Over the last twenty five years, current account imbalances have been both rising over the trend and have become more volatile over the cycle. In boom times, imbalances expanded while in times of a cyclical downturn they shrank. A rising trend has been mainly explained with two developments:...

The recent landings of illegal immigrants on the Italian and Spanish coasts, the immigrant riots in France, and the migratory pressure faced by many countries are an indication that migration will remain high on the agenda of international public policy for some time. In order to generate...