International Trade and America's Place in the Global Economy - The World Bank

At the same conference that created the International Monetary Fund in July 1944, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) was established. The IBRD and the International Development Association (IDA) are commonly known as the World Bank. The World Bank is not a bank in the traditional sense of the word, but an agency of the UN made up of 184 countries, including the United States. The World Bank works to combat world poverty by providing low-interest loans, interest-free credit, and grants to developing countries.

In its early days the World Bank often participated in such large projects as dam building. Today it supports the efforts of governments in developing countries to build

TABLE 3.3

International trade balances, 2001–03
[Millions of dollars, quarters seasonally adjusted]
				2003
(Credits +; debits −)	2001	2002	2003	I1	II1	III1	IV2
1Revised.
2Preliminary.
SOURCE: Adapted from "Table C. Selected Balances on U.S. International Transactions," in U.S. International Transactions, 2003, U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, April 2004, http://www.bea.gov/bea/ARTICLES/2004/04April/0404ITA.pdf (accessed January 4, 2005)
Balance on goods	−427,215	−482,872	−549,409	−135,943	−138,012	−136,248	−139,206
Balance on services	69,396	64,834	59,245	14,395	13,912	14,602	16,336
Balance on income	10,689	−3,970	16,625	−217	1,322	3,005	12,517
Investment income, net	15,701	1,271	21,886	1,159	2,627	4,262	13,839
Direct investment, net	106,485	93,475	103,949	21,657	21,789	24,670	35,834
Other private, net	−13,664	−21,592	−20,316	−4,545	−4,149	−5,368	−6,254
U.S. Government, net	−77,120	−70,612	−61,747	−15,953	−15,013	−15,040	−15,741
Compensation of employees, net	−5,012	−5,241	−5,261	−1,376	−1,305	−1,257	−1,322
Unilateral current transfers, net	−46,615	−58,853	−68,291	−17,391	−17,062	−16,651	−17,188
Balance on current account	−393,745	−480,861	−541,830	−139,156	−139,840	−135,292	−127,541

TABLE 3.4

Top international trading partners, September 2004
Country name
SOURCE: Adapted from "Top Ten Countries with which the U.S. Trades," in Foreign Trade Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau, September 2004, http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/top/dst/2004/09/balance.html (accessed January 4, 2005)
Canada
Mexico
China
Japan
Federal Republic of Germany
Korea, South
United Kingdom
Taiwan
France
Malaysia

schools and health centers, provide water and electricity, fight disease, and protect the environment. The World Bank is one of the world's largest sources of development assistance. In 2004, according to the World Bank Web site (www.worldbank.org), it provided $20.1 billion for 245 projects in developing countries worldwide.