UN Trade and Development

Between 2014 and 2024, external debt service costs in developing countries rose much faster than debt stocks.

With many governments relying on external financing to fund spending, pressure on public finances is mounting.

Read more in UNCTAD's report, “Financing development: External flows of financial capital to developing countries and their cost”.

https://ow.ly/R4uL50Zee6O

Over the past decade, developing countries' interest payments rose by 102%, while government revenues grew by just 39%.

High borrowing costs on public debt are rapidly eroding fiscal space and constraining sustainable development.

What actions are needed nationally and globally?

Explore UNCTAD’s analysis: https://ow.ly/Y8qL50ZcQ8N

In 99 developing countries, home to 5.5 billion people, debt servicing absorbed a growing share of government revenues between 2018 and 2024.

What does this mean for public investment and other development priorities?

UNCTAD analysis: https://ow.ly/UHPy50ZcHfZ

Rising debt servicing costs are straining public finances in developing countries.

In its new analysis, UNCTAD explores policy approaches to expanding access to affordable, long-term finance, which is not just a financial issue but also a development imperative.

Dive in:

As debt costs rise, development funding comes under pressure Expanding access to affordable, stable and long-term finance is not only a financial issue, but a development imperative.

Papua New Guinea can benefit from an open but strategic trade policy, a new UNCTAD study finds.

Tariffs can support development goals when they are stable, targeted and paired with action to lower the real cost of doing business.

This includes improving infrastructure, power supply and customs processes, as well as reducing costs for key imported inputs.

The study was funded by the European Union under the UNCTAD Improving Pacific Islands Customs and Trade (IMPACT) project, a component of the Pacific Regional Integration Support Programme.

Learn more: https://ow.ly/Utu950Zck08

Critical mineral partnerships are expanding rapidly, but many still focus on extraction.

To move up the value chain, resource-rich developing countries may seek stronger provisions on local processing, technology transfer and skills development.

More in the latest Global Trade Update: https://ow.ly/GzLs50ZbTZ3

Critical minerals are no longer just a commodity story but central to trade, investment and industrial development due to their role in high-tech sectors.

Governments are increasingly using trade policy, such as export-related measures, to secure access and strengthen competitiveness.

Since 2020, nearly 100 export-related measures have been introduced, including licenses, taxes and bans.

Learn more: https://ow.ly/FQ6o50ZbSMq

The supply of critical energy transition minerals is highly concentrated, especially in processing and refining where more value addition occurs.

As growing demand heightens competition, trade policy is becoming a key force shaping production, trade, costs, and how benefits are distributed.

Dive deeper: https://ow.ly/c45950ZbLi6

Au-delà des minerais essentiels à la transition énergétique, la SADC offre à Madagascar 275,1 millions de dollars d’opportunités d’exportation, notamment dans les produits chimiques, le papier-carton et la transformation alimentaire.

En savoir plus : https://ow.ly/5oMk50Zb9jq

As competition for critical minerals grows, global trade risks fragmentation with overlapping agreements, rules and standards.

Trade policy needs to support development in mineral-rich countries while enabling the low-carbon, digital transition.

Read the full analysis in UNCTAD’s Global Trade Update:

Critical minerals are reshaping global trade as demand surges But the central question is whether critical minerals become another source of fragmentation, or a basis for more resilient and inclusive global cooperation.