World Bank news stories on Newser

Dartmouth's Jim Yong Kim Tapped to Lead World Bank

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:16:36 CDT

Jim Yong Kim, an American who is president of Dartmouth College, has been chosen to be the next president of the World Bank. His selection extends the United States' hold on the top job at the 187-nation development agency. Kim, a surprise nominee of President Obama, was selected in a...

Obama Makes Surprise Pick to Head World Bank

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 08:56:19 CDT

President Obama will nominate Dartmouth College President Jim Yong Kim to head the World Bank, a surprise pick for the international financial institution's top job, senior administration officials say. The Korean-born Kim is a physician by training and a prominent figure in global health and development circles. Officials believe his...

Logging a $15B Racket for Organized Crime

Kevin Spak — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:46:05 CDT

Ah, those classic gangster rackets: drugs, prostitution, gambling, and, of course, wood. Illegal logging has become a major endeavor for organized crime, raking in as much as $15 billion a year, according to a new report from the World Bank. Scofflaws with chainsaws are running wild in places such as...

IMF Hit by Cyberattack in 'Major Breach'

John Johnson — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 15:30:43 CDT

The IMF has another problem to worry about: Hackers pulled off what the New York Times calls a "large and sophisticated attack" that compromises sensitive financial data from around the world. "This was a very major breach," says an anonymous official. It's not clear what the hackers were after or...

Hillary Clinton Considers Top Post at World Bank

John Johnson — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 16:38:15 CDT

Hillary Clinton swears she's done with elected politics, and Reuters thinks it knows where she's headed next: the World Bank. Quoting three unnamed sources, the news service says she has already talked to the White House about leaving her post at the State Department to assume the presidency of the...

Japan's Death Toll Hits 18K

Mark Russell — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 02:25:00 CDT

The numbers are grim—more than 18,000 dead and $235 billion in rebuilding costs. These are the estimates coming out of Japan today, as the police, World Bank, and other organizations weigh in on the extent of the damages from the March 11 earthquake, reports AP . Nationwide, 8,600...

Fearing War, France Urges Citizens to Flee Ivory Coast

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 11:06:16 CST

The World Bank has frozen loans to Ivory Coast as France urged its citizens to leave the West African country amid heightened UN concerns the nation risks returning to civil war. A French government spokesman told reporters yesterday that it was urging citizens to leave the country, a former French...

To Help World's Poor, Hand Them Cash

Matt Cantor — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 13:40:00 CDT

It might seem counter-intuitive, but in some 45 countries across the globe, it’s working: Governments are handing cash to the poor to use at their own discretion, writes Christopher Werth in Newsweek . Some 110 million families are getting aid, and the World Bank has spent $5.5 billion on “cash-transfer...

Bubbles Reinflating, World Bank Warns

Rob Quinn — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:32:10 CST

Efforts to boost economic recovery are having the dangerous side effect of creating new bubbles in property, stock, and currency markets, the World Bank warned yesterday. Commodity prices are also surging, with gold hitting a record price yesterday. The effect is most pronounced in Asia, where recovery has come soonest,...