This Selected Issues paper examines the sources of real growth in Guinea. It identifies and quantifies the impact on real GDP growth of both the exogenous shocks and the policy changes that have occurred since 2000. The paper offers, first, some empirical evidence on real GDP growth in Guinea...

In recent years, Colombia has found several innovative ways to improve the efficiency of its public enterprise sector. One option used by Colombia to reform public enterprises has been to enhance their commercial orientation and limit the fiscal risk. If a public enterprise is considered...

This 2007 Article IV Consultation underlies that strong macroeconomic policies have enabled Cambodia to achieve impressive growth and make inroads into poverty. Supported by prudent fiscal and monetary policies that have strengthened the economy’s resilience to shocks, growth has averaged...

This 2007 Article IV Consultation highlights that the economy of Barbados has been growing at a solid pace, and the outlook for 2007 is generally favorable. Robust output growth of about 4 percent is expected to continue in 2007, supported by tourism and construction. Inflation, which was pushed...

This Selected Issues paper examines implications of capital account liberalization in Iceland. Capital controls were critical in 2008 to avoid a more severe collapse of the Icelandic economy. Six years later, capital inflows have been liberalized, but most outflows remain restricted. Iceland has...

The empirical study shows that the equilibrium real exchange rate in Mauritius has been affected by the terms of trade, as well as by other fundamental determinants. It assesses the challenges posed to Mauritius’s trade performance by the expiration of the preferential trade arrangements....

In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.

This Selected Issues Paper on Switzerland focuses on unprecedented currency appreciation and policy response. On September 6, 2011, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) surprised the market by explicitly committing to defending a floor of 1.20 on the exchange rate of EUR/CHF. The introduction of the...

The staff report for the 2007 Article IV Consultation on Sri Lanka highlights economic growth development and performance. Rising inflation, a high current account deficit, and low unemployment rate indicate that the economy may be operating at full capacity. High stock of public debt, rising...

This paper provides three policy lessons to take full advantage of the opportunity afforded by EU funds. The main features of the global integrated monetary and fiscal (GIMF) model and how it was modified to account for income convergence are discussed. The impact of EU funds as exhibited in the...