Vol 29, No 3 (2021): New trends, strategies and structural changes in emerging markets

The changes in the amount of the external debt of Belarus depending on various factors are analyzed. The study found that the consequences of the epidemic COVID-19 had a significant impact on the increase in the amount of external debt. In addition, political protests against the government have a special weight in the reasons for the growth of Belarus’ external debt, since their consequences significantly reduced the level of confidence on the part of foreign investors, which led to a fall in the ruble. The role of foreign countries as the main creditors in the external debt of Belarus, as well as in the economy of Belarus as a whole is examined, and the importance of the Belarusian “friendship” with Russia is considered. In conclusion, an assessment of the structure of the Belarusian economy and methods of its regulation is carried out, and then possible ways of settling the Belarusian debt are presented.

Energy is an integral part of the economic security of any state, and it is more complex, the lower the degree of provision with its mineral resources and the higher the number of the population living in the country. Being the undisputed world leaders in terms of population (1.4 billion people and 1.3 billion people), China and India are concerned about ensuring the energy security of their national economies. According to the latest forecasts formed by the International Energy Agency, by 2040, these two countries will become world leaders in terms of imports of mineral products (in this case: crude oil and natural gas). China is the world leader in exporting goods; India is implementing an economic and industrial policy to turn the country into a world manufacturing hub. In this regard, providing countries with energy resources is one of the most critical tasks. At the same time, a significant problem is a dependence on regular supplies of raw materials and world prices for energy carriers. Respectively, countries should pursue a policy of diversification of suppliers of mineral products. The subject of this study is the Republic of India and its position in the world energy markets; issues of energy security and energy policy are also highlighted.

The economic crisis in the United States and its spread to continental Europe caused a financial crisis in European stock markets, which in turn reduced production in Europe, resulting in rising unemployment, that eventually led to protests against the current economic situation. These political unrests have prompted international and regional governments and financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Central Bank to find a way to end this severe financial crisis. Greece, as one of the EU member states that has been affected by this global crisis, has made efforts to improve its economic situation. The main question of this study is to what extent the International Monetary Fund was able to help resolve the financial crisis in Greece? The hypothesis is that due to the conditionality of financial aid from the International Monetary Fund to Greece in crisis and Greece’s lack of attention to the full implementation of austerity programs, such financial aid has not been able to save the Greece economy from financial crisis. One of the aims of this study is to what extent developing countries can rely on IMF recommendations to overcome the financial crisis. The aim of the research is to find out why International Monetary Fund could not adopt proper monetary and financial policy to settle the financial crisis in Greece. Moreover, the reasons behind failed attempts of Greece’s policymakers to implement IMF’s austerity measures in their country are sought.

At the present stage of the functioning of the multilateral trading system there is an increasing need to find new approaches to the development and facilitation of trade other than the reduction of tariff and non-tariff barriers. Trade facilitation is the field of activity of many international organizations, it is recognized as an effective tool for promoting economic development and capacity building both at the level of an individual state, and within integration associations and regions, which, due to their geographic location have close political and economic ties. The areas targeted by trade facilitation measures are diverse and have evolved over time. This has led to the fact that the concept of “trade facilitation” does not have a specific applied characteristic, as well as a generally accepted framework for the implementation of initiatives in this area, which undoubtedly deserves scientific attention. This approaches to interpretation of “trade facilitation” term in Russian practice are described. Also were hold the analyses of considering term definitions, which were defined by international organizations in accordance with their scope of work and those, which are proposed by scientists. The main approaches to understanding of considering term were exposed, that make possible to characterize the essence and main directions of trade facilitation measures implementation. The feasible economical profits of implementing initiations in field of trade facilitation in framework of international trade both from supply and demand are described. In addition, the main perspectives of trade facilitation measures for different participants of international trade were systematized. In conclusion, defined author’s approach for understanding of “trade facilitation term” concerning the interests of Russia in this sphere. The author identified the most relevant vectors for the implementation of measures to facilitate trade procedures, which reflect the current directions for the implementation of the economic policy of the Russian Federation, as well as ensure the creation and maintenance of a favorable business environment to stimulate the development of foreign economic activity and foreign trade.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused irreparable damage to all economies. Coping with the consequences by the leading players in the global economy is only expected. However, the world’s leading organizations have been trumpeting about overcoming the crisis in China. The aim of the research is to analyze the current state of the Chinese economy and answer the question whether it has overcome all the crisis phenomena. As part of the study, the authors analyzed indicators such as GDP, debt level, level of domestic demand, activity in the financial market and the M&A market, as well as technological and social policies of China and the structure of trade. For the analysis of quantitative indicators, a combination of comparison and classification methods, media scanning, and crowdsourcing was used. The information base was grounded on annual reference books published by official institutions in Сhina, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, statistical data from international publications devoted to Chinese economy. The analysis showed the presence of trigger situations in the stock market, in the market for innovative investments and the banking sector. The state of the credit system is also a matter of concern. The authors have proven that enthusiastic statements about the rapid recovery of the Chinese economy are more an encouraging myth than a fait accompli. Today, China is only at the beginning of its recovery from the crisis caused by the pandemic. Will it be able to become the locomotive of global economic growth again, as in 2008? The answer to this question remains open.

Nowadays economic psychology is a field of science that has serious potential to compete classical economic theories. Many contemporary authors are interested in the discipline which is proved by the variety of emerging branches of economic psychology. Some of them are economists, other psychologists, but a small percentage of them have both economic and psychological education. This pattern explains some serious misunderstandings in the scientific literature in the field. The lack of understanding of both sciences at the same time leads to extremes in the conclusions, which in turn are not accepted as universally valid by economists and psychologists. Мoreover, the literature on the subject written by economists and psychologists seems very different. Economists attach more importance to the results of economic choice, while psychologists analyze primarily the causes for it. However, the connection between the two disciplines is indisputable. Despite the variety of branches of economic psychology, it is worth paying attention to the first work in the field written by an economist, which gives fundamental answers that modern scientists seem to miss. Lionel Robbins’ essay represents an extraordinary balance between the economic and the psychological issues, united in an ideal symbiosis.