Trade : Korea retaliation request in washers dispute goes to arbitration (PRIV)
(Kanaga Raja, Geneva)
A Korean request for authorisation to retaliate against the United States for its non-compliance with the recommendations and rulings of the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) in the dispute over both "as applied" and "as such" anti-dumping and countervailing measures imposed by the United States on large residential washers from Korea has been referred to arbitration.

Finance : Wealth concentration continues to increase (PRIV)
(IPS, Sydney/Kuala Lumpur)
Sydney/Kuala Lumpur, 23 Jan (IPS/Anis Chowdhury and Jomo Kwame Sundaram*) -- As the "masters of the universe" gather for their annual retreat at Davos, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has just published its Inclusive Development Index (IDI) for the second time.

Bangladesh : Left behind - families of migrants wait in limbo (PRIV)
(IPS, Nankar)
Wahid Haider talks about his son's departure to Italy almost seven years ago without regret or hesitation.

Peru : Pardon of Fujimori deals blow in fight against gender violence (PRIV)
(IPS, Lima)
The political crisis triggered in Peru by the presidential pardon of former president Alberto Fujimori granted on Christmas Eve casts a shadow of doubt over what actions will be taken to curb violence against women in this country, where 116 femicides were registered in 2017, and which ranks eighth with respect to gender-related murders in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Chile : Clean energy sources manage to cut electricity bill (PRIV)
(IPS, Santiago)
A 75 percent drop in electricity rates, thanks to a quadrupled clean generation capacity, is one of the legacies to be left in Chile by the administration of Michelle Bachelet, who steps down on March 11.