This paper discusses the rising profile of natural gas in global energy, factors constraining its further development, the gas contracting process, and the absence of a global market, which is analyzed in the context of the economic rent in the gas price and the opaque nature of gas contracts. A...

The global financial crisis has tested the effectiveness of supervision under the “Twin Peaks†model. The crisis revealed the strengths of the “Twin International Peaks†model, as decisions were able to be made in a timely manner to contain the crisis, and clear divisions of...

This 2014 Article IV Consultation highlights that the Dutch economy continues to improve, supported by exports, rising housing prices, and improving sentiment. Exports are rising on expanding global trade, but consumption remains sluggish as indebted households continue to save. The external...

KEY ISSUES Context: The union’s current account deficit–the key economic vulnerability flagged in the previous (2011) consultation–has declined over the past few years, including thanks to fiscal adjustment in Curaçao. But it remains large. Curaçao’s growth and job creation remain...

Economic outcomes in Jamaica have fallen short of the authorities’ objectives in recent years. As the government looks to reinvigorate its growth and debt reduction strategy, it is instructive to examine how exogenous shocks and other unanticipated developments can affect economic...

This paper investigates whether Indonesia’s recent currency crisis was due to domestic fundamentals, common external shocks (“monsoons”), or contagion from neighboring countries. Markov-switching models attribute speculative pressure on Indonesia’s currency to domestic political and...

We revisit the dramatic failure of monetary models in explaining exchange rate movements. Using the information content from 98 countries, we find strong evidence for cointegration between nominal exchange rates and monetary fundamentals. We also find fundamentalsbased models very successful in...