In the paper we show that, most of the time, smooth reduction in the debt ratio is optimal for tax-smoothing purposes when fiscal risks are asymmetric, with large debt-augmenting shocks more likely than commensurate debt reducing shocks. Asymmetric risks are a feature of 200 years of data for...

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of this century. Mitigation requires a large-scaletransition to a low-carbon economy. This paper provides an overview of the rapidlygrowing literature on the role of macroeconomic and financial policy tools in enabling thistransition. The...

Tax elasticity and buoyancy estimates are the dynamic tools for measuring the tax performance. The main objectives of the study are to explore the tax system performance of Zimbabwe through the traditional tax ratio trends, dynamic measures tax buoyancy and tax elasticity. The study has applied...

This paper examines the fiscal and monetary policy options available to the People's Republic of China (PRC) as a sovereign currency-issuing nation operating in a dollar standard world. The paper first summarizes a number of issues facing the PRC, including the possibility of slower growth and a...

In mid-April, the Secretariat of the World Trade Organization published an annual analytical review – The Global Trade in 2013 and Forecasts for 2014. After a two-year recession, moderate growth in trade is expected in 2014 and 2015 – on development of the international trade. Also, the...

In 2014, export of goods from Russia decreased for the first time in five years. Reduction of the export in monetary terms is mainly justified by a drop of oil prices, though it is necessary to take into account other system problems which have accumulated in the Russian export sector in the...

This paper discusses an alternative route to a balanced budget, namely through debt control. Two models are compared: the debt brake which has been used in Switzerland since 2003 and the debt limitation model proposed by Compact for America. The paper concludes that the former, while apparently...

Congress has expressed interest, one way or the other, in a balanced-budget requirement for the past six decades. Yet despite numerous attempts, the legislative body has never passed a constitutional balanced-budget amendment. Most of the analysis of why we don't yet have a constitutional...

The specific situation at the current stage of development in the sphere of Russia's foreign trade (including exports) has been shaped by the influences of the following three key factors: low activity on world markets due to the continuing uncertainty in the global economy; stagnation in...

Economic planning is a term used to describe the long term plans of an incumbent government to manage the economy. Planning is defined as conceiving, initiating, regulating and controlling economic activity by the state according to set priorities with a view to achieving well-defined objectives...