Download or read book World Economic and Financial Surveys written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1990-01-01 with total page 76 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper discusses commodity prices might serve as a useful leading indicator of inflation, based on the relative importance of flexible auction markets for the determination of these prices. They thus may have a tendency to respond relatively quickly, especially in response to monetary disturbances. Estimation of alternative commodity-price indexes, in which the weights are chosen so as to minimize the residual variance in aggregate inflation regressions, was not fully successful. The commodity prices do have a useful role to play as an aid in predicting inflation, so long as one is careful to interpret the relationships qualitatively and in the context of more general macroeconomic developments. The ratio of consumer to commodity price movements’ changes over time, and the relative price of commodities undergoes long sustained swings; nonetheless, the qualitative linkages are quite evident in the data. Perhaps most importantly, turning points in commodity-price inflation frequently precede turning points in consumer-price inflation for the large industrial countries as a group.

Download or read book World Economic and Financial Surveys 1993 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1993-01-01 with total page 96 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper examines the implications of the growth and integration of international capital markets for the management of exchange rates, with particular attention to the inferences that can be drawn from the currency turmoil that shook the European Monetary System (EMS) last fall and winter. The resources available to the private sector for taking positions in the forex market are now much larger than even those of the Group of Ten central banks. When private markets, led by the increasing financial muscle of institutional investors, reach the concerted view (rightly or wrongly) that the risk/return outlook for a particular currency has deteriorated significantly, the defending central bank could be faced with a run that could easily amount to, say, $100–200 billion or more within a week. The range of private market participants involved in last fall’s crisis in European currency markets was broad—encompassing banks, securities houses, institutional investors, hedge funds, and corporations. However that wide participation explains in part why the funds that flooded into central banks were so massive.

Download or read book World Economic and Financial Surveys Primary Commoditie 1989 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1989-01-01 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper provides an analysis of the market developments in 1988 with respect to primary commodities and the outlook for these commodities in the near and medium term. Attention is focused on the major nonfuel primary commodities traded in international markets. Movements in the overall price index and in price indices for the major groups of commodities have been mirrored by an inverse movement in stocks of commodities. Beginning-of-year stocks of all nonfuel commodities—measured in terms of months of consumption—increased during the first half of the 1980s and peaked in 1986. Movements in primary commodity prices convey important information in several ways: they signal changes in the major source of export earnings for most developing countries; they indicate changes in a significant component of the cost of producing many manufactured goods; and they may be a helpful leading indicator of changes in inflation in industrial countries. The negotiating groups established for the Uruguay Round met on a number of occasions throughout the year to discuss a wide range of issues.

Download or read book 1989 World Economic and Financial Surveys written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1989-01-01 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper summarizes major measures taken in the international exchange and trade systems in 1988 and developments in exchange arrangements and the evolution of exchange rates. The exchange arrangements adopted by members since 1973 cover a broad spectrum of degrees of flexibility, from single-currency pegs to a freely floating system. Most countries have adopted arrangements that fall clearly into one or another of the major categories of the present classification system adopted by the IMF in 1982, and countries with dual markets usually have one market that is clearly more important than the other, which allows accurate classification by major market. Changes in IMF members' arrangements for their currencies during this decade have shown a distinct tendency to move toward more flexible arrangements and away from single-currency pegs, continuing a trend that began in the mid-1970s. A qualitative sense of the significance of the trend toward more flexible arrangements can be conveyed by the degree that world trade is affected by countries adopting different arrangements.

Download or read book 1994 World Economic Financial Surveys Official Financing for Dev Countries written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1994-01-01 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper focuses mainly on official bilateral and multilateral financing for countries that have rescheduled their debts to official bilateral creditors. In contrast to the approaches taken by private lenders, official creditors have continued to provide new financing on a large scale to countries with debt-servicing difficulties that implement adjustment and reform programs. Financial support bas been provided through a wide variety of instruments and channels. For the low-income rescheduling countries as a group, total financial assistance has been about as large as these countries' own export earnings in every year since 1986. The recent trends in official financing have important ramifications for developing countries. Access to external financing from official sources is likely to remain high for those countries whose adjustment and reform efforts provide assurances that resources will be used efficiently. Conversely, countries with uneven records of policy implementation (particularly as regards payments arrears) are likely to find difficulty in attracting financial support.

Download or read book World Economic and Financial Surveys Primary Commodities 1988 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1988-01-01 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper provides an analysis of recent developments relating to the major nonfuel primary commodities traded in international markets. Particular attention is given to market price movements and the factors underlying these movements. A number of adjustments in the international trading environment in which commodity prices are determined occurred in 1987, and even more significant changes are expected in the years ahead. Some of the adjustments in the past year affected only bilateral trading arrangements, while others, such as certain initiatives undertaken in the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations and those relating to some international commodity agreements were of a multilateral nature. The present round, the eighth in a series of GATT negotiations held since 1947, involves two elements that are of particular relevance to international trade in commodities. Although only small changes were made in 1987 in the various multilateral schemes that exist to compensate countries for export earnings shortfalls, a significant increase in such financing in 1987 had the effect of stabilizing many developing countries’ export earnings, thereby maintaining their capacity to import and buoying world trade.

Download or read book 1993 World Economic and Financial Surveys written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1993-01-01 with total page 82 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper provides information on private market financing for developing countries, covering developments since August 1992. Progress in dealing with bank debt problems has been based in large part on persistence in the pursuit of stabilization and reform programs. Such programs have resulted in strengthened external positions that have allowed debtor countries to accumulate reserves for use in debt-reduction operations. All of the countries where negotiations are now continuing had at some point suspended payments on medium- and long-term debt. Banks have recognized that resumption of regular (albeit partial) payments can be politically difficult in the absence of a quid pro quo. The group of middle-and lower-middle income countries with debt problems still to come to terms with bank creditors on debt-reduction packages is now limited. Many of these remaining countries (including Bulgaria, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, and Poland) have already begun negotiations with creditor banks.

Download or read book 1992 World Economic and Financial Surveys written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1992-01-01 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper describes that in developing countries, the moves toward more flexible exchange rate arrangements and liberalization of exchange controls often occurred in the context of comprehensive macroeconomic adjustment programs supported by the IMF. These programs featured a broad range of policy actions, including an increasing emphasis on structural reforms aimed at improving resource allocation and enhancing the supply response of the economy. With respect to restrictive systems, the trend toward liberalization of nontrade current and capital transactions continues, primarily because it is seen as ineffective, even counterproductive, to try to control such financial flows. This trend contrasts with trade where it appears that some major participants have been awaiting the outcome of the Uruguay Round before further reducing restrictions. A single currency peg has been the exchange arrangement most frequently used by developing countries, of which over one third currently have such an arrangement. This type of peg has the merit of being easy to administer and is generally chosen by countries that have a large share of foreign exchange transactions in the currency chosen as the peg.

Download or read book World Econonomic and Financial Surveys 1988 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1988-01-01 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper examines the World Economic Outlook forecasting record for the principal performance indicators for the major industrial countries and corresponding aggregates and for groups of non-oil developing countries. Several criteria were used in evaluating the forecasts: the computation and evaluation of various summary statistics of forecast accuracy, bias, and efficiency; comparisons with alternative forecasts—naive forecasts and forecasts produced by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and by national forecasting agencies; the examination of turning-point errors and forecast performance in defined episodes; and, finally, some attempt to explain forecast error in terms of unanticipated developments in policy variables and oil prices. In judging the forecast performance of the World Economic Outlook, a number of points must be kept in mind. Most important, it has to be recognized that the period since the inception of the World Economic Outlook as a regular forecasting exercise has been extraordinarily rich in economic upheavals, which have made the odds against accurate forecasting formidable.

Download or read book The Global Findex Database 2017 written by Asli Demirguc-Kunt and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2018-04-19 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 2011 the World Bank—with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation—launched the Global Findex database, the world's most comprehensive data set on how adults save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk. Drawing on survey data collected in collaboration with Gallup, Inc., the Global Findex database covers more than 140 economies around the world. The initial survey round was followed by a second one in 2014 and by a third in 2017. Compiled using nationally representative surveys of more than 150,000 adults age 15 and above in over 140 economies, The Global Findex Database 2017: Measuring Financial Inclusion and the Fintech Revolution includes updated indicators on access to and use of formal and informal financial services. It has additional data on the use of financial technology (or fintech), including the use of mobile phones and the Internet to conduct financial transactions. The data reveal opportunities to expand access to financial services among people who do not have an account—the unbanked—as well as to promote greater use of digital financial services among those who do have an account. The Global Findex database has become a mainstay of global efforts to promote financial inclusion. In addition to being widely cited by scholars and development practitioners, Global Findex data are used to track progress toward the World Bank goal of Universal Financial Access by 2020 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The database, the full text of the report, and the underlying country-level data for all figures—along with the questionnaire, the survey methodology, and other relevant materials—are available at www.worldbank.org/globalfindex.

Download or read book World Econonomic and Financial Surveys 1987 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1987-01-01 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper provides an assessment of trends in the international capital markets, including most notably recent market shocks to the financial system and developments in the debt situation. It also reviews the scope of progress achieved over the last few years in strengthening the financial system. Given the extensive changes that have taken place in domestic and international financial markets, the authorities in all industrial countries have begun to adapt their supervisory and regulatory framework to reflect better the new financial environment. These efforts acquired added importance with the recent financial market shocks. The outlook for lending to developing countries that have experienced payments difficulties has deteriorated during the past year. For most of these countries, the prospect for a resumption of spontaneous general purpose bank lending appears very limited. In gauging the vulnerability of the financial system, it should be borne in mind that adverse economic circumstances affecting sovereign loans could have a simultaneous, negative impact on domestic credit quality. In some countries, bank exposures to energy, agriculture, real estate, shipping, and elements of heavy industry remain problematic.

Download or read book G 24 written by Eduardo Mayobre and published by Lynne Rienner Publishers. This book was released on 1999 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The authors, distinguished scholars from developing countries, all have had direct practical experience in international affairs and policy-making. They provide rare insight regarding the continuing efforts of the developing countries to express, coordinate, and advance their positions and interests."--BOOK JACKET.

Download or read book World Economic Outlook October 1998 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1998-11-12 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The World Economic Outlook, published twice a year in English, French, Spanish, and Arabic, presents IMF staff economists analyses of global economic developments during the near and medium term. Chapters give an overview of the world economy; consider issues affecting industrial countries, developing countries, and economies in transition to market; and address topics of pressing current interest. Annexes, boxes, charts, and an extensive statistical appendix augment the text.

Download or read book World Economic Outlook May 1999 written by International Monetary Fund. Research Dept. and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1999-05-28 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The World Economic Outlook, published twice a year in English, French, Spanish, and Arabic, presents IMF staff economists analyses of global economic developments during the near and medium term. Chapters give an overview of the world economy; consider issues affecting industrial countries, developing countries, and economies in transition to market; and address topics of pressing current interest. Annexes, boxes, charts, and an extensive statistical appendix augment the text.

Download or read book World Economic Outlook October 1990 written by International Monetary Fund. Research Dept. and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1990-01-01 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper highlights that after several years of rapid expansion that brought many countries to historically high levels of resource utilization, the growth of the world economy is projected to slow to about 2 percent in 1990 from 3 percent in 1989. The global slowdown would reflect a moderation of growth in both industrial and developing countries and a contraction of output in Eastern Europe and in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In 1991, the expansion in world output is expected to pick up to 21⁄2 percent, reflecting stronger growth in developing countries.

Download or read book World Economic Outlook October 1999 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1999-10-01 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Supporting Studies for the World Economic Outlook, prepared by IMF staff, provide a more detailed analysis of issues recently covered in the main pubication. The current edition includes studies of globalization and growth, the future of the international financial system, currency crises, business cycles and exchange rates, supply-side issues in the contractions experienced in the Baltics, Russia, and other countries of the former Soviet Union, and challenges to European labor markets posed by European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU).

Download or read book World Economic Outlook Interim Assessment December 1997 written by International Monetary Fund and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1998-01-27 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The economic and financial crisis that erupted in southeast Asia in July 1997 had continued to deepen and broaden as of December, and spillover effects from investor deteriorating confidence in emerging market economies were being felt throughout the global financial system. This special Interim Assessment of the World Economic Outlook revises regional and global economic projections made by the IMF staff, as published in the October 1997 issue, in light of the crisis; charts the buildup to the crisis and its onset and evolution; assesses effects on the advanced economies and on private financing for developing countries; and raises policy issues that the crisis has posed.