This Selected Issues paper for Australia highlights the dynamics of the Australian real exchange rate and its impact on Australia’s trade. The main findings are that the Australian real exchange rate is largely driven by world commodity prices and that it adjusts relatively rapidly to large...

Australia’s 2004 Article IV Consultation reports that economic growth has rebounded, underpinned by continued buoyancy of domestic demand, an improvement in the external environment, and a gradual recovery from the drought. The main risk to the outlook relates to overheating in the housing...

This 2002 Article IV Consultation highlights that despite the synchronized slowdown in the rest of the world in 2001, the Australian economy has continued to grow strongly. This performance reflected the absence of major imbalances in the economy, an aggressive easing of monetary policy, fiscal...

This 2005 Article IV Consultation highlights that Australia has implemented wide-ranging structural reforms and strengthened the frameworks for monetary and fiscal policies over the past two decades. As a result, Australia’s economic expansion is now in its 14th year, with growth averaging...

This Selected Issues paper reviews how Australia’s economy has adapted to a flexible Australian Dollar. The paper provides a background on the float and the initial policy challenges. It discusses the main elements of the Future Fund proposal, and estimates how much Australia and other...

Property price inflation has accelerated during the last few years, propelled by low mortgage rates, poor returns from alternative investments, strong employment and immigration, and tax incentives. Strong housing demand has led to a substantial rise in housing prices. Most industrial countries...

Australia's economy has continued to perform remarkably well, despite encountering major adverse shocks. Fiscal policy, with an objective of maintaining a balanced budget, will help support the economy. Maintaining a sound and stable macroeconomic environment is essential. Reforms of the...

Front Cover -- Governmental Financial Resilience: International Perspectives on How Local Governments Face Austerity -- Copyright Page -- Contents -- List of Contributo rs -- Chapter 1 Introduction: Governments and Crises -- Studying crises and austerity in the public sector -- An alternative...