This Selected Issues paper and Statistical Appendix evaluates Switzerland’s long-term growth and productivity performance. It analyzes the behavior of Swiss fiscal policy over the business cycle and takes a fresh look at the nature of the tradeoff between inflation and economic activity...

This Selected Issues paper presents background notes on El Salvador’s economic growth, national savings, and implications of the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States (CAFTA). The paper describes possible factors behind sluggish growth in El Salvador in recent...

This 2002 Article IV Consultation for the Kingdom of the Netherlands—Aruba highlights that after growing at more than 4 percent per year in 1996–2000, the Aruba economy experienced two years of retrenchment, with GDP falling an estimated 1.2 percent in 2001 and 3.8 percent in 2002....

This paper reviews economic developments in Turkmenistan during 1994–97. To address the growing economic difficulties, the government announced an economic reform package for 1996, which aimed at achieving a recovery in output, sharply lowering inflation, maintaining a strong reserve...

This 2004 Article IV Consultation highlights that Japan’s economic recovery continued in 2003 and into the first part of 2004. For 2003, GDP growth reached 2½ percent, double the mid-year consensus forecast, and continued at about 6 percent on an annualized basis in the first quarter...

The first progress report of the government of Niger on the implementation of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) covers the period January 2002 to June 2003. The implementation of the PRSP has been broadly satisfactory since January 2002, and the report provides a candid review of...

In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.

The staff report for the 2004 Article IV Consultation on the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste highlights economic developments and policies. Progress has been made in consolidating the new government’s administrative power and fostering a stable political environment, despite some early...

This paper reviews the Progress Report for Guinea’s Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). Several measures were taken at the institutional, technical, and human levels to improve the mobilization of fiscal resources. In the monetary area, the government continued to use indirect...

This study discusses a number of policy options that could help transform Equatorial Guinea’s oil wealth into sustainable improvements in living conditions. The development of Equatorial Guinea’s non-oil sector over the coming years will be essential for long-term economic growth...