And in the long run later retirement and other reforms will expand the labour force and thus potential output, whereas higher taxes dull incentives to work and invest.

ECONOMIST: America's budget deficit

Shortly prior to its ceasefire announcement MEND had carried out its boldest attack against Nigeria's oil installations since it launched its campaign of violence in late 2005, when an attack on Shell's Bongo facility, 120km out to sea, forced the Anglo-Dutch major temporarily to halt production equivalent to about 10% of Nigeria's output, and to declare force majeure.

ECONOMIST: A big rebel group in the Niger Delta calls off its ceasefire

Higher taxes on capital gains and dividends, abstracting from issues of equity and fairness, reduce real economic growth, cause weaker consumption and decreases in business capital spending, reduce employment, and labor force growth, and help bring about less potential output.

FORBES: The Horrific Accident Awaiting Us Over The Fiscal Cliff

After a decade of turbo-charged growth, output will necessarily decelerate, as the labor force approaches full employment and inflation forces the hand of President Dilma Rousseff. (Read Brazil: A Bubble In Labor Markets?).

FORBES: A Soft Landing For Brazil As Output Slows And Growth Centers On Middle Class

Slightly more than half of the work force is in agriculture, but services are the major source of economic growth, accounting for more than half of India's output, with only one-third of its labor force.

FORBES: India