Britain faced angry calls from European leaders to act quickly to resolve the political and economic chaos unleashed by its vote to leave the EU, which the IMF said could hurt global growth.
Financial markets recovered slightly yesterday after the result wiped a record US$3 trillion off global shares and sterling fell to its lowest level in 31 years, but trading was volatile and policymakers vowed to take all necessary measures to protect their economies.
British Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, whose attempt to calm markets fell on deaf ears on Monday, said he would have to cut spending and raise taxes to secure fiscal stability after a third credit ratings agency downgraded the country’s debt.
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Firms have announced hiring freezes and possible job cuts, dashing voters’ hopes the economy would thrive outside the EU.
European countries are particularly worried about the impact on the rest of the EU of the uncertainty created by Britain’s vote to leave, with little idea of when, or even if, the country is to formally declare it is quitting.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told the European Parliament he would be urging British Prime Minister David Cameron to “clarify as soon as possible” the British position, but did not expect him to launch the two-year withdrawal process “today, or tomorrow morning.”
“We cannot be embroiled in lasting uncertainty,” Juncker said in a speech which he interrupted to ask British lawmakers who campaigned to leave the EU why they were there.
Cameron, who resigned after he failed to persuade the country to stay in the EU in the referendum, which he called, said he would leave it to his successor to formally declare Britain’s exit.
His party said it aims to choose a new leader by early September, but those who campaigned for Britain’s leave vote have made clear they hope to negotiate a new deal for the country with Europe before triggering the formal exit.
European leaders have said that is not an option.
“No notification, no negotiation,” Juncker said.
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
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