This chapter reviews developments in GDP over the past several decades. The analysis shows that accumulation of labor and capital explains the bulk of overall output growth since 1990, with changes in total factor productivity playing only a minor role. Moreover, while increases in total factor...

Using a sample of 97 countries spanning the period 1980?2008, we estimate that financial crises have a large negative impact on unemployment in the short term, but that this effect rapidly disappears in the medium term in countries with flexible labor market institutions, whereas the impact of...

This paper analyzes the role of the tax and benefit system in spurring the impressive increase in Canadian female labor participation in the last decade. Using annual panel data for 10 large industrial countries over the period 1980-2001, I find that reforms in the Canadian tax and benefit...

This staff report on Saudi Arabia’s 2013 Article IV Consultation discusses economic policies and development. As the largest crude oil exporter, and the only producer with significant spare capacity, Saudi Arabia plays a systemic and stabilizing role in the global oil market. In 2011,...

This paper highlights the Saudi Arabia’s Detailed Assessment of Observance of the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems Core Principles for systemically important payment systems. The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) is working to establish its payment system oversight function...

This paper focuses on Saudi Arabia’s Detailed Assessment of Observance of the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision. The banking sector is fairly concentrated around a few banks. The seven largest banks have a combined share of assets of 85 percent. The three largest...

As undiversified commodity exporters, GCC economies are prone to pro-cyclical systemic risk in the financial system. During periods of high hydrocarbon prices, favorable economic prospects make the financial sector keen to lend, leading to higher domestic credit growth and easier access to...

This paper empirically examines the effects of different types of government expenditures, on economic growth in Saudi Arabia. We use different econometric techniques to estimate the short- and long-run effects of these expenditures on growth and employ annual data over the period 1969-2010. Our...