Download or read book Challenges to Fiscal Adjustment in Latin America The Cases of Argentina Brazil Chile and Mexico written by OECD and published by OECD Publishing. This book was released on 2006-02-06 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume discusses progress made to date in Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico in putting their finances in order, and points out the challenges ahead.
Download or read book Challenges to Fiscal Adjustment in Latin America written by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and published by OECD. This book was released on 2006-02-23 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite considerable progress made by Latin America’s biggest economies in putting their finances in order, numerous challenges remain. Public spending needs to incorporate more flexibility, ageing populations and social demands threaten future pressures on expenditure, and social and infrastructure spending need to be more cost-effective. At the same time, tax bases need to broaden to reduce reliance on distortionary taxes on financial transactions and enterprise turnover, and overall tax administration must be improved. Finally and foremost, the fiscal authorities need to keep public debt at sustainable levels, paving the way for faster, more resilient growth. This volume discusses progress made to date in Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico, and points out the road ahead. It provides an overview of trends and highlights the diversity of fiscal adjustment processes in Latin American countries. It also describes the financial market perspective and role of sovereign debt ratings. The chapter on Argentina debunks the view that fiscal management in the 1990s was irresponsible, arguing instead that the financial crisis was caused by a confluence of costly pension reforms, Brady debt restructuring and the recognition of fiscal “skeletons” in the closet. The chapter on Brazil makes a case for a more entrenched culture of fiscal austerity to make the current achievements sustainable. The Chile chapter describes the role of political cohesiveness following the return of democracy in driving the economy to fiscal rectitude. Finally, the chapter on Mexico discusses different scenarios for debt dynamics and the country’s efforts to contain expenditure pressures.
Download or read book Fiscal Policy Challenges for Latin America During the Next Stages of the Pandemic The Need for a Fiscal Pact written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2021-03-18 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fiscal policy response to the COVID-19 shock in most LAC countries was much larger than during the GFC, suggesting fiscal space was not as tight as expected. We argue that it is feasible and desirable, though not without risks, to embark in a more gradual consolidation path than currently envisaged by several countries in the region. Avoiding an early withdrawal of support in 2021 and 2022 is important given that countries are still facing high rates of contagion and deaths, vaccination will take place very slowly, the economic recovery is partial, uncertain and not strong enough to help those most affected by the twin public health and economic crisis. At the center of this discussion is our conviction that fiscal space is not set in stone and it is endogenous to the medium-term targets and commitments undertaken by governments and congresses throughout the region. Also, revisions to fiscal responsibility frameworks should help anchor fiscal sustainability, as well as improve their effectiveness and flexibility. In this context, low-for-long interest rates and easy market access is generating a situation that, in spite of higher debt levels, interest cost on public debt will remain contained in the foreseeable future. Especially if, as argued in this paper, a more gradual fiscal consolidation path is accompanied with stronger commitments and institutional frameworks that ensure debt is put on a credible downward trajectory once the pandemic is under control. Catalyzing these changes, as well as initiating the debate to design other fiscal reforms to strengthen social protection and increase the progressivity of public finances, would require a broad social consensus and political cohesion around several crucial dimensions of public finances: a fiscal pact. On the other hand, if this agenda is neglected the continuation of low growth, social discontent, and political polarization could drive Latin America towards a very dangerous path of institutional and economic decay.
Download or read book A New Action based Dataset of Fiscal Consolidation in Latin America and the Caribbean written by Mr.Antonio David and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2018-04-26 with total page 67 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper presents a new database of fiscal consolidations for 14 Latin American and Caribbean economies during 1989-2016. We focus on discretionary changes in taxes and government spending primarily motivated by a desire to reduce the budget deficit and long-term fiscal health and not by a response to prospective economic conditions. To identify the motivation and budgetary impact of the fiscal policy changes, we examine contemporaneous policy documents, including Budgets, central bank reports, and IMF and OECD reports. The resulting series can be used to estimate the macroeconomic effects of fiscal consolidation for these economies
Download or read book The Aftermath of the Crisis written by Ernesto Talvi and published by Inter-American Development Bank. This book was released on 2010-03-22 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the aftermath of the direst global crisis in recent times, Latin America and the Caribbean have shown remarkable resilience. The aim of this report is threefold: first, to understand the sources of this resilience, identifying the role played by unprecedented international financial support on the one hand, and the strength of domestic macroeconomic fundamentals on the other; second, to highlight the policy lessons that emerge from this analysis both for the region and the international financial community; and finally, to identify critical macroeconomic policy challenges for the region.
