Using domestic and export price data and a framework of markup over cost, pricing behavior of U.S. and Japanese manufacturers is compared. Major export industries in Japan have higher productivity growth and lower pass-through coefficients than American exporters, who tend to price to domestic...

This paper compares the effective rates of taxation faced by a representative investor located in a major capital-exporting country for investments in machinery and buildings in nine capital-importing European countries. Poland and Hungary are found to have relatively high effective tax rates on...

This note provides a set of high-level recommendations that can guide national regulatory and supervisory responses to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic and offers an overview of measures taken across jurisdictions to date. The banking sector plays a critical role in mitigating the...

The Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) is a central instrument for the Fund and Bank to promote financial sector soundness in member countries. The FSAP uses quantitative analysis and qualitative tools to help identify the risks and vulnerabilities of a country's financial system,...

The British Virgin Islands (BVI) has most of the essential elements for a suitable framework for financial supervision. There is a weakness with respect to onsite supervision of banking, insurance, and securities sectors; and there is currently no regular and comprehensive examination and...

This paper focuses on key findings of the detailed assessment of observance of standards and codes in the financial sector of the Cook Islands (CI). The new legal framework in CI represents an important first step in correcting deficiencies, as they are all addressed in the new set of laws. The...