Economic growth

Economic growth

East Africa Is Now the Fastest-Growing Sub-region on the Continent. Here Is the Full Picture.

East Africa is on track to grow by 5.8% in 2026, up from 5.4% in 2025, making it the fastest-growing sub-region on the African continent by a significant margin. West Africa is projected at 4.4%, Central Africa at 3%, and Southern Africa at 2%. The

Economic growth

Ethiopia Is Growing at 9.2%. A Dam, Debt Restructuring, and Deliberate Reform Made It Possible.

Ethiopia is the IMF's fastest-growing African economy in 2026, projected to expand 9.2%, more than double the sub-Saharan Africa regional average of approximately 4.3%. That number is the result of specific, deliberate interventions that have been years in the making, not a commodity windfall

Economic growth

Taiwan's Economy Is Growing at 9.6%. It Has Not Moved This Fast in 16 Years.

The numbers coming out of Taiwan's statistics office in 2026 are the kind that make economists do a double take. The Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics now forecasts GDP growth of 9.6% for 2026, the highest rate in 16 years. In the first quarter of

Economic growth

Vietnam, India, and Mexico Are Winning the Race to Become the World's Next Factory. Here Is the Scorecard.

The China Plus One strategy has been discussed for years. In 2026, it is no longer theoretical. Manufacturing investment is flowing into alternative production hubs at a pace beginning to reshape trade maps, corporate supply chains, and employment patterns across three continents. India has emerged as one of the primary

Economic growth

Saudi Arabia and the UAE Are Building Economies That No Longer Depend on Oil. The Numbers Are Starting to Show It.

The Gulf Cooperation Council states have been discussing economic diversification for over a decade. In 2026, the data is beginning to catch up with the ambition, though the Middle East conflict has introduced risks that were not in any of the original forecasts. The IMF projects Arab economies will expand

Economic growth

The Global Economy Is Growing at 2.7%. For Developing Countries, That Number Tells Only Half the Story.

The UN's headline growth projection for the global economy in 2026 is 2.7%, a modest deceleration from 2.8% in 2025 and well below the 3.2% average recorded before the pandemic. That number matters, but it conceals a divergence that is shaping economic life very differently

Economic growth

Japan's Working-Age Population Has Shrunk by 16% Since 1995. Robots Are Filling the Gap.

Japan's demographic situation is no longer approaching. It is here. The country's working-age population has been in constant decline, falling 16% from a peak of 87.3 million in 1995 to 73.7 million in 2024. The old-age dependency ratio more than doubled from

Economic growth

Poland Is Growing at 3.5% While the Rest of Europe Barely Moves. Here Is How.

While Germany contracts and the broader eurozone shuffles along at under 1%, Poland is doing something that looks, in the current European context, almost unusual: it is growing at a genuinely healthy pace. Economic growth in Poland is set to remain strong in 2026, at 3.5%, supported by resilient

Economic growth

Germany Has Now Contracted or Nearly Stagnated for Three Consecutive Years. The Causes Go Deeper Than Energy.

There is a conversation happening in economic circles about whether Germany is facing a cyclical downturn or something more structurally serious. The evidence is beginning to favour the latter. Germany contracted 0.9% in 2023, contracted again by 0.2% in 2024, and managed only 0.2% growth in 2025.

Economic growth

The Eurozone Is Growing at 0.8%. That Is Not a Typo

The eurozone economy grew by just 0.8% in the first quarter of 2026, year on year. That figure landed the same day the European Central Bank kept interest rates unchanged for the third consecutive meeting, and together they tell a story about an economy caught between two bad options.

Economic growth

Ghana's Inflation Fell from 54% to 3.4% in Three Years. The Harder Work Is Just Beginning

The numbers Ghana is putting up right now are genuinely unusual. Inflation peaked at 54.1% in December 2022, the cedi had lost more than half its value against the dollar that year, and the country's debt-to-GDP ratio had hit 92.4%. By April 2026, inflation

Economic growth

Japan's Economy Is Uneven, and Households Are Bearing the Cost

Japan's economic story in 2026 is one of visible contrasts. Manufacturing and exports are providing meaningful support, with the country's industrial base benefiting from strong global demand for electronics and components. The Conference Board's LEI for Japan rose 0.7% in the most recent