This Selected Issues paper reviews indicators for external competitiveness in Hungary. The paper examines recent developments in a range of indicators. These include regional comparisons of wage and unit labor cost developments, and standard indicators based on price and cost-based measures of...

This paper analyzes competitiveness in the Baltics in the run-up to European Union accession. Several factors appear to have driven movements in equilibrium real exchange rates in the Baltics since the start of the transition process. In the earlier years of transition, price liberalization,...

The empirical study shows that the equilibrium real exchange rate in Mauritius has been affected by the terms of trade, as well as by other fundamental determinants. It assesses the challenges posed to Mauritius’s trade performance by the expiration of the preferential trade arrangements....

This Selected Issues Paper on Switzerland focuses on unprecedented currency appreciation and policy response. On September 6, 2011, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) surprised the market by explicitly committing to defending a floor of 1.20 on the exchange rate of EUR/CHF. The introduction of the...

This paper provides three policy lessons to take full advantage of the opportunity afforded by EU funds. The main features of the global integrated monetary and fiscal (GIMF) model and how it was modified to account for income convergence are discussed. The impact of EU funds as exhibited in the...

This 2008 Article IV Consultation highlights that Tunisia’s sound economic policies and pragmatic approach to structural reforms continue to bear fruit, as evidenced by strong growth and improved social indicators. Real GDP growth averaged 5 percent a year while the macroeconomic and...

Iran's 2005 Article IV Consultation highlights Fourth Five-Year Development Plan (FFYDP) and the Twenty-Year Vision. The country's real GDP growth reached 5½ percent a year on average, unemployment declined, and macroeconomic indicators improved significantly, supported by favorable oil...

This Article IV Consultation reports that the economic growth of Mauritania is robust, which reflected prudent economic management, sustained donor support, and the beginning of oil production. Executive Directors observed that the return of constitutional order to Mauritania has established a...

This 2008 Article IV Consultation highlights that Ghana’s growth has remained strong, fuelled by both the private and public sectors. The Ghanaian economy maintained strong growth of about 6½ percent in 2007 and the first months of 2008. The private sector has responded positively to...

The Malawian economy is slowly recovering, thanks to corrective measures such as the floating exchange rate regime and liberated current account transactions. Stringent fiscal discipline, restrained monetary policies, and boosting of international reserves have been suggested as measures for...