy is expected to face a “double shock” for the first time in decades and the “black gold” market will fall into uncertainty if the crises in the Middle East and Ukraine persist.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has established an Advisory Board in charge of recommendations in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), a technology which has the potential to create breakthrough changes but also poses many potential risks.

President of the Republic of Korea (RoK) Yoon Suk Yeol has recently visited the Middle East to strengthen connections with key regional trading partners. With a series of signed cooperation agreements totalling tens of billions of US dollars, the trip not only helps the RoK ensure gas supplies while opening new doors for cooperation, but it also offers an opportunity for Saudi Arabia and Qatar to promote economic diversification.

The US-European Union (EU) Summit has just concluded after a busy schedule. In the context that the world is witnessing many geopolitical challenges and crises, this high-level summit aims to strengthen the transatlantic partnership, cope with crises, and reach an agreement in solving global hot problems.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has recently warned, that nearly 7.6 million children in Ethiopia are out of school, due to the impact of natural disasters and conflicts. This reality rings the bell, urging the world to act more decisively to ensure the goal of universal education coverage because learning is an important factor in helping all kinds of humanity to have a better future.

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has just announced the establishment of a task force to create a methodology to determine global carbon prices. This step is expected to not only help countries build carbon markets but also ensure fairness in imposing cross-border carbon taxes.

In the recently released economic report, the Japanese Cabinet Office said that the Japanese economy is recovering at a moderate pace, but negative external impacts and high inflation may pose a risk of hindering the economic growth of the country. The Japanese parliament convened an extraordinary session on October 20 to plan a new economic stimulus package.

The Group of Seven (G7) has recently agreed on draft guidelines for the development of artificial intelligence (AI), showing a positive step in efforts to reduce risks related to this emerging technology. Building a strategy to manage and use AI effectively, safely and responsibly, is an urgent task for every country.

In the context of an unusually high wave of migrants into the European Union (EU), countries in general and Germany in particular, Europe’s “leading” economy, are constantly looking for measures to prevent illegal migrants.

In a context where the world is facing a series of challenges, not only increasing in number but also in complexity, the role of the United Nations has never been more vital. However, lack of funding is posing a big challenge for the largest multilateral organisation on the planet in implementing its operational programmes.

In efforts to fulfil the European Union (EU)'s commitment to reduce net emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, Germany and France are accelerating their clean energy transition. At the 6th Franco-German Energy Forum, the two major European economies affirmed their cooperation in promoting hydrogen development as well as their commitments to energy transition.

African countries have just announced an initiative called the Africa Diplomatic Indaba (ADi) series, aiming at shaping the management of migration and migrant labour issues in Africa.

In the recently released World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered the 2023 economic growth forecast, for many economies around the world. Only a few economies, including the US, Japan, India and Russia, go against this trend. Positive signals from some economies are expected to contribute to brightening the global economic picture.

The first ever summit of the Archipelagic and Island States (AIS) Forum recently took place in Indonesia. The event is not only an opportunity for archipelagic and island states to strengthen solidarity but also affirm their voice and contribute to solving global challenges, particularly when they are being affected by climate change.

Solving the debt problem of poor countries is one of the central topics of the Annual Meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB), which is taking place in Morocco. Debt crises in many countries threaten to derail sustainable development goals, requiring strong and urgent multilateral solutions, to address the public debt burden.

The international community is extremely concerned about the security situation in the Middle East, after the conflict between the Hamas armed movement and the Israeli military, which left more than 1,000 people dead on both sides.

The European Union (EU) has just officially launched a system to impose CO2 emissions tariffs on imported goods. This move is expected to contribute to promoting green transition in the world. However, it also poses many challenges for countries in accessing the EU - a market with over 500 million people.

Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Rebeca Grynspan warned, that current attempts to resolve the debt crisis swamping poor countries do not go anywhere near enough, given the scale and urgency of the situation.

Illegal immigration to the US is increasing, causing instability in the region and threatening the lives of migrants. Solving the root cause of the illegal migration is always a difficult problem for the authorities of the US, Mexico and other countries in the region.

Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Fatih Birol warned of the challenges in implementing the goal of limiting global temperature rise to no more than 1.5C, at the international conference on climate and energy, with the participation of about 40 ministers and world leaders, in the Spanish capital of Madrid. He called for increased cooperation as the world is racing against time in the fight against climate change.

Population ageing is posing challenges to the economy and society, but appropriate policies will help take advantage of the benefits of this situation. In his message on this year’s International Day of Older Persons (October 1), United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on the world, to ensure the rights of older people to be able to adapt to an ageing society.

The world economy received positive information as China's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) exceeded 50 points; inflation “cooled down” and the dark clouds were less gloomy for European economies, while the US economic outlook continued to brighten.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has visited Djibouti, Kenya and Angola, continuing the visits of senior US officials to Africa, from the beginning of the year until now. This is part of Washington's efforts to strengthen its role in Africa, a region rich in potential and increasingly important.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has just released a report, calling on both rich and developing countries to increase the use of clean energy, to implement emissions neutrality goals.

Many parts of the world are facing severe drought, which has disrupted economic sectors and threatened people's livelihoods. Encouraging all countries and all people to effectively protect water resources has been the focus of many international water conferences in recent years, including the 18th World Water Conference that recently took place in China.

Faced with growing risks from the explosion of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, lawmakers are urging technology companies to be responsible and cautious in AI research and development. Facing pressure, companies have initially made commitments to reduce the threat of AI, although words and actions still require significant effort and time.

Taking place within the framework of the high-level week of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly in New York of the US, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit marks the moment the world passes the halfway point, on the journey to realising the SDGs by 2030.

The wave of migrants crossing the Mediterranean and "landing" in Europe is causing a crisis in reception, "heating up" the debate within the European Union (EU), on the issue of refugee distribution.

The possibility of restoring the Iran nuclear agreement is becoming increasingly unconvincing as “tit for tat” continues between involved parties. While the US and the West imposed new sanctions on Iran, Tehran responded with tough statements.