Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. LOW GLOBAL INTEREST RATES: POSSIBLE EXPLANATIONS -- III. A MODEL OF INTEREST RATE DETERMINATION -- IV. EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE -- A. Data and Methodology -- B. Empirical Results -- C. A New Economy of Interest Rates? -- V. CONCLUSIONS AND POLICY...

Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. HOW IMPORTANT IS PUBLIC SECTOR CREDIT, AND WHERE? -- III. HOW PUBLIC SECTOR CREDIT COULD HARM FINANCIAL DEVELOPMENT -- IV. DOES PUBLIC SECTOR CREDIT AFFECT THE DEPTH OF FINANCIAL DEVELOPMENT? -- V. DOES PUBLIC SECTOR CREDIT AFFECT THE QUALITY OF...

This paper utilizes an open-economy New Keynesian overlapping generations model, the Global Integrated Monetary and Fiscal Model (GIMF), to assess the macroeconomic effects of external shocks and the impact of various monetary and fiscal policy responses. The simulations assess the effect of...

References to policy credibility, particularly with regard to fiscal policy, are ubiquitous in both economic literature and financial markets, even though it is not directly observable. The case of the EU new member states (NMS)-emerging markets joining a supranational entity that is generally...

This paper explores the determinants of long-term government bond yields in the Group of Seven (G-7) economies and analyzes the factors that could explain the conundrum of very low rates in the face of a variety of adverse factors in recent years. In particular, the paper focuses on the...

This paper examines trends in government spending in Latin America from the mid-1990s to 2006. It also examines key policy issues, including the cyclicality of spending, public investment, public employment, and social expenditures. It finds that primary expenditures have trended upward for the...

Projections of age-related public expenditure growth have raised widespread concerns about fiscal sustainability. This paper examines how total expenditure would develop under four policy rules on public expenditure growth. Some simple arithmetic of expenditure, GDP, and population is reviewed...

We examine the effects of public sector borrowing from the domestic banking system on financial development in middle-income countries. While these countries'' external debt has been falling, the share of bank credit absorbed by the public sector has been rising rapidly. We argue that this runs...

References to policy credibility, particularly with regard to fiscal policy, are ubiquitous in both economic literature and financial markets, even though it is not directly observable. The case of the EU new member states (NMS)-emerging markets joining a supranational entity that is generally...

Rising longevity, falling fertility rates, and the retirement of the baby boom generation will substantially raise age-related government spending in most advanced and many emerging market countries. This paper assesses the evolution of fiscal sustainability for each of the G-7 countries using...