The paper assesses the advisability of subregional monetary integration in Latin America by looking at EU experience with EMU and by applying the theory of optimum currency areas as well as other criteria proposed by the more recent literature. It also discusses the extent to which EU fiscal...

The study reviews various approaches applied in computing net replacement rates for the unemployed. Until now, there have been relatively new comparative studies on net replacement rates. Most of them are based on simulation calculations for a set of stylised households. The stylised calculation...

This report discusses the cost and benefits of running an international currency. It starts by discussing the effect of the euro's internationalization on financial markets, and presents data on the impact of the single currency on private credit. It considers recent work on the effect of the...

This paper discusses the reasoning behind the exchange rate policies set out in the Maastricht Treaty of the European Union. The question of the appropriate exchange rate policies for new member states of the EU should be seen from the wider perspective of Economic and Monetary Union, and the...

Domestic-currency invoicing and hedging allow internationally active firms to reduce their exposure to exchange rate variations. This paper argues that domestic-currency invoicing and hedging with exchange rate derivatives allow a fairly straightforward management of transaction and translation...

Most OECD countries have experienced a sharp reduction in the volatility of output and inflation over the past three decades. Although this Great Moderation process has stirred considerable interest in economic and policy circles, research on its causes has so far tended to focus on the US...

QUEST was designed to analyse the economies in the Member States of the European Union and their interaction with the rest of the world. The paper presents a new version of the QUEST model which is now considerably modified with respect to its theoretical structure. It first presents a model...

Preparations are underway to revise national accounting to implement actuarial recording of pension liabilities for corporations and government as an employer. This paper extends this to unfunded public pensions with the help of ‘implicit tax' in pension contributions. The clearest...

The Euro will be introduced gradually from 1999 to 2002. On 1 January 1999 the rates of conversion between the Euro and the Participating national currencies will be irrevocable fixed and the Euro will become a currency in its one right. At this date enterprises can begin operating in Euro. On...

The Maastricht Treaty provided the blueprint for achieving Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) as a further stage in the process of political and economic integration of the European Union (EU). In order to qualify to participate in EMU, Member States were required to achieve a high degree of...