This Selected Issues paper assesses The Gambia’s external competitiveness by reviewing developments in several indicators, ranging from exchange rate-based indices to survey-based assessments of the investment climate. The paper reviews the evolution of several multilateral and bilateral...

This 2009 Article IV Consultation highlights that Malaysia has been hit hard by the global downturn. The economy is set to contract for the first time in 10 years. Global turbulence has spilled into the domestic financial markets. Executive Directors have commended the Malaysian authorities for...

This paper on recent developments and regional policy issues in the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) discusses the recent development and trends in economic integration. Trade restrictions and an uneven application of CEMAC rules constrain external and intraregional trade....

Belarus was hard hit by the global economic crisis. An exceptional access Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) was, therefore, agreed in early 2009. The program was generally successful and most program conditions were met. The program was overall well designed, but with some shortcomings. While in part...

This Selected Issues and Statistical Appendix paper assesses Romania’s external competitiveness by reviewing recent developments in a range of standard indicators and estimating equilibrium real exchange rates. The results suggest that, although Romania’s historical cost advantage vis-à-vis...

Performance of the banking sector during the crisis and challenges are discussed. The impact of the political crisis on the banking sector is outlined. The Kyrgyz Republic is one of the most open economies in the world. Gross international reserves (GIR) in the Kyrgyz Republic have increased...

This Selected Issues paper for Australia highlights the dynamics of the Australian real exchange rate and its impact on Australia’s trade. The main findings are that the Australian real exchange rate is largely driven by world commodity prices and that it adjusts relatively rapidly to...

This Selected Issues paper analyzes trends in Tanzania’s external competitiveness and export performance. Using various multilateral and bilateral real exchange rates, the paper looks at developments in Tanzania’s real effective exchange rate since 1990. It evaluates the...

The paper assesses the competitiveness of Swiss exporters, and shows that the effect of nominal exchange rate on trade balance depends on the degree of exchange rate pass-through and on trade elasticities. It highlights that the degree of exchange rate pass-through should also be factored in...

This 2007 Article IV Consultation highlights that Indonesia’s economic performance has been strong since the last Article IV Consultation. Supported by sound policies and a favorable external environment, output has grown strongly, inflation has stabilized, and international reserves have...