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Business and Economics > Budgeting

You are looking at 1 - 10 of 274 items for :

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Cover IMF Working Papers
Is Tax Policy Costly Industrial Policy in Mozambique?
Santos Bila
,
Utkarsh Kumar
, and
Alexis Meyer-Cirkel
This paper analyzes the use of tax policy as industrial policy in Mozambique. Despite significant foregone tax revenue due to industrial policy in the form of tax incentives, the effectiveness of Mozambique's tax policy remains questionable due to insufficient data and unclear public policy strategy. Through an examination of macro data, tax reports, and data from World Bank Enterprise Surveys, the note underscores the need for a thorough reassessment of existing tax measures. It advocates for a more strategic, targeted and evidence-based design of tax incentives that deliver on industrial policy goals.
Keywords:
Tax Policy; Industrial Policy; Mozambique; Tax Incentives; Foreign Direct Investment (FDI); Revenue Mobilization; Market Distortions; Fiscal Expenditure; Domestic Investment; Mozambique's tax policy; tax report; firm Age; firms in Maputo; accelerated depreciation; Tax expenditures; Corporate income tax; Special economic zones; Global; Africa; Sub-Saharan Africa
Cover IMF Working Papers
A Suggested Medium-Term Fiscal Framework for Guyana
Rina Bhattacharya
and
Do Yeon Park
Guyana is growing rapidly, and fiscal policy plays a critical role in ensuring that the country’s wealth is managed effectively and equitably. The paper analyzes crucial elements of a comprehensive fiscal policy framework, anchored on a medium-term fiscal framework, that would help in balancing several, and sometimes competing, fiscal policy objectives common to natural resource rich developing countries.
Keywords:
Fiscal policy framework; Fiscal rules, Non-renewable resources; Natural Resource Funds; resource wealth; fiscal policy path; Guyana's oil; expenditure growth rule; Fiscal sustainability; Natural resources; Oil production; Global
Cover IMF Working Papers
Policy Multipliers in Japan Under QQE
Sam Ouliaris
and
Celine Rochon
This paper tests whether Japan's key macro policy multipliers have declined since 2013, the year that Japan introduced Qualitative and Quantitative Easing. We use the augmented Blanchard-Perotti structural VAR model introduced in Ouliaris and Rochon (2021) to study the dynamic effects of shocks in the central bank’s asset holdings, interest rates, and debt levels relative to GDP on economic activity in Japan. We find that both the expenditure and tax multipliers of Japan have fallen, implying that the effectiveness of fiscal policy in Japan declined following the change in monetary policy. Moreover, we find that the efficacy of quantitative easing is small, implying the need for huge interventions to have a significant effect on real GDP, and that the effectiveness of quantitative easing has declined since 2013. We argue that the reduction in policy multipliers can be attributed to the upward trend in the government debt level relative to GDP which, despite historically low interest rates, has increased Japan’s structural deficit, and the likelihood of reduced expenditures and higher taxes going forward.
Keywords:
fiscal multipliers; structural VAR; policy multiplier; debt multiplier; tax multiplier; effectiveness of quantitative easing; QQE multiplier; Tax expenditures; Real interest rates; Central bank balance sheet
Cover IMF Working Papers
Reinforcement Learning from Experience Feedback: Application to Economic Policy
Tohid Atashbar
Learning from the past is critical for shaping the future, especially when it comes to economic policymaking. Building upon the current methods in the application of Reinforcement Learning (RL) to the large language models (LLMs), this paper introduces Reinforcement Learning from Experience Feedback (RLXF), a procedure that tunes LLMs based on lessons from past experiences. RLXF integrates historical experiences into LLM training in two key ways - by training reward models on historical data, and by using that knowledge to fine-tune the LLMs. As a case study, we applied RLXF to tune an LLM using the IMF's MONA database to generate historically-grounded policy suggestions. The results demonstrate RLXF's potential to equip generative AI with a nuanced perspective informed by previous experiences. Overall, it seems RLXF could enable more informed applications of LLMs for economic policy, but this approach is not without the potential risks and limitations of relying heavily on historical data, as it may perpetuate biases and outdated assumptions.
Keywords:
LLMs; GAI; RLHF; RLAIF; RLXF; experience feedback; RL model; applying RLXF; Reinforcement Learning from AI feedback; Reinforcement Learning method; Artificial intelligence; Economic classification
Cover IMF Working Papers
Cash Flow Analysis of Fiscal Regimes for Extractive Industries
Thomas Benninger
,
Dan Devlin
,
Eduardo Camero Godinez
, and
Nate Vernon
Mining and petroleum projects share characteristics distinguishing them from other sectors of the economy, which has led to the use of dedicated fiscal regimes for these projects. The IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department uses fiscal modeling to evaluate extractive industry fiscal regimes for its member countries, and trains country officials on key modeling concepts. This paper outlines important preconditions needed for effective fiscal modeling, key evaluation metrics, and emphasizes the importance of transparent modeling practices. It then examines the modeling of commonly-used fiscal instruments and highligts where their economic impact differs, and how fiscal models can inform fiscal regime design.
Keywords:
Natural resource taxation; extractive industries; progressivity; economic rents; fiscal modeling; investment analysis; mining; petroleum.; D. resource rent tax; cash flow; petroleum project; regime design; Corporate income tax; Production sharing; Fiscal Analysis of Resource Industries (FARI); Oil; Carbon tax; Global
Cover IMF Working Papers
Inclusive GovTech: Enhancing Efficiency and Equity Through Public Service Digitalization
Manabu Nose
How could the GovTech improve budget processes and execution efficiency? Could the GovTech strengthen redistributive function of public expenditure? Based on an event-study method, this paper finds that the introduction of digital budget payments and e-procurement could significantly enhance budget transparency and help expand the coverage of social assistance to reach the most vulnerable population. Exploiting staggered adoption of digital budget payments, a synthetic control regression identifies meaningful increase in pre-tax income shares among the bottom 50th percentile and female workers, especially for emerging market and developing countries, with effects materializing gradually over 10-year period. The paper delves into the potential mechanism driving these equity benefits, highlighting the reduction in business informality as a primary channel. However, the paper emphasizes that the mere adoption of GovTech strategies or digital technologies is insufficient to unlock its full potential. The outcomes are intricately linked to supporting policies, regulations, organizational and system integration, and robust digital connectivity. The paper underscores that inter-agency coordination facilitated by a dedicated GovTech institution emerges as a critical factor for reaping both efficiency and equity gains from GovTech initiatives.
Keywords:
GovTech; Inclusion; Staggered technology adoption; Synthetic control; Expenditure efficiency; Coordination in organizations; budget transparency; GovTech adoption; GovTech maturity; budget payment; inclusive GovTech; Digital financial services; Digitalization; Income; Budget planning and preparation; Asia and Pacific; Sub-Saharan Africa; Middle East and Central Asia; Western Hemisphere
Cover IMF Working Papers
Unorthodox Expenditure Procedures in CEMAC and WAEMU Countries
Mr. Bruno Imbert
,