This study, another in the series focusing on special issues in transition, reviews the experience of output decline and recovery in the 25 countries of eastern and central Europe and the Baltics, Russia, and other countries of the former Soviet Union. Although these countries began the process...

Several transition countries have experienced strong real exchange rate appreciations. This paper tests the hypothesis that these appreciations reflect underlying productivity gains in the tradable sector. Using panel data over the period 1993-98, the results show clear evidence of...

This paper is an analysis of Japan’s credit channel. The economic condition has no hindrance, but credit demand showed an inert performance. The state’s policies have helped the flow of finance and prevent bankruptcy, but several other aspects act as an impediment to credit control. The...

This paper examines the generation of financial crises in developing economies and shows that the microeconomic structure of the financial sector is a crucial factor in creating the conditions for a crisis. Structural problems of the financial system in developing countries, including implicit...

This paper examines the impact of the opening up of Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union on Western Europe. The analysis suggests that given reasonable (yet necessarily imprecise) assumptions on the likely developments in the previously centrally planned economies (PCPEs) over the next ten...

The paper discusses the interrelationships between payments system reform and monetary policy implementation in selected countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The reforms in the payments system are viewed as closely interrelated with the development of money and foreign exchange markets and...

This paper analyzes the importance of developing market-enhancing institutions for restoring economic growth in transition economies during 1991–98. The paper’s main finding is that the development of an institutional framework has indeed a significant positive impact on growth, but that...