As Portugal takes over the EU presidency, the country’s president, Professor Aníbal Cavaco Silva, stresses the need, among other things, for Europe to assert itself as an effective and influential global performer.

The establishment of a school for financial regulation in London should attract students from around the world eager to learn about the UK’s principles-based oversight model, says Mervyn Davies.

In Argentina’s delicate post-crisis economic landscape, inflation targeting isn’t the answer, central bank policy needs to reflect the transitional phase of the Argentine economy, says Martín Redrado.

While China’s lifting of restrictions on the operation of international banks will not result in branches opening on every Chinese high street, it does present significant opportunities, says Stephen Green.

Whether responsibility for banking supervision in the EU lies with national central banks or with separate agencies, it must be able to stand up to pressure, argues Jean Lemierre.

Current account imbalances, household indebtedness, large leveraged transactions in the corporate sector as well as the growth in market complexity should all be sounding alarm bells, says Mario Draghi.

The North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) was intended, among other things, to improve Mexico’s economy (and thus reduce illegal immigration). In fact, it worked to the detriment of Mexico. Joe Stiglitz analyses what went wrong.

In this extract from his latest book, former World Bank chief economist Joe Stiglitz argues that a trade regime based on the principle of universal reciprocity regardless of circumstances does little to help developing countries.

Africa is a real banking market with real potential and there is nothing philanthropic about Barclays’ activities there, writes John Varley. He outlines particular areas that his banking group is committed to developing and region-specific issues that must be addressed.

Regional co-operation through the Asian Bond Fund initiatives will make intermediation between savings and investment increasingly effective in the region, says Joseph Yam.