Effective Fund surveillance over the members of currency unions entails discussions at the regional level. This requirement derives from the fact that currency union members have devolved responsibility for policy areas that are central to Fund surveillance, notably monetary and exchange rate...

In this paper we analyze the degree of policy convergence of EMS member countries relative to that of some non-EMS countries. Interestingly, we find convergence for the nominal and real exchange rates and money supplies of the EMS members but not for the non-EMS countries. We also provide some...

The global financial safety net (GFSN) has become larger and more decentralized, creating a need for greater coordination. The expanded GFSN has created multiple sources of official financing for countries in need of support to address balance of payments shocks. Enhanced coordination among...

The Fund has made good progress over the past two years in integrating macrofinancial analysis into Article IV surveillance for a wide range of members. Building on past work to enhance financial sector analysis, Fund staff has sought to develop a consistent and forward-looking view on how the...

This paper discusses various developments and perspectives of the European Monetary System (EMS). There have been three phases in the development of the EMS: from its beginning in March 1979 to March 1983, can be seen as a phase of trial and orientation; from March 1983 to 1987, can be described...

This paper provides an overview of the likely impact of the creation of the European Community (EC) internal market on the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members. The focus is on the four freedoms and the institutional and legal changes required for increased economic cooperation between...

This paper extends recent work by Feldstein and Horioka (1980) and Bayoumi (1990), and examines saving-investment correlations for industrial countries in the post-war period. The focus of the enquiry is on differences observed between EMS and non-EMS countries. It is seen that the EMS countries...

This study shows that the aggregate demand for M1 in the group of countries participating in the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM) of the European Monetary System can be expressed as a stable function of ERM-wide income, inflation, interest rates, and the exchange rate of the European Currency Unit...

Financial integration is likely to entail EEC-wide convergence in both inflation rates and bank reserve requirements, thereby lowering some governments’ seignorage revenues. These revenue losses, however, may be offset by concomitant effects on exchange rate expectations and on interest rates...