IMF Podcasts IMF Podcasts

As global economic uncertainty surges, Sub-Saharan Africa faces a host of challenges that will require effective policy responses if it is to regain the ground it lost during the pandemic. But what does it take to design and implement successful policy reforms? In this podcast, IMF African Department head Abebe Aemro Selassie and Georgetown University’s Ken Opalo discuss why some reforms work and others do not. This conversation is part of a series of talks hosted by the IMF African Department called Africa Perspectives.
Watch the webcast: www.imf.org/en/News/Seminars/Conferences/2022/06/10/africa-speaker-series#

The last few months have witnessed tensions in Europe's housing markets as the cost-of-living crisis has eroded real incomes and the surge in interest rates has made borrowers more vulnerable to financial distress. Laura Valderrama is a macro-financial expert and coauthor of new research that suggests house prices across Europe are overvalued, and housing markets are at risk of a price correction that could undermine the region's economic recovery.  
Transcript: https://bit.ly/42Dm33U
Read the research paper at: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP  

While the currency values of today’s economic powerhouses help maintain global financial stability, the currency systems in the 19th century were tied to precious metals and France played the stabilizing role. In the early 1800s, most countries tied their currencies to silver or gold, but Napoleon tied the French franc to both, which sparked the era of global bimetallism. IMF economist Johannes Wiegand has studied bimetallism, and in this podcast, he says this almost-forgotten 19th-century episode shows that international cooperation is essential for a stable global monetary system. 
Transcript: https://bit.ly/41CunjU
Read the article at IMF.org/fandd

The longtime critics of globalization are having another moment, claiming supply chain shortages, high inflation, and increasing migration are products of an overly globalized world. But history suggests more globalization- not less, can help counter those disruptions in the global economy. Harold James is a professor of history and international relations at Princeton University and an IMF historian. In this podcast, James says globalization offers an antidote to inflationary pressures. 
Transcript: https://bit.ly/3m5mB1J
Look for In Defense of Globalization in the March issue of Finance and Development: IMF.org/fandd

Alan S. Blinder, former Fed vice chair and one of the world’s most influential economists has had a front-row seat to the changes in central banking over the past several decades. Blinder is also a former member of the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, and in his latest book, A Monetary and Fiscal History of the United States, 1961-2021, he recounts the conflicts and collaborations in fiscal and monetary policy that have shaped the United States economy. Blinder was invited to the IMF Research Department to discuss his book.
Transcript: https://bit.ly/3xtYUTq

China’s severe covid lockdowns since the start of the pandemic undoubtedly contributed to an economic downturn last year not seen in decades. And while China has lifted the containment measures and is reopening, the factors behind that slowdown, like its ailing property sector, low productivity growth, and the lingering COVID threat, could weigh on its economic performance this year if left unaddressed. In this podcast, IMF economists Sonali Jain-Chandra and Thomas Helbling walk us through China’s latest economic review, a deep analysis of China’s economy that includes outlooks, risk assessments, and policy recommendations.
Transcript: https://bit.ly/3HpduA8
Read the full report at IMF.org