Sierra Leone’s economic activity is expanding, and the medium-term outlook is favorable. Real GDP growth picked up to about 5 percent in 2010–11, while the commencement of an iron ore megaproject in 2012 is expected to boost GDP and exports substantially. Fiscal tightening, through...

Gabon showed robust economic growth, low inflation, and large fiscal savings from high oil revenue, underpinned by prudent macroeconomic policies and structural reforms under the Stand-By Arrangement (SBA). Executive Directors suggested that stronger fiscal discipline is essential to keep the...

Burundi’s economy has continued to grow at a slower pace than envisaged owing to the impact of food and fuel shocks on aggregate demand. The macroeconomic outlook remains broadly positive but subject to risks that emanate from the security situation and the external environment. The...

This paper studies the role of an increase in foreign exchange reserves in reducing currency volatility for emerging market countries. The study employs a panel of 28 countries over the period 1986-2002. Several control variables are introduced in the regressions to account for other factors...

Cost-efficiency, scale efficiency, and productivity change are estimated by data envelopment analysis; and cost-efficiency is regressed on explanatory variables. No evidence is found for average productivity responding to deregulation over the period studied. State-owned banks are found to be...

This paper examines the persistence of shocks to the terms of trade, using annual data on 42 Sub-Saharan African countries between 1960-96. We find that the persistence of terms of trade shocks varies widely—for about half the countries such shocks are short-lived, while for one-third of the...

The staff report for Ireland’s fifth review under the Extended Arrangement states that financial sector reforms continued to advance, with the two structural benchmarks for end-2011 observed. In particular, targets for bank deleveraging in 2011 were met, with almost €15 billion of...

The introduction of the euro generated substantial interest in measuring the impact of currency unions (CUs) on trade flows. Rose's (2000) initial estimates suggested a tripling of trade and created a literature in search of "more reasonable" CU effects. A recent meta-analysis of this literature...

Tunisia showed excellent economic performance. Executive Directors commended the strong economic performance and resilience to adverse shocks, subdued inflation, strengthened reserves, and increasing capital inflows, which underscored the benefits of sustained sound macroeconomic policies and...

This paper investigates the short-run effects of the 2007-09 global financial crisis on growth in (mainly non-fuel exporting) low-income countries (LICs). Four conclusions stand out. First, for many individual LICs, 2009 was not extraordinarily calamitous; however, aggregate LIC output declined...