The papers in this volume address three important issues: the role ofexchange-rate policy in enhancing the competitiveness of African manufactured exports; the steps that can be taken to improve productionefficiency; and the role of institutional and structural reforms in promoting...

The changes to the structure of Japanese exports and imports in the second half of the 1980s departed significantly from past trends. Econometric analysis confirms that some of the structural changes—notably the importance of consumer goods trade—cannot be fully explained using conventional...

The IMF Working Papers series is designed to make IMF staff research available to a wide audience. Almost 300 Working Papers are released each year, covering a wide range of theoretical and analytical topics, including balance of payments, monetary and fiscal issues, global liquidity, and...

Ten years after regaining independence, the Baltic Countries--Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania--are expected to be invited to join the European Union (EU) and NATO in 2004. This paper provides a macroeconomic perspective on the Baltics' remarkable economic success to date and of the fiscal...

This paper on the Baltic countries analyzes medium-term fiscal issues related to European Union (EU) and NATO accession. The paper supports the Baltic authorities’ intention to aim at balancing their budgets over the economic cycle. The paper describes the Baltics’ current fiscal position...

This paper highlights key issues pertinent for the understanding of international effects of domestic tax policies and of international tax harmonization. The analytical framework adopts the saving-investment balance approach to the analysis of international economic interdependence focusing on...

We explore the role of business services in knowledge accumulation and growth and the determinants of knowledge diffusion including the role of distance. A continuous-time model is estimated on several European countries, Japan, and the United States. Policy simulations illustrate the benefits...

The paper considers gains from international economic policy coordination when there is uncertainty concerning the functioning of the world economy, but also learning about the “true” model on the part of policymakers. The paper reports estimates of plausible alternative versions of a...

The Hungarian government implemented significant restraint and reforms in the mid-1990s, but substantial challenges remain in the medium term. Medium-term fiscal framework will assist in evaluating the preferred approach to managing this range of expenditure pressures and structural reform...