China is moving to a ‘new normal,’ characterized by slower yet safer and more sustainable growth. The transition is challenging, but the authorities are committed to it. They have made progress in reining in vulnerabilities built-up since the global financial crisis and embarked on a...

Peru stands out among Latin American countries as an example of successful economic reforms over the past decade. This comprehensive look at Peru's economy traces that country's journey from a debt crisis in the 1980s to having buffers in place that allowed it to emerge unscathed from the global...

Ireland’s major property bubble burst at the same time as the global financial crisis erupted, plunging the country into a severe recession in 2008–10. Public debt climbed rapidly as revenues collapsed and as banks’ rising loan losses increasingly required public support. Following the...

This 2009 Article IV Consultation highlights that following a prolonged expansion, reflecting sound macroeconomic policies and favorable terms of trade, global events have slowed Australia’s economic growth well below trend. The turmoil sparked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September...

Adverse terms-of-trade developments and an unfavorable external environment have contributed to Paraguay's lackluster economic performance. Executive Directors observed the fiscal slippages, weaknesses in national accounts calculations, the statistical coverage of public enterprise operations...

The principal problems facing the Jamaican economy are the extremely heavy burden of public sector debt, low growth, and the legacy of earlier periods of high inflation. The government has implemented several improvements in its debt management strategy. Fiscal restraint has been reinforced by...

Iceland has benefited from the policy reorientation introduced just over a decade ago. The emergence of domestic and external imbalances in recent years, however, is cause for concern. An urgent task is to lower the risk exposure of the financial system. The adoption of an inflation targeting...

The Lesotho economy is experiencing a downturn of economic growth, high unemployment and poverty, and fiscal and balance-of-payments pressures. The size of the proposed fiscal adjustment is adequate because it focuses on improvement in the external current account balance and the maintenance of...

Mauritius experienced a rebound in economic activity, following a severe drought. Executive Directors welcomed the tightening of monetary policy, and noted the reversal of the real currency appreciation. They supported the initiatives to strengthen and modernize the financial sector and the...