This cross-country paper explains differences in external sector performance among four large euro area countries—France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. The paper discusses that during 2001–04, the performance of the external sector differed markedly among these four largest euro area countries....

Fiscal deficits and the public debt has grown throughout much of the postwar period in most industrialized countries under the pressure of rising public expenditure, a trend that has begun to reverse after 1992. A number of studies argue that fiscal consolidation in association with expenditure...

On July 17, 2017, the Fund, as Trustee of the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT or Trust), entered into a new borrowing agreement (the 'Agreement') with the Bank of Italy (hereafter, Italy or Purchaser), by which Italy will provide new resources to the Extended Credit Facility Loan...

Italy’s 2008 Article IV Consultation describes the country's economic developments and policies. Output has been projected to contract by about 1⁄2 percent in 2008 and 1 percent in 2009, with risks tilted to the downside, linked to a further slowing of global growth and falling consumer...