Balance of Payments-consistent unreported flows

The paper develops a Balance of Payments (BOP)-consistent procedure for estimating unreported flows. Using data between 1990 and 2007, total unreported flows of selected Asian countries is estimated at $4.7 trillion, or more than 80% of the countries’ 2007 total gross domestic product. Results reveal that unreported flows increase with reported and accumulated unreported flows. Financial depth and governance of the real sector decrease unreported flows, whereas economic growth and weakness in the governance of reported flows increase unreported flows. Results also reveal that unbalanced financial and real sector development contributes to the unreported flows. Lastly, the paper argues that there is an opportunity to reverse the situation through a judicious application of capital flow and trade flow management techniques and development and improvement in capacity, including governance, to internalize resources and converting them into desired outcomes.