Trade Flows and Trading Patterns

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organisation of 188 countries that works to ensure the stability of the international monetary and financial system. The IMF’s mandate includes facilitating the expansion and balanced growth of international trade, promoting exchange stability, and providing the opportunity for the orderly correction of countries’ balance of payments problems. The IMF was established in 1945.

The rules of the institution, contained in the IMF's Articles of Agreement signed by all members, constitute a code of conduct. The code is simple:

• it requires members to allow their currency to be exchanged for foreign currencies freely and without restriction,

• to keep the IMF informed of changes they contemplate in financial and monetary policies that will affect fellow members' economies,

• and, to the extent possible, to modify these policies on the advice of the IMF to accommodate the needs of the entire membership.

To help nations abide by the code of conduct, the IMF administers a pool of money from which members can borrow when they are in trouble. The IMF is not, however, primarily a lending institution. It is first and foremost an overseer of its members' monetary and exchange rate policies and a guardian of the code of conduct.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organisation of 159 members that deals with the rules of trade between nations. With Russia’s accession in August 2012, the WTO encompasses all major trading economies. The WTO works to help international trade flow smoothly, predictably, and freely, and provides countries with a constructive and fair outlet for dealing with disputes over trade issues. The WTO came into being in 1995, succeeding the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that was established in 1947.

The World Bank exists to encourage poor countries to develop by providing them with technical assistance and funding for projects and policies that will realise the countries' economic potential. The Bank views development as a long-term, integrated endeavor.

During the first two decades of its existence, two-thirds of the assistance provided by the Bank went to electric power and transportation projects. Although these infrastructure projects remain important, the Bank has diversified its activities in recent years as it has gained experience with and acquired new insights into the development process.

The Bank gives particular attention to projects that can directly benefit the poorest people in developing countries. The direct involvement of the poorest in economic activity is being promoted through lending for agriculture and rural development, small-scale enterprises, and urban development. The Bank is helping the poor to be more productive and to gain access to such necessities as safe water and waste-disposal facilities, health care, family-planning assistance, nutrition, education, and housing. Within infrastructure projects there have also been changes. In transportation projects, greater attention is given to constructing farm-to-market roads. Rather than concentrating exclusively on cities, power projects increasingly provide lighting and power for villages and small farms. Industrial projects place greater emphasis on creating jobs in small enterprises. Labour-intensive construction is used where practical. In addition to electric power, the Bank is supporting development of oil, gas, coal, fuelwood, and biomass as alternative sources of energy.