Download or read book Latin American Adjustment written by John Williamson and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume examines the record of Latin American adjustment efforts and assesses the challenges that lie ahead. It examines the Washington consensus on how ten major policy instruments - including fiscal deficits, tax reform, exchange rates, and deregulation - should be used to address Latin America's current problems. Ten country studies and accompanying commentaries assess public attitudes in each country toward these reforms, the progress made since 1982 in implementing them, and the impact of policy changes on economic performance.
Download or read book The Role of Fiscal Policy in Sustainable Stabilization written by Mr.Gerd Schwartz and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1997-08-01 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper reviews the role of fiscal policy in a number of stabilization programs in Latin America since the early 1980s. The paper highlights the importance of sustainable fiscal adjustment in stabilization efforts, and discusses the main issues that arise in this context. By reviewing the Latin American experience, it is argued that responsibility for failed stabilization attempts can be traced to four main factors: inconsistent policy mixes; excessive reliance on temporary factors of improvement in the fiscal accounts; failure to implement fundamental fiscal reforms; and lack of complementary structural reforms.
Download or read book Managing Financial Crises written by Mr.Charles Collyns and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2003-04-10 with total page 131 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper seeks to draw lessons from the IMF’s experience in handling financial crises around the globe over the past ten years that are relevant to the challenges faced by countries in Latin America, especially in the wake of the recent crisis in Argentina. Experience suggests that there is no quick or easy fix in the face of a wide-ranging crisis involving both acute external financing pressures and rapidly changing asset prices that undermine financial stability and household and corporate balance sheets. In the end, effective solutions depend on developing a comprehensive strategy combining the full range of fiscal, monetary, financial system, and debt policy instruments. Recent experience with crises has had important implications for the IMF’s work in assessing crisis vulnerabilities. IMF surveillance work has been strengthened and a more objective framework has been developed for assessing debt sustainability, and this approach continues to be refined.
Download or read book Latin America written by Ms.Dora M. Iakova and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 2014-12-23 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the past fifteen years countries in Latin America made tremendous progress in strengthening their economies and improving living standards. Although output fell temporarily during the global financial crisis, most economies staged a rapid recovery. However, economic activity across the region has been cooling off and the region is facing a more challenging period ahead. This book argues that Latin America can rise to the challenge, and policymakers in the region are already implementing reforms in education, energy, and other sectors. More is needed, and more is possible, in Latin America’s quest to continue to improve living standards.
Download or read book Latin American Debt and Adjustment written by Philip Brock and published by Praeger. This book was released on 1989-04-04 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fourteen papers presented in this volume are thought-provoking studies of the economic adjustment of Latin America to the difficult external environment of the 1980s. The debt problems of Latin America form the background for the analyses undertaken in this book. The articles go beyond description of the debt problems to offer insights on the more fundamental long-range problems facing policymakers in the region. Positive analyses into the nature of the adjustment process and insights into future institutional changes that could improve the functioning of the Latin American economies highlight the book.
Download or read book The Fiscal Institutions of Tomorrow written by Mario Sanginés and published by Inter-American Development Bank. This book was released on 2013-10-07 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Fiscal Institutions of Tomorrow, the first publication in the series Institutions for People, addresses issues of public management that are key to economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean. It presents the challenges that the countries in the region face to strengthen fiscal institutions with a view to the future and with policy recommendations. This publication serves as reference material for policymakers and economic analysts interested in studying the evolution of fiscal institutions in the region and identifying areas to improve governance.
Download or read book Latin American Debt and the Adjustment Crisis written by Rosemary Thorp and published by Springer. This book was released on 1987-06-01 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Public financial management in Latin America written by Mario Pessoa and published by Inter-American Development Bank. This book was released on 2015-08-24 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The efficiency, effectiveness, and transparency of public financial management in Latin America is critical for the supervision of public resources, fiscal stability, and sustainable economic development. In recent years, the countries of Latin America have embraced reforms in public financial management and have made many important advances; however, many challenges remain. This book brings together the knowledge and experiences of IMF and IDB staff and representatives from 16 governments in the region to document these reforms, and examines the experiences and lessons learned. It is a valuable resource for those looking at issues in public financial management.
Download or read book The Latin American Development Debate written by Patricio Meller and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-07-11 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the 1980s Latin America experienced its second worst economic crisis of the century; today the average per capita income is about 10 percent less than a decade ago. Because the crisis affected all Latin American countries regardless of their economic policies, the period has become known as "the lost decade in Latin America." In this book, eminent economists from the region reexamine strategies of development—structuralism versus monetarism, liberalism versus statism, growth versus equity—in light of new theoretical knowledge and recent economic events. The essays offer a complex interpretation of development problems and seek to explain how different schools of thought could be compatible and how old debates must be recast in the light of structural changes in Latin American economies. In addition, contributors critically review the adjustment processes applied in various countries. Together the chapters offer a penetrating analysis of what went wrong in Latin America in the 1980s and a careful assessment of economic measures and policies that might prove viable in promoting stable and growing economies, democratic regimes, and social justice.
Download or read book One Region Two Speeds written by Inter American Development Bank and published by Inter-American Development Bank. This book was released on 2011-03-10 with total page 75 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The aftermath of the global financial crisis has reshaped world growth and demand patterns, leading to a two-speed recovery, with slow growth in industrial countries and fast growth in emerging markets. This new global scenario is defining a constellation of global macroeconomic conditions that has very different implications for subsets of countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The report conveys three key messages: first, in this new global economic environment, key structural characteristics of Latin American and Caribbean countries are defining two quite different regional clusters in terms of opportunities and challenges ahead. Second, substantial changes in trade and capital flow patterns, as well as in the international financial architecture, are already taking place and will impact the regional clusters in different ways. Third, economic policy design will have to accommodate these differences in order to ensure widespread and stable growth.
Download or read book Coping with Austerity written by Nora Claudia Lustig and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2010-12-01 with total page 492 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Concern about the pervasiveness of poverty and income inequality in Latin America goes beyond the issue of social justice. The persistence of mass poverty and inequality pits different social groups against one another and leads to a polarization that makes consistent economic policy formation difficult. National productivity may also suffer in economies with poorly educated workforces lacking adequate health care. Statistics on poverty and inequality in Latin America are rudimentary and often conflicting. Yet it is known that poverty became more widespread in the region during the last decade as it experienced economic decline. About 180 million people, or two out of every five in the area, are now living in poverty—some 50 million more than in 1980. It is also known that income and wealth are far more unequally distributed in Latin America than in most other developing regions. This book provides a much-needed assessment of how poverty, inequality, and social indicators have fared in several Latin American countries over the past decade. Experts from Latin America and the U.S. focus attention on the extent of poverty and inequality and how they have been affected by the debt crisis and adjustment of the 1980s. They explain that issues of poverty and inequality were neglected as governments in Latin America struggled to restore stability and growth to their economies. Social sector spending declined sharply, affecting both the quality and quantity of services provided. The contributors examine how poverty and inequality are—or are not—being addressed in each country. They also explore the viability of alternative approaches to combating poverty and reducing inequality. They explain that virtually no one denies that governments must take a leading role in the provision of health, education, and other social services. Yet there are sharp debates--over the compatibility of social spending with economic adjustment and stabilization; the priority of social expenditures in relation to other governmental spending; the allocation of funds among different social programs; who should, and should not, benefit; and who should pay the costs. They show that the poor and middle sectors had to pay dearly because their governments, the international community, and the families themselves were not prepared to deal with austerity. The book contains eleven chapters by contributors from universities and research institutions in the U.S. and Latin America, as well as from international financial organizations. It is the result of a project cosponsored by Inter-American Dialogue.
Download or read book Rigidities and Fiscal Space in Latin America written by Oscar Centrángolo and published by United Nations Publications. This book was released on 2010 with total page 46 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The paper begins with a conceptual overview and comparative analysis of the cases studied in Latin America. First, there is an analysis and review of the theoretical justifications and arguments used in the political debate which underlies the emergence and persistence of rigidities in countries of the region, following a typology which allows for the classification of the reasons for rigidities. Based on the case studies the potential effects of fiscal rigidities on public budgets and their impact on fiscal-policy management are evaluated. The ultimate goal of this comparative study is to provide a set of recommendations to help guide future improvements in the management of public budgets.
