Romania’s external position continues to improve. Inflation peaked in December 2010, and is now likely to decline. Financial market stress has remained relatively low in recent months. The current account deficit improved from 13½ percent of GDP in 2007 to about 4¼ percent of GDP in...

Owing to the deteriorating economy of Guatemala, authorities requested a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) with access of SDR 630.6 million in April 2009, which aimed at safeguarding macroeconomic and financial stability and anchoring investor confidence. Executive Directors have agreed that the SBA is...

Low-income countries continue to face significant challenges in meeting their vast development needs while maintaining a sustainable debt position, even after many of these countries have benefited from substantial debt relief. These challenges are further exacerbated by changes in the financial...

Fiscal problems have long been considered a central feature of financial--that is, currency, debt, and banking--crises. This paper addresses four questions: What are the fiscal causes of crises? Which fiscal vulnerability indicators help to predict crises? Can fiscal variables explain the...

Discussions on the Second Review Under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Ffacility (PRGF) arrangement took place in Dushanbe. The IMF-supported program concentrates on enhancing macroeconomic stability and implementing structural reform in the key areas of banking, energy, and agriculture. The...

This 2004 Article IV Consultation highlights that real GDP growth of Mauritius is expected to rebound to about 4½ percent in 2003/04. This largely reflects the recovery of tourism and sugar production, and continued strong construction and transportation activity. The current account is...

There is an urgent need to re-establish a viable external position through a comprehensive, swift, and sustained policy adjustment. The fiscal adjustment will need to rest on both wide-ranging tax revenue measures and substantial expenditure restraint, including a freeze of current expenditure....

Trinidad and Tobago has enjoyed positive growth, low inflation, and a steady decline in unemployment, but challenges remain. Executive Directors commended the prudent management, and stressed the need for a macroeconomic framework underpinned by a three-year rolling budget and pension reform....

This paper discusses key findings of the Fourth Review Under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) for Bangladesh. Several quantitative and structural performance criteria have been missed for the fourth PRGF review. The nonobservance of these performance criteria largely reflects...