International Monetary Fund (IMF)
External debt is Greece’s perennial Achilles heel, economists warn
Cycles of external debt and dependence are ‘perennial themes’ for Greek crises since 1829, and other countries may be similarly vulnerable, Carmen Reinhart and Christoph Trebesch argue
US softens discourse on renminbi ahead of SDR review
Treasury drops 'significantly undervalued' reference in flagship report to Congress on foreign exchange rate policies ahead of IMF review next month
Blanchard and others look to reconcile theory of capital flows with practice
Revamp of Mundell-Fleming model helps explain apparently contradictory results, with important implications for policy-makers looking to respond to capital flows
Developing country central banks cannot rush into full independence, Botswana governor says
Botswana’s central bank governor tells an IMF seminar developing country central banks need to move carefully towards independence on price stability
Central bankers challenge Caruana on leaning against wind
IMF panel displays broad range of views on interest rates as a financial stability tool – but none of the central bankers are willing to go as far as the BIS general manager
Central bankers from small Caribbean states to get IMF training under new deal
IMF to provide training at Washington headquarters to officials from smaller Caribbean states after Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago offers financial support
Rajan weighs inclusion challenges as IMF identifies financial stability risks
Reserve Bank of India governor discusses the driving factors behind inclusion and challenges posed to supervisors in IMF panel, following staff note on macroeconomic impacts
Failed normalisation could hold back growth, IMF warns
Flagship report presents different scenarios based on whether the normalisation of monetary and financial conditions progresses smoothly or not; process could stall if risks crystallise
IMF sees divergent risks in new outlook
IMF revises growth outlook for this year and next, while noting transformation in risks; Maurice Obstfeld discussed emerging market policy in anticipation of Fed hike
Economists push IMF reforms back into spotlight
Indian economists make case for ‘more radical’ review of resource and representation in the future; Nordic and Baltic countries press for ‘interim steps’ towards delayed 2010 reforms
Value of capital controls still up for debate
Research published by BIS and IMF points to potential benefits from capital flow measures and macro-prudential tools, but other economists question the results
IMF working paper explores spillovers between United States and eurozone
Spillovers from the eurozone to the US have been ‘considerable’ since 2014, reflecting policy easing in Europe, IMF paper notes
Lagarde calls for ‘policy upgrade’ across the globe
Managing director of the IMF tells advanced economies to ‘fully incorporate’ spillovers in decision-making, and eurozone to tackle problem with non-performing loans
IMF reveals Cofer submitters but scraps advanced-emerging breakdown
Fund reveals 96 economies submitting their reserves breakdown to the Cofer database, in the name of transparency – but axes breakdown of advanced/emerging economies for fear of revealing too much
Credit growth has had significant impact on EM growth, IMF paper says
IMF paper explores relationship between the level and composition of credit growth and real GDP growth across 31 emerging market economies
Central banks should prepare to deal with sharp drops in liquidity, IMF says
Policy-makers need to take action to halt rising risks relating to liquidity, IMF says; central banks may be able to use collateral policies to deal with crises
Global factors harming domestic policy transmission in Asia, IMF research finds
Authors find global factors help to explain why bank funding in Asian economies has such a limited role in transmitting monetary policy
‘Little support’ from data for theories of disconnect between trade and exchange rates, IMF report says
Data largely supports conventional economic wisdom linking movements in trade flows with levels of exchange rates, according to WEO chapter; Japan may be an exception
IMF staff calls for ‘comprehensive strategy’ on non-performing loans
IMF staff call for creation of asset management companies to free up European banks from distressed debt; cites Spain as good example
IMF paper offers recipe for ‘de-dollarisation’
High levels of dollarisation in central Asia are contributing to macroeconomic instability, paper says; authors offer various options that could help reduce reliance on dollars
Micro-data matters for unemployment, says BoE’s Broadbent
Deputy governor becomes latest economist to stress importance of micro data for macro policy, warning overreliance on ‘simple aggregates’ may lead central bankers astray
BoE’s Shafik sees scope for reducing sovereign spillovers
Policies are available that could help reduce the risk of ‘disorderly spillovers’ between sovereigns, with lessons to be learned from the lender-of-last-resort function, deputy governor says
Limited case for leaning against the wind, says IMF report
Staff conclude the short-term costs of using higher interest rates to address financial risks exceed the longer-term benefits in most cases, but stress door should ‘remain open’
IMF staff call for greater delegation of macro-prudential powers in Norway
Technical note finds institutional structure has worked to good effect in many ways, but identifies issues around co-ordination across ministry, central bank and FSA