In this paper, we study the role of institutional quality in the cyclicality of macroeconomic policies of transition economies. Using annual data over 1996-2013, we find that the quality of institutions play a significant role in their ability to carry out counter-cyclical macroeconomic policy....

Priests of Prosperity explores the unsung revolutionary campaign to transform postcommunist central banks from command-economy cash cows into Western-style monetary guardians. Juliet Johnson conducted more than 160 interviews in seventeen countries with central bankers, international assistance...

PRIESTS of PROSPERITY -- Contents -- Preface -- Notes on Nomenclature -- 1. E Pluribus Unum -- 2. Transplantation -- 3. Choosing Independence -- 4. The Transformation Campaign -- 5. The Politics of European Integration -- 6. The Trials of Post-Soviet Central Bankers -- 7. Paradise Lost --...

The paper considers the issues of severe breakdown of production and the causes of persisting fiscal deficit in the economies in transition from a centrally planned to a market system. Although these events are due to a legacy of the previous system and to macroeconomic stabilization policies,...

This paper analyzes the relationship between fiscal adjustment and real GDP growth in a panel of 26 transition economies during 1992-2001. Unlike most previous studies using cross-country regressions, the paper finds a positive and statistically significant relationship between fiscal adjustment...