The paper shows that commercial banks’ ability to lower deposit interest rates (market power) can increase deposit mobilization. Interest expenses saved can subsidize and lower fees on checking and branching services and thus help attract deposits. United States data illustrates the financial...

Workers'' remittances have been playing an increasingly important role in the balance of payments of many countries and can significantly contribute to the strength of their external positions. Assessing the likely stability of remittance flows could be a valuable input to the analysis of their...

The paper finds that costs of implementing stringent securities listing standards may exceed benefits. Depository receipts, a growing source of international equity financing, differ in types by the reporting and disclosure standards issuing firms are required to meet. For lower levels of...

This paper provides a model on how altruism, ""attachment"" to the home country, and portfolio diversification may act as potential motives behind workers'' remittances. It shows that the level of workers'' remittances depends on how great are their degrees of altruism and ""attachment"" to...

Public debt in the Middle East increased during the mid-1990s mainly because of fiscal expansions. It decreased in recent years, thanks to high oil revenue, economic growth, some primary non-oil fiscal adjustment, and debt relief. While countries in the Middle East appear to have adequately...