The paper develops an interpretation of volatile exchange rate movements in a dollarized economy with very high rates of inflation. Differences between the rate of inflation and currency depreciation (over- or undershooting of the exchange rate) are seen as a proxy for changes in the relative...

With the exception of Burkina Faso and Mali, the growth experience for WAEMU countries has been disappointing, even when compared to other sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. The main objective of the paper is to investigate why the quest for a growth takeoff has been more elusive in the WAEMU...

The GCC countries maintain a policy of open capital accounts and a pegged (or nearly-pegged) exchange rate, thereby reducing their freedom to run an independent monetary policy. This paper shows, however, that the pass-through of policy rates to retail rates is on the low side, reflecting the...

Over the past decade policy makers in Latin America have adopted a number of macroprudential instruments to manage the procyclicality of bank credit dynamics to the private sector and contain systemic risk. Reserve requirements, in particular, have been actively employed. Despite their...

This technical note examines the macroprudential policy framework in the Czech Republic. The Czech National Bank (CNB) has been actively developing its macroprudential policy framework for some time, including most recently the establishment of a separate Financial Stability Department. The...

The Slovak Republic’s 2005 Article IV Consultation reports that sound macroeconomic management and a wide range of fundamental structural reforms are supporting nominal convergence with European Union norms. Real GDP growth accelerated to 6 percent in 2005, driven by an improvement in the...

This 2008 Article IV Consultation highlights that the United Kingdom’s economic growth was above trend in 2006 and 2007. In terms of expenditure, the expansion was largely driven by private consumption, on the heels of strong employment, steady real wage and living standards growth, and a...

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 presents key findings of the Third Review under the Policy Support Instrument (PSI) in Rwanda. Program performance was broadly satisfactory. All end-June quantitative assessment criteria were met. Structural benchmarks were partially met as the pace of implementation of structural...

Despite the negative impact of the severe winter on agriculture, other indicators are pointing to a strong recovery. Exports are growing rapidly, fueled by the rebound in copper prices and a rapid growth in coal exports. Rephasing of purchases by combining the fifth and sixth reviews is...