The scramble to expand deposit guarantees in Europe in response to recent financial turmoil confirms that the on-going integration of European financial markets requires closer coordination of prudential policies and financial safety nets. We study the optimal design of prudential supervision...

This paper examines the objectives and instruments of trade policy in the European Community (EC) from 1987 until mid-1992. It reviews the Community’s institutional setting and policy environment as background to recent trends in EC trade policies and trading arrangements. A discussion of key...

This paper analyzes export performance in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) using a gravity model applied to panel data. It addresses two questions: (i) are there significant unexploited export markets for the MENA region?; and (ii) have integration efforts with the EU since the mid-1990s...

Over the past 20 years, the Chinese authorities have undertaken wide-ranging reforms of their exchange and trade systems that have steadily reduced the role of planning and increased the importance of market forces. As these reforms have taken root, relative prices and domestic and foreign...

The North Atlantic financial crisis of 2008-2009 has spurred renewed interest in reforming the international monetary system, which has been malfunctioning in many aspects. Large and volatile capital flows have promoted greater volatility in financial markets, leading to recurrent financial...

IMF advice on fiscal policy is given within a strong accounting framework. Published sources in the last ten years show the direction and change of advice. The treatment of central bank losses, government arrears, and credit subsidies are discussed as examples. Advice on taxation, expenditure,...