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Executive Directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have commended the authorities for the continued strong performance despite the adverse shocks in recent years. While medium-term prospects remain favorable, Directors encouraged the authorities to press ahead with essential fiscal consolidation and structural reforms to sustain pro-poor growth and employment over the medium term.

Executive Directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expressed sympathy for the loss of life and extensive damage inflicted by two recent earthquakes. Despite the near-term disruption from the earthquakes, New Zealand’s increasing ties with fast growing Asian economies and sound macroeconomic framework bode well for its economic prospects. Directors noted that continued policy efforts are needed to achieve sustained growth rates and reduce the vulnerabilities associated with low national saving and large net foreign liabilities.

The Italian economy is continuing to recover from the very deep recession that it shared with most OECD countries, but more can be done to boost resilience, according to a new OECD report. A combination of well-targeted macroeconomic and structural policies would help achieve sustained growth, as well as contribute to fiscal consolidation, it adds.

At last, the UPA Government has conceded that high inflation is inimical to sustained growth of the economy, and has, therefore, welcomed RBI’s new monetary policy trajectory (May 3), which gives precedence to bringing down elevated inflation, even at the risk of lower growth over the short-term. Till recently, Government did not seem overly concerned with what it regarded as essentially food price inflation not amenable to correction in the near term. The budget for 2011-12 presented at the end of February was confidently framed with a GDP growth target of 9 per cent, as against an estimated 8.6 per cent in 2010-11.

Corruption, like prostitution, is the world’s oldest profession. As in the case of prostitution, the methodology, levels and standards of corruption keep changing depending on the socio-economic and political conditions of the society. So one should not unduly get agitated over the high-level corruption cases or the political loyalties of those involved in such cases the country has lately been witnessing.

LUCKNOW: Mayawati Government is under siege in Uttar Pradesh as the leading political parties of the state have started intensive campaign against the large scale corruption in the administration which the BSP supremo is heading for nearly four years. Simultaneously, CBI has arrested a number of the state officials for being involved in corruption.

NEW DELHI: The latest confrontation between the Congress and the BJP over the report on 2G scam finalized unilaterally by the BJP chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, has unnerved the Finance Ministry which has been desperately seeking BJP support for the passage of the important financial sector bills in the monsoon session of Parliament.

New York: Two independent United Nations human rights experts today called on the United States to disclose further details of the recent killing of Osama bin Laden, particularly if there were plans to capture him alive.

HA NOI, VIET NAM - Rising labor and other production costs are threatening Asia’s competitiveness and preventing many countries from transitioning beyond the hard-won middle income status they have attained in recent decades, a seminar audience heard today.