The overall impact of financial globalization on the domestic financial sector is profound. Liberalization of capital flows has effectively made domestic financial repression obsolete. The consequences have not been uniformly favorable. Following liberalization, domestic interest rates in...

Kosovo's economic growth in the past decade has been solid, yet, with a gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of 1,760, the country remains one of the poorest in Europe. The end of the conflict, output was growing at double-digit rates, driven by the donor-funded reconstruction efforts. Since...

This report undertakes a comprehensive assessment of Ukraine's growth experience over the past decade. It shows how vulnerabilities were allowed to accumulate during the economic boom. And how growth, averaging seven percent annually between 2000 and 2008, was achieved without tackling Ukraine's...

International experience suggests that the effect of globalization on economic growth, poverty and income distribution can vary significantly among countries, and that its impact depends crucially on national policies. This report assesses the possible patterns of inequality in China in the...

This Country Economic Memorandum (CEM) - the first since 1995 - is a contribution to the government's economic recovery strategy, and to its Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), being finalized. It examines Kenya's economic performance during the past decade, and identifies the structural...

The last decade in Belarus was marked by an average economic growth rate of close to 8 percent annually and an impressive eight-fold reduction in poverty. Economic growth was initially driven by external factors, but after 2005 expansionary domestic demand became the prevalent contributor to...

The importance of macroeconomic stability for growth, and poverty reduction is now accepted in Brazil. As of 1964, the country followed responsible macroeconomic policies, in the pursuit of stability, reconfirmed by the new Government in January 2003. The report focuses strictly on three key...