Economic activity continues to be robust in 2007, driven by foreign investment in tourism-related construction and services. The central bank (BCSTP) strengthened its efforts to control liquidity growth. Progress on structural reforms has been mixed. The authorities intend to accelerate public...

Over the last decade, the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) macroeconomic performance has deteriorated relative to the rest of the Caribbean. Tourism accounts for three-fifths of exports, and the import content of consumption and investment is high. The ECCB-operated quasi-currency board...

The staff report for the 2006 Article IV Consultation on Botswana highlights economic developments and monetary and exchange rate policy. Botswana’s growth has been fueled by continued increases in diamond production; and real diamond output is projected to level off, and then decline sharply...

Over the past decade, the United States has been very successful atcreating jobs. Some other industrial countries have clearly lagged behind. But what is the reason why some countries are more successful than others at creating employment? Are there common factors that explainjob creation? This...

Systemic bank restructing aims to improve bank performance - that is, restore solvency and profitability, improve the banking system's capacity to provide financial intermediation between savers and borrowers, and restore public confidence. The authors of this studyanalyzed the experiences of 24...

Over the past 25 years, the share of employment accouted for bymanufacturing has fallen dramatically in the world's most advanced economies, a phenomenon widely referred to as ""deindustrialization.""Many see deindustrialization as widening income inequalities and causinga sharp rise in...

Banking crises have led many countries to consider deposit insuranceschemes to protect depositors and the banking system itself from the impact of bank failures. But should society be unconditionally responsible for underwiting banking decisions, even those imprudentlytaken? This paper considers...

This pamphlet focuses exclusively on corrupt public practices. It liststhe potential causes and consequences of public corruption and presentsrecent evidence on the extent to which corruption affects investment,economic growth, and government expenditure choices. The evidence presented here...

Developing countries fortunate enough to experience capital inflows haveseen rising levels of investment and enhanced economic growth. Capitalinflows have a negative side, however, in that they tend to appreciatethe domestic currency, making exports less competitive, and to encourageinflation....