World & Politics
IMF: Improving productivity will help the UK wade through Brexit - 02/15/2018
In the medium term, the growth of the British economy may amount to 1.5% (a cheap pound stimulates exports, partially compensating for a decrease in consumption in the domestic market). However, such a scenario will become possible only if negotiations on a future trade agreement with the EU and on the transition period end successfully. To assess the real consequences of Brexit, that is, changes...
France sets to fight against fake news - 02/15/2018
Minister of Culture of France Françoise Nyssen said on Tuesday that a bill to combat the spread of fake news in the media and social networks "is almost ready." The paper will be submitted in the coming days, but its main points are already known. Among other things, the French authorities intend to punish fake newsmakers by depriving them of their accreditation. France is preparing for a massive...
Lack of qualified personnel impedes economic development of France - 02/14/2018
Bloomberg, referring to surveys of French companies and the situation in the labor market, concluded that French employers are sorely lacking experienced professionals. This happens despite the fact that the employment services have officially registered almost 3.5 million unemployed citizens. Company Figeac-Aero, engaged in the supply of components for Airbus, faced similar difficulties. Patrice...
Plastic cards and electronic payments aren’t a solution for Venezuelans anymore - 02/13/2018
Inflation is unstoppable in the crisis-ridden Venezuela, and the government cannot print money or pay for the delivery of a sufficient number of banknotes. Paying with plastic cards is not an option, since many stores experience problems with card readers. This situation forces people to look for alternative ways of transactions. The rapid price increase in Venezuela became the 57th recorded case...
How much did the Olympics in Pyeongchang cost? - 02/13/2018
The Olympics, even the winter one, don’t come cheap, and the competitions in Korea were no exception. According to preliminary estimates, organizers spent $ 12.9 billion, which is twice the amount claimed in 2011. However, compared to Olympic expenses of other countries, the figures fully correspond to the concept of the "cost-effective" competition, which was immediately announced by the...
The European Union wants to advance the frontiers - 02/12/2018
During the visits to Serbia and Montenegro at the end of last week, EU Commissioner Johannes Khan presented the new EU enlargement strategy. It calls for the accession of six Balkan countries - Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Kosovo - to the single Europe since 2025. Experts believe that by embarking on such a large-scale expansion, the EU expects to maintain its leading role...
Economic freedom: the top 10 countries of the world - 02/09/2018
The American research center Heritage Foundation published its annual rating of the most economically free countries of the world. This rating is annually compiled on the basis of calculations in ten main categories. It takes into account the degree of economic and trade freedoms, investment openness, state intervention in the economy, the factor of corruption, and so on. Below are 10 countries...
George Soros launches Operation Anti-Brexit - 02/09/2018
The well-known financier George Soros turned his attention to the United Kingdom. He decided to help British public organizations that oppose the country's withdrawal from the EU, and transferred them £ 400,000. Public organization Best for Britain, which opposes the country's withdrawal from the EU, reported about transfer of the large sum. "George Soros funds, like other major sponsors, have...
France to increase military spending by 40% - 02/08/2018
The French government announced plans to increase defense spending by more than 40% by 2025. This is reported by the television channel France 24 with reference to AFP. The promulgated bill provides growth of military spending from 34.2 billion euros in 2018 to 50 billion euros in 2025. From 2019 to 2022, the Ministry of Defense plans to increase spending annually by 1.7 billion euros, and from...
Growing demand for cobalt increases child labor risk - 02/06/2018
Cobalt is silvery metal, used for the production of batteries for almost all modern electronics. Over the past two years, the price for cobalt has risen more than threefold. Investors buy cobalt in thousands of tons, and analysts predict that soon it will become a deficit. The problem is that 60 percent of this metal is mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of the poorest and most...
