We examine whether the cross-country incidence and severity of the 2008-2009 global recession is systematically related to pre-crisis macroeconomic and financial factors. We find that the pre-crisis level of development, increases in the ratio of private credit to GDP, current account deficits,...

We document and assess the role of small financial centers in the international financial system using a newly-assembled dataset. We present estimates of the foreign asset and liability positions for a number of the most important small financial centers, and place these into context by...

What determines the composition of external liabilities, both across countries and over time? More specifically, which countries account for the massive increase in equity-like liabilities (foreign direct investment and portfolio equity), especially since the mid 1990s? The empirical analysis...

The relationship between international payments and the real exchange rate¡Xthe "transfer problem"- is one of the classic questions in international economics. In this paper we use cross-country data on real exchange rates and a newly constructed data set on countries' net external positions to...

We examine the link between the net foreign asset position, the trade balance and the real exchange rate. In particular, we decompose the impact of a country's net foreign asset position ('external wealth') on its long-run real exchange rate into two mechanisms: the relation between wealth and...

We construct estimates of external assets and liabilities for over 140 countries over the period 1970-2004. We describe our estimation methods and present some key features of the data, both at the country and at the global level. We focus in particular on trends in net and gross external...

We provide a brief review and analysis of recent trends in international financial integration. In particular, we highlight the asymmetric nature of financial globalization, with the scale of cross-border positions among the advanced economies growing more quickly than for emerging market...

The paper highlights the increased dispersion in net external positions in recent years, particularly among industrial countries. It provides a simple accounting framework that disentangles the factors driving the accumulation of external assets and liabilities (such as trade imbalances,...

We examine the link between the net foreign asset position, the trade balance and the real exchange rate. In particular, we decompose the impact of a country’s net foreign asset position (‘external wealth’) on its long-run real exchange rate into two mechanisms: the relation between...

We examine the link between the net foreign asset position, the trade balance and the real exchange rate. In particular, we decompose the impact of a country's net foreign asset position ('external wealth') on its long-run real exchange rate into two mechanisms: the relation between wealth and...