The global crisis left Albania fairly unscathed and ushered in the needed economic rebalancing. The policy framework has been challenged in the post-crisis environment significant headwinds. Despite improvement, external imbalances remain elevated. Fiscal consolidation in terms of a more...

Portugal's economy faced severe crisis during the global economic and financial crisis. In this context, Portugal's authorities have put forward an economically well-balanced program that will focus on structural reforms to boost growth and employment, ensure balanced fiscal sustainability,...

Latvia’s economy continues to recover, but the worsening global outlook is likely to hurt growth. Implementation of the program has made the economy more robust to shocks, but risks remain that could derail the recovery and the goal of euro adoption. Spillovers from the euro area crisis...

Fiscal problems have long been considered a central feature of financial--that is, currency, debt, and banking--crises. This paper addresses four questions: What are the fiscal causes of crises? Which fiscal vulnerability indicators help to predict crises? Can fiscal variables explain the...

This 2004 Article IV Consultation highlights that Barbados’s economy has recovered partially from the 2001–02 recession, as real GDP grew by an estimated 2 percent in 2003, led by a recovery in the tourism sector. Inflation remained low at 1.5 percent, reflecting the currency peg....