Did China manipulate World Bank business reports? Probe forces halt to ratings

The World Bank Group has junked, due to irregularities, its iconic “Doing Business Reports”, the Holy Grail of global rankings that purport to show which countries are most welcoming of private investment and business, popularly known as ‘ease of doing business’. The rankings have acquired the status of a prestige tag for emerging economies and is a key influencer of wide-ranging policies. An external investigation shows senior former bank leaders including chief executive Kristalina Georgieva (now managing director of the International Monetary Fund or IMF) had been working with economists to upgrade China’s 2018 ranking. Watch this report for more.