There was a real fear that a euro-zone bank might fail that we'd have a sovereign debt problem in one of the larger European economies. That's dissipated thanks largely to the action of the European Central Bank.

The 2010 global gender gap report by the World Economic Forum shows that countries with better gender equality have faster-growing more competitive economies.

States have the responsibility to create rules and conditions for growth and development and to channel the benefits to all citizens by providing education and making people able to participate in the economies and in decision-making.

Married couples who work together to build and maintain a business assume broad responsibilities. Not only is their work important to our local and national economies but their success is central to the well-being of their families.

The biggest opportunity in 2013 is in Africa. It has seven out of the ten fastest-growing economies in the world. In Nigeria alone there are 100 million people with mobile phones. In total 300 million Africans - five times the population of Britain - are in the middle class.