G8: Bush Struggles to Regain Leadership at Summit

An ever-deteriorating situation in Iraq, a hostile Democratic Congress and a changing of the guard in some key allies may all combine to bring about a more cooperative, and perhaps more subdued, President George W. Bush at the summit of the Group of Eight most industrialised nations.

POLITICS: Bush Picks Market Fundamentalist to Lead Bank

U.S. President George W. Bush has nominated Robert Zoellick, a Wall Street executive, former administration official and a free market fundamentalist to succeed disgraced World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who steps down Jun. 30.

FINANCE: Developing Nations Lured to Private Lenders

Developing nations, their corporations and banks are turning en masse to volatile but enticing commercial debt markets to replace official loans and stalling foreign aid, the World Bank said Tuesday.

TRADE: U.S., China Reach Deal, Major Issues Remain

The United States and China agreed Wednesday at the close of high-level meetings that China will take steps to open its financial and other services markets - moves that still fall short of the many sweeping measures hawkish U.S. lawmakers have been calling for to narrow the U.S. trade deficit with the Asian nation.

POLITICS: Departing Wolfowitz Names New Iraq Director

The World Bank has just appointed a new country head for Iraq despite security and corruption concerns, according to a leaked document.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Fueled Tensions That Led to His Demise

Disgraced World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who announced his resignation Thursday, may insist that his staff and the Bank's directors ganged up on him because of his role in the Iraq war, but analysts and a Bank source say the ouster was mostly self-inflicted.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Fueled Tensions That Led to His Demise

Disgraced World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who announced his resignation Thursday, may insist that his staff and the Bank's directors ganged up on him because of his role in the Iraq war, but analysts and a Bank source say the ouster was mostly self-inflicted.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Is at the Door

World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who has been warding off accusations of favouritism and nepotism at the Washington-based institution, will resign effective Jun. 30, the first president ever to be forced out.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Is at the Door

World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who has been warding off accusations of favouritism and nepotism at the Washington-based institution, will resign effective Jun. 30, the first president ever to be forced out.

POLITICS: Wolfowitz Scandal Spotlights U.S. Reign at Bank

Recent White House backing for the beleaguered World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, despite the findings of an internal report that said he had violated the Bank's ethics rules, is bringing the role of the United States in running the Bank in "undemocratic" ways under scrutiny, with rising calls for Washington to loosen its grip on the institution.

DEVELOPMENT: Arab Regimes, Local Elites Shun Reforms

Economic changes needed to alleviate biting poverty in the Arab world have largely been derailed at the hands of ruling regimes and entrenched local elites who use whatever revenues their economies generate to cement their own positions, charges a new report released here.

POLITICS: Kellems, First Head to Roll in Wolfowitz Scandal

Kevin Kellems, the right-hand man of embattled World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, has resigned from the Bank in what analysts say is likely an effort to save his boss.

ENVIRONMENT: Oxy Faces Lawsuit Threat Over Amazon Toxins

Indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon are warning the U.S. oil giant Occidental Petroleum (Oxy) that it could soon face a lawsuit in the United States if it fails to clean up toxic waste in their tropical rainforest.

POLITICS: Charges of Dishonesty Fly at World Bank

The controversy over allegations of misconduct by World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz is turning ever more sour, with Wolfowitz and former top managers, who together oversaw billons of dollars in loans to thousands of projects in developing nations, trading barbs and accusations of dishonesty.

POLITICS: Combative Wolfowitz Slams “Circus-like” Process

Embattled World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, who is fighting for his job, warned Monday against a forced exit and called the Bank directors' description of his actions in a scandal besetting him and his girlfriend and co-worker "unjust and" and "hypocritical".

FINANCE: Activists Decry Bank’s Loan Approval for Uganda Dam

Brushing aside concerns from environmentalists and rights groups, the World Bank said Thursday it will support the controversial Bujagali dam in Uganda with 360 million dollars in loans and guarantees.

FINANCE: World Bank’s Corruption Fighters Complain of Collapsing Image

Dozens of World Bank employees in a department entrusted with charting anti-corruption policies weighed in Thursday on the nepotism scandal surrounding Bank president Paul Wolfowitz, saying that their credibility was wearing away because of the escalating controversy.

RIGHTS: U.S. Gov’t Discriminates Against Muslim Immigrants – Study

U.S. immigration practices towards thousands of Muslim immigrants over the past six years received a searing indictment in a study released Tuesday, accusing the U.S. government of turning immigration institutions into security stations that penalise individuals because of their religion and national origin.

POLITICS: World Bank’s Wolfowitz Pushes Back

World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz is uncloaking new measures at the institution apparently designed to appease his critics and regain the initiative after weeks of fast retreat in the face of accusations of nepotism and an international downpour of criticism for his management style.

POLITICS: Crisis Mode Grips World Bank Headquarters

There is a crisis atmosphere at World Bank headquarters here in Washington, with dozens of emergency staff meetings, more calls for the embattled president Paul Wolfowitz to step down, and clearer displays of rebellion inside the Bank.

POLITICS: Pentagon Official “Directed Hiring” of Wolfowitz’s Girlfriend

An unidentified U.S. Defence Department official directed subordinates to hire four specific outside contractors for Iraq-related work, including Shaha Riza, the girlfriend of then-Deputy Secretary of Defence and current World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz, newly disclosed documents show.