After recovering rapidly from the Great Recession, the Canadian economy has slowed down in 2012. Growth weakened in the first three quarters of 2012, and recent indicators have suggested that the pace of economic expansion remained subpar in the fourth quarter. The fiscal policy has continued to...

KEY ISSUES Economic Outlook: Strong private consumption and residential investment helped Canada recover quickly from the last recession but left a legacy of elevated household debt and high house valuations. The transition to more balanced economic growth, with stronger contribution from...

An evaluation of observance of good transparency practices relating to banking supervisory and regulatory policy was carried out as part of the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) against the IMF Code of Good Practices on Transparency in Monetary and Financial Policies. It also provides...

This paper discusses key findings of the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) covering the transparency of monetary policy in the Republic of Indonesia. There is a reasonably high degree of transparency in Indonesia’s monetary policy, with much progress having been made over the last...

The report throws light on the process of recovery from the global financial crisis in Iceland. The strong growth performance witnessed in 2011 seems to continue in 2012. The closing output gap and the decline in unemployment have been marked as positive changes. The major external and internal...

The labor market remains weak, disinflation has slowed, but falling wages are improving competitiveness. The weak economic environment is putting pressure on the banking sector. Financial conditions have deteriorated recently because of international financial market tensions. The Bank of Latvia...

This paper discusses a Detailed Assessment of the Observance of the IMF Code of Good Practices on Transparency in Monetary and Financial Policies (MFPT Code)—Banking Supervision for Italy. Banca d’Italia (BI) notes the assessment’s recognition of the very high degree of compliance of the...

This paper discusses a Detailed Assessment of the Observance of the IMF Code of Good Practices on Transparency in Monetary and Financial Policies for Payment Systems Oversight for Italy. The Banca d’Italia’s (BI) oversight of payment systems is characterized by high levels of transparency,...