DEVELOPMENT: Financial Crisis Threatens Women’s Meagre Gains

The spreading global financial crisis - which has taken a heavy toll of international bankers, investors and speculators - is also having a devastating impact on some of the most vulnerable and marginalised groups in society, including women and children.

ECONOMY-JAPAN: Small, Medium Firms Hit by Credit Crunch

He was left devastated and robbed of his dream to open a restaurant in Tokyo after two Japanese banks refused to give him a small loan.

ENVIRONMENT: ‘‘Climate Change Does Not Wait For Recessions’’

Lack of money and technical know-how makes it difficult for poor farmers to participate in the Kyoto Protocol’s carbon trading mechanism aimed at reversing global warming. Meanwhile, the global economic crisis may further undermine investment in carbon trade in African countries.

WORLD-ECONOMY: Not The End of Neoliberalism Yet

The economist and author Prof Patrick Bond warns that the optimism about the dawn of a post-neoliberal era is premature and that ‘‘a more dangerous and painful’’ period may be ahead before any real change to the current global economic regime will be possible.

RIGHTS-US: Few Safety Nets for Women of Colour

As hundreds of activists from around the world descend on the United Nations Monday for a major two-week meeting on women's rights and equality, the economic crisis here in the host country is continuing to have an especially heavy toll on women of colour.

ENERGY-CHINA: On Oil Shopping Spree

The major coup scored by Chinese diplomats in sealing a string of bulk volume energy deals in the past few weeks signals a new phase in Beijing’s energy diplomacy, deployed to secure long-term resources for the country’s power-hungry economy, according to analysts here.

U.S.: Diplomatic, Aid Spending Set to Rise Under Obama Budget

While most mainstream press reaction to President Barack Obama's whopping 3.5-trillion-dollar 2010 budget has naturally focused on its far-reaching - even historic - implications for the U.S. domestic economy, experts here say it also marks at least the beginning of potentially important shifts in U.S. foreign policy.

ECONOMY: Africa Is of ‘‘Strategic Importance’’ to Gulf States

According to a recent article in the Harvard Business Review, the average annual return on investment in Africa is between 65 and 70 percent higher than in any other country, including China.

ECONOMY: As the EU Regulates, or Does Not

Faced with a crisis that sent shockwaves through the markets and continues to cause immense pain in the real economy, the European Commission charged eight bankers and economists with drafting a blueprint for how financial regulation should be approached in the future. It might seem odd, then, that all members of this panel, which presented the results of its discussions this week, have displayed an aversion to regulation in the past.

CUBA: Raul Castro’s First Year – Whispers of Change

As Cuban President Raúl Castro completes his first year in office, although a few of the "structural and conceptual" changes he promised have materialised, the pace of reform remains slow, deflating expectations and contributing to pessimism among the people of this Caribbean island nation.

TRADE: 'Gulf States’ Technology Can Be Swapped for Africa’s Food'

Countries in the Gulf and in Africa can form mutually beneficial partnerships, with Africa supplying fertile arable land and the Gulf investing in technology, fertiliser and other agricultural inputs.

POLITICS: Shadow Meet to Challenge Elites at Americas Summit

The organisers do not expect newly elected U.S. President Barack Obama to attend their parallel three-day meeting, even though he is likely to be in Trinidad and Tobago at the official Fifth Summit of the Americas in April.

ECONOMY-US: Job Creation Key to Recovery, Obama Stresses

In his first speech before a joint session of Congress, U.S. President Barack Obama gave a hopeful assessment of the country’s future and defended his economic recovery plan to get there.

UKRAINE: Between the Kremlin and a Hard Place

Ukraine's internal political problems and tensions with Russia threaten its path to stability and its candidacy for NATO and the EU, warns a new Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) report.

RUSSIA: Problems Rise With Falling Oil Prices

The Russian economy is plunging into a crisis as oil prices fall and the government digs deep into its reserve fund.

ECONOMY-BOTSWANA: Job Losses Show ‘‘Diamonds Are Not Forever’’

‘‘The situation is now very bad, very bad for workers. It is no longer about the workers alone, it is about the government, the companies, everyone. We need to talk. Dialogue is the only solution.’’

LATIN AMERICA: Recession Challenges Fair Trade

The world economic recession is threatening the progress Latin America has made in fair trade. The leaders of this alternative form of exchange are making emergency contacts in order to assess the situation and come up with strategies to confront it.

ECONOMY-US: Squatters See Silver Lining in Foreclosed Homes

With foreclosures skyrocketing and U.S. families sinking deeper into poverty, a number of organisations are turning to a new strategy to end homelessness: moving families into vacant, foreclosed houses that are currently owned by banks or the government.

VENEZUELA: Ten More Years, If He Can Woo a Divided Country

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez won Sunday's referendum with 54 percent of the vote, which will allow him to stand for reelection indefinitely. But he will have to exercise leadership over a country that is stubbornly split in two.

ECONOMY-CHINA: Consumption Coupons Sans Protectionism?

Under pressure to address trade imbalances by boosting domestic demand, China has approved the handing out of consumption coupons. The measure, touted as China’s antidote to economic recession, is free of protectionist overtones like the contentious "buy American" in the U.S. economic stimulus bill.

CHINA-US: Clinton Urged to Press Beijing on Human Rights

Seven major U.S. and international rights groups are calling on U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to make human rights issues a top priority in her meetings in Beijing next week with Chinese officials.