This paper presents an update of the Grilli-Masciandaro-Tabellini (GMT) index of central bank (CB) autonomy, based on CB legislation as of end-2003. The index is applied to a set of OECD and developing countries, and emerging market economies. For a smaller set of countries, the paper presents a...

The presently tenuous situation in Turkey will worsen if the government does not take appropriate policy action. In view of foreign investors’ loss of confidence, the cost of external financing is likely to rise while consumption and investment will fall, and the Turkish lira would depreciate...

The idea of inflation targeting in emerging countries is not a new one. There have been papers that favor or reject the idea of implementing such a system in these countries for mainly institutional reasons. This paper does not deal with these normative arguments. Emerging countries are...

The rhythm of financial development in south-eastern Europe has accelerated. In a setting of low inflation and robust growth, domestic credit and cross-border flows are expanding. This process can strengthen real convergence by supporting productivity gains that enhance competitiveness and a...

This paper assesses the prospects for monetary integration between Emerging East Asian (EEA) economies. We develop a simple analytical framework for currency unions of small open economies. The empirical analysis looks at a number of supply-side characteristics of EEA countries highlighted by...

This paper explores the link between monetary policies of large industrial countries and international credit cycles. Based on an overinvestment framework, we show that in the prevailing asymmetric world monetary system, monetary policies of large centre countries can fuel credit booms in...

This paper explores the link between monetary policies of large industrial countries and international credit cycles. Based on an overinvestment framework, we show that in the prevailing asymmetric world monetary system, monetary policies of large centre countries can fuel credit booms in...

The Basel Accords, while extremely influential, are oftentimes too detailed and technical to be easily accessible to the nontechnical policymaker or interested scholar. This paper looks to fill that gap by detailing the origin, regulation, implementation, criticism, and results of both Basel I...

Argentina's once strong money and banking system deteriorated in the 1920s and was devastated by the Great Depression. Gold convertibility was suspended in December 1929, even before the crisis seriously damaged the core economies. Commonly, these events are seen as being driven by external real...

In this work we study the impact of FX interventions on Credit growth in Peru. Using Panel data at the firm-bank level from the Peruvian Credit Registry we find that purchases of dollars by the Central Bank are associated with reductions on the stock of credit held by Medium, Big and Corporate...