KEY ISSUES Iceland’s otherwise strong and stable economic position looks likely to be disrupted by significant wage hikes. Collective wage bargaining looks headed for economy-wide cumulative 3½-year nominal wage growth of 20–25 percent, along with fiscal measures costing ½ percent of GDP...

KEY ISSUES Recent economic developments. The economy is slowly emerging from the 2014 recession, benefiting from low oil prices and the euro area recovery, which have helped to contain the short-term effects of fiscal consolidation. However, growth is only expected to return in 2016....

Context. The recovery has strengthened and employment is increasing, driven by the rebound in consumption and investment. Reforms and strong policy implementation have supported the return of confidence, and significant external tailwinds are helping. However, the level of unemployment remains...

The broad-based GDP growth supported by public investment, improved credit and labor market conditions, and robust exports is expected to moderate in the near term. Domestic political uncertainties and the crisis in Greece constitute significant downside risks. Fiscal policy space built up in...

This 2015 Article IV Consultation highlights that Israel's economy has been doing well and near-term growth prospects are favorable. Following growth of 2.6 percent in 2014, the economy is expected to expand by about 2.5 percent in 2015 and 3-3.3 percent each year in the medium term. Employment...

This Selected Issues paper examines labor productivity in Israel. Israel's GDP per capita is low relative to the United States despite high labor input, as labor productivity is low. Catch-up of labor productivity to the United States stopped in the 1980s and relative labor productivity has...

This paper discusses Serbia’s Second Review Under the Stand-by Arrangement (SBA) and Request for Waivers of Applicability of Performance Criteria (PCs). The economy of Serbia is gradually recovering from the 2014 recession, supported by strong export performance coupled with a...