Policy Papers
2016
March 4, 2016
Financial Integration in Latin America
Description: Many Latin American economies have experienced significant reductions in growth recently, as a result of the end of the commodity super-cycle and the rebalancing of China’s growth, and a number of global banks have been leaving the region. AlthoughLatin American countries were generally less affected by the global financial crisis (GFC) than other regions, the region continues also to suffer from the protracted sluggish growth in advanced economies. In addition, there has since 2008 been a withdrawal of global banks from the region, thus potentially worsening access to credit or reducing competition in the financial sector. More broadly, the GFC demonstrated that extreme economic volatility can originate from outside the region, rather than internally, as was the experience of the 1980s and 1990s...
February 23, 2016
2016 Handbook of IMF Facilities for Low-Income Countries
Description: This Handbook provides guidance to staff on the financial and non-financial facilities for low-income countries (LICs), defined here as all countries eligible to obtain concessional financing from the Fund. It updates the previous version of the Handbook that was published in February 2015 (IMF, 2015) by incorporating modifications resulting from Board papers and related decisions since that time, including the reform of the Fund policy on Poverty Reduction Strategy in Fund engagement with low-income countries, Financing for Development—Enhancing the Financial Safety net for Developing Countries, Proposal for Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust, the Review of Eligibility to Use the Fund’s Facilities for Concessional Financing, and the 14th General Review of Quotas.1 Designed as a comprehensive reference tool for program work on LICs, the Handbook also refers, in summary form, to a range of relevant policies that apply more generally to IMF members. As with all guidance notes, the relevant IMF Executive Board decisions, including the terms of the various LIC Trust Instruments that have been adopted by the Board, remain the sole legal authority on the matters covered in the Handbook.
February 22, 2016
Extension of the Periods for Payment of Quota Increases Under the Fourteenth General Review of Quotas and the 2008 Reform
Description:
This paper proposes a further 34-day extension of the period for payment of quota increases under the Fourteenth General Review of Quotas (“Fourteenth Review”), and an extension for the payment of the quota increases under the 2008 Reform, through June 30, 2016.
For the Fourteenth Review, under Board of Governors Resolution No. 66-2, each member shall pay to the Fund the increase in its quota within 30 days after the later of (a) the date on which it notifies the Fund of its consent, or (b) the date on which all of the general effectiveness conditions for the quota increases under the Fourteenth Review are met, provided that the Executive Board may extend the payment period as it may determine. The initial 30-day period for payments has been extended three times, most recently through May 27, 2016. Good progress is being made in implementing the quota payments. However, some members have indicated that they require additional time to complete internal procedures for the payment of quota increases. Staff is following up with the authorities in each of these cases to facilitate timely arrangements for payments.
February 22, 2016
Strengthening the International Monetary System—A Stocktaking
Description: In light of the changing contours of the global economy, this paper provides an overview of the challenges facing the International Monetary System (IMS). It seeks to forge a common understanding of the challenges facing the IMS and its shortcomings, and to lay the basis for discussing a possible roadmap for further work on reform areas.
February 22, 2016
Extension of the Periods for Payment of Quota Increases Under the Fourteenth General Review of Quotas and the 2008 Reform
Description: This paper proposes a further 30-day extension of the period for payments of quota increases under the Fourteenth General Review of Quotas (“Fourteenth Review”), and an extension for the payment of the quota increases under the 2008 Reform, through April 27, 2016.
February 22, 2016
Extension of the Period for Payment of Quota Increase Under the Fourteenth General Review of Quotas
Description: This paper proposes a 30-day extension of the initial period for payments to increase quotas under the Fourteenth General Review of Quotas (“Fourteenth Review”) through March 28, 2016. Under Board of Governors Resolution No. 66-2, each member shall pay to the Fund the increase in its quota within 30 days after the later of (a) the date on which it notifies the Fund of its consent, or (b) the date on which all of the general effectiveness conditions for the quota increases under the Fourteenth Review are met, provided that the Executive Board may extend the payment period as it may determine.
February 19, 2016
Separate Identification of the Chinese Renminbi in the COFER Survey
Description: Following the recent Executive Board decisions on the determination of the renminbi (RMB) as a freely usable currency, effective October 1, 2016, and its inclusion in the SDR basket on the same date, STA intends to separately identify the RMB in the survey on Currency Composition of Official Foreign Exchange Reserves (COFER) beginning with the survey for the fourth quarter of 2016. Consistent with staff’s commitment to consult the Executive Board before separately identifying additional currencies in the COFER survey, this paper sets out the key considerations for the envisaged inclusion of the RMB in the COFER survey.
February 11, 2016
Amendment to Steps to Address Excessive Delays in the Completion of Article IV Consultations or Mandatory Financial Stability Assessments and Application to the Case of Argentina
Description:
Management has received a request from the Argentine authorities to publish documents on economic developments in the country prepared by Fund staff for informal Board briefings in 2013–15. The Argentine authorities see publication of these papers as part of their commitment to transparency and accountability in their operations. The documents were prepared pursuant to the Fund’s policy on excessive delays in the completion of Article IV consultations and mandatory financial stability assessments, which requires that staff informally brief Executive Directors every 12 months on the economic developments and policies of relevant members. The objectives of the policy are to promote re-engagement with members with excessively delayed consultations, and to share information with the Board to help it fulfill its surveillance function.
< br />Under current policy, the briefing documents are not published. Instead, a short factual statement is issued in a press release, noting that the Board was given an informal staff briefing on the member’s economy based on available information. Under the policy, the Fund decided against publication of the briefing documents since it was considered that publication could expose the Fund to a significant reputational risk if the analysis set out in the documents missed key vulnerabilities due to large information gaps created by the lack of consultation with the member. Also, outside audiences may not appreciate that the documents represent the views of staff, not the views of the Board, and do not constitute an Article IV consultation. A further concern was that publication could reduce the pressure on members to proceed with an Article IV consultation. In light of the current policy, any publication of these documents would require a change in policy approved by the Executive Board. Read More
February 8, 2016
Methodological Note on EBA-Lite
Description:
The Fund has taken important steps to enhance its external sector assessments since the launch of the External Balance Assessment (EBA) methodology and the External Sector Report (ESR) in 2012, which provides a multilaterally consistent assessment of the largest economies’ external sector positions and policies. With scope for strengthening external sector assessments of non-EBA countries, the 2014 Triennial Surveillance Review (TSR) called for the application of EBA’s conceptual innovations to a broader set of countries. Following the 2014 TSR, the Managing Director’s Action Plan proposed developing EBA-lite to extend the EBA methodology to a broader group of countries where adequate data is available. In the fall of 2014, the launch of the EBA-lite methodology for current account assessments provided the first extension of EBA approach for non-EBA countries. In summer 2015, the real exchange rate index model and the external sustainability approach were added to the EBA-lite framework.
This note serves as a reference for the EBA-lite methodology. It provides: (i) motivations for developing EBA-lite and guidance for its use; (ii) technical explanations of all three EBA-lite approaches; and (iii) suggestions on how to articulate staff assessments of the external sector informed by model results.
January 27, 2016
Evenhandedness of Fund Surveillance - Principles and Mechanism for Addressing Concerns
Description: Evenhandedness of the Fund’s analysis and advice is critical to the effectiveness of its engagement with member countries. In this regard, both actual and perceived lack of evenhandedness can be detrimental to the Fund’s credibility and legitimacy. While perceptions of evenhandedness often reflect views about the full range of Fund activities, Fund surveillance is an important contributor to perceptions. Moreover, the consistency of the Fund’s analysis and advice will likely be scrutinized more closely in an interconnected world.