The number of passenger cars in circulation can act as a direct measure of the middle class in developing countries.

An appreciation of the renminbi is not the catch-all solution some claim it to be. If China were to revalue its currency, a widespread appreciation of Asian currencies would not follow, nor would the U.S. current account deficit benefit.

The international monetary system helped countries liberalize trade and limited protectionism during the Great Recession. But countries with pegged exchange rates remain a threat to trade, especially if the peg is undervalued.

Although World Trade Organization policies helped limit the increase in protectionist measures during the recent financial crisis, a mutually reinforcing set of legal and structural changes in the world economy played a larger role in keeping global markets open.

The forces that kept protectionism at bay during the financial crisis—chief among them, national laws, regional agreements, and structural economic shifts—should be the focus of future trade negotiations.

Though global food prices have now passed the record highs reached in 2008, important differences between the two surges have prevented today’s crisis from having as severe of an impact on the world’s most vulnerable populations.

After stagnating for decades, economic growth in Africa has accelerated, but maintaining this rapid growth is far from guaranteed. Policy makers must build on past successes and tackle tough reforms before the world’s poorest continent can make sustained economic progress.

The increased use of intermediate inputs in world trade distorts bilateral trade balances, reduces the importance of exports as drivers of demand, and hides the true cost of protectionism.

Policy makers around the world who are pushing China to revalue its exchange rate should note that an appreciation of the renminbi—unless accompanied by an acceleration of China’s domestic demand—will be of little benefit to most economies.

The revival of the European debt crisis will force EU leaders to choose between entering into a deeper fiscal and economic union or confronting sovereign defaults and the possible break-up of the euro area.