by Rory O’Farrell, Economics, OECD Economics Department Today’s post is also being published by the OECD Insights Blog There is little new about the ‘gig economy’. The word ‘gig’ originates from 1920s jazz musicians who played a small concert or ‘engagement’ at a venue. Dolly Parton may have sung about working 9 to 5, but … More The gig economy will not abolish working 9 to 5
By Hidekatsu Asada, Head of the Southeast Asia desk, Country Studies Branch, OECD Economics Department Productivity growth is essential for living standards to durably improve. Malaysia has reached a development stage where growth needs to be driven more by productivity gains than the sheer accumulation of capital and labour inputs. The 11th Malaysia Plan (2016-20) … More Boosting productivity is key for Malaysia to attain high-income-country status
By Mohamed Rizwan Habeeb Rahuman, Economist, Indonesia Desk, Country Studies Branch, OECD Economics Department Malaysia has sustained rapid and inclusive economic growth for close to half a century, as documented in the OECD’s first Economic Assessment of Malaysia (OECD, 2016). Real GDP growth has averaged 6.4% per year since 1970, outperforming most of its regional … More Successful macro transformation in Malaysia, but challenges remain
By Douglas Sutherland, Head of US Desk, OECD Economics Department With the global economy mired in low-growth and no signs of strong acceleration, a lot of attention has been paid to the meagre pace of productivity growth in OECD countries. In the United States, the most watched indicator of productivity (nonfarm business productivity growth) decelerated … More Unleashing private sector productivity in the United States
by Jan Stráský, Economist, OECD Economics Department Labour market mobility in the European Union is increasing (Figure 1), but it remains too low to provide sufficient adjustment in the face of diverging labour market developments. This situation reflects non-policy factors, such as linguistic and cultural differences, but also policy barriers. In particular, difficulties in the … More Labour mobility in the European Union: a need for more recognition of foreign qualifications
By Patrice Ollivaud and Petar Vujanovic, Indonesia Desk, OECD Economics Department As described in the 2016 OECD Economic Survey of Indonesia, economic growth is expected to pick up over the course of 2016 and into 2017. Despite persistently weak external conditions, confidence is returning, with inflation moderating, a stable rupiah and government investment in infrastructure … More Funding priority spending will become increasingly challenging in Indonesia
by Patrice Ollivaud, Economist, OECD Economics Department, Pierre-Alain Pionnier, Head of Unit, OECD Statistics Directorate and Cyrille Schwellnus, Senior Economist, OECD Economics Department How was it possible not to see the Great Recession of 2008-09 coming? How could economic forecasters blindly ignore financial developments? These are typical questions asked by the media in the wake … More Forecasting GDP during and after the Great Recession
By Alberto González Pandiella, Economist, SDD, OECD Economics Department Costa Rican well-being indicators are comparable or even above the OECD average in several dimensions (OECD, 2016a). Nevertheless, gaps with OECD countries are large in two dimensions: labour market participation and education. This hampers both long-term growth prospects and equity. Boosting early childcare education and care … More Mind the gapS: boost early childcare education and care in Costa Rica
by Müge Adalet McGowan and Dan Andrews, Structural Policy Analysis, OECD Economics Department Productivity is the ultimate engine of growth in the global economy, but there has been an increasing concern about weak productivity growth in recent years. A key recent OECD work, the Future of Productivity implies that inefficient firms increasingly linger as opposed to … More Inefficient insolvency regimes: a barrier to creative destruction?
by Alexander Hijzen, Senior Economist, Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, OECD and Peter N. Gal, Economist, Economics Department, OECD Given the secular decline in productivity growth and the persistent weakness of the economic recovery in many advanced economies, increased attention is being paid to the potential role of structural reforms for restoring economic … More Product market reforms under the microscope
