Trade And Development Report 1983

This report is the sixth in an annual series assessing development issues. It reviews recent trends in the international economy and their implications for the developing countries with a special focus on the management and institutional aspects of development. The early recovery in the world economy foreseen in last year's World Development Report did not materialize. The recession has lasted longer than expected and has set back global development more decisively than at any time since the Great Depression. The indications of an upturn are now firmer, but the international financial system remains severely strained and protectionism continues to be an ominous threat. This report reviews how alternative policies may affect the future prospects for recovery. It concludes that the present financial crisis is manageable, provided concerted efforts are made both nationally and internationally. It is essential for the industrial countries to maintain the momentum of their recovery, to promote freer trade, and to ensure growth in capital flows. Equally important, developing countries must for their part continue their efforts to adjust their economies to the new external circumstances and thereby regain the confidence of their creditors.

This publication was prepared by the UNCTAD secretariat to commemorate the first three decades of the Trade and Development Report (TDR) - UNCTAD's main flagship publication - whose first edition was published in 1981.Part one of this publication traces the key issues relating to the global economy and development strategies discussed in various TDRs over the past three decades. It also shows how the ideas, analytical perspectives and policy proposals expressed in the TDR have differed from "mainstream" thinking, and how they have evolved in response to new challenges arising from global economic developments.The salient features reviewed in this publication are: the concept of interdependence, which has shaped the TDRs' policy analyses and recommendations over three decades; the approach of the TDR to macroeconomic and financial policies in both developed and developing countries; the TDRs' contribution to the debate about the shortcomings and the need for reform of global governance in trade, finance and macroeconomics; the TDRs' assessments of the failures and successes of development policy, as well as their recommendations for development strategies, taking into account lessons from past experiences; and Issues that remain topical and others that may become relevant for analysis in future TDRs.Part two of the publication comprises the contributions of the experts who participated in a panel discussion on "Thinking Development: Three Decades of the Trade and Development Report", a pre-Conference event for UNCTAD XIII, which took place in Geneva on 20 February 2012.

What lessons have policy makers drawn from the global financial and economic crisis to reform the international monetary and financial system and the design of macroeconomic policies? The enthusiasm about system reform and a reorientation of macroeconomic policies has not lasted. Reforms of financial regulations are progressing slowly and only at the national level, monetary system reform is limited. After an interlude that some considered as a return to Keynesianism, the orientation of macroeconomic policy, especially fiscal policy, is back to business as usual. This will hinder a sustained recovery of the world economy and open the door for new financial crises. Thus, the rethinking of policies and reshaping the financial and monetary system remain an urgent task. The Report makes concrete proposals on how, and in which priority areas, to advance with the strengthening regulation of the financial sector and commodity markets, reform of the international monetary system, and the reorientation of fiscal policy.

Rising densities of human settlements, migration and transport to reduce distances to market, and specialization and trade facilitated by fewer international divisions are central to economic development. The transformations along these three dimensions density, distance, and division are most noticeable in North America, Western Europe, and Japan, but countries in Asia and Eastern Europe are changing in ways similar in scope and speed. 'World Development Report 2009: Reshaping Economic Geography' concludes that these spatial transformations are essential, and should be encouraged. The conclusion is not without controversy. Slum-dwellers now number a billion, but the rush to cities continues. Globalization is believed to benefit many, but not the billion people living in lagging areas of developing nations. High poverty and mortality persist among the world's 'bottom billion', while others grow wealthier and live longer lives. Concern for these three billion often comes with the prescription that growth must be made spatially balanced. The WDR has a different message: economic growth is seldom balanced, and efforts to spread it out prematurely will jeopardize progress. The Report: documents how production becomes more concentrated spatially as economies grow. proposes economic integration as the principle for promoting successful spatial transformations. revisits the debates on urbanization, territorial development, and regional integration and shows how today's developers can reshape economic geography.

Global value chains (GVCs) powered the surge of international trade after 1990 and now account for almost half of all trade. This shift enabled an unprecedented economic convergence: poor countries grew rapidly and began to catch up with richer countries. Since the 2008 global financial crisis, however, the growth of trade has been sluggish and the expansion of GVCs has stalled. Meanwhile, serious threats have emerged to the model of trade-led growth. New technologies could draw production closer to the consumer and reduce the demand for labor. And trade conflicts among large countries could lead to a retrenchment or a segmentation of GVCs. World Development Report 2020: Trading for Development in the Age of Global Value Chains examines whether there is still a path to development through GVCs and trade. It concludes that technological change is, at this stage, more a boon than a curse. GVCs can continue to boost growth, create better jobs, and reduce poverty provided that developing countries implement deeper reforms to promote GVC participation; industrial countries pursue open, predictable policies; and all countries revive multilateral cooperation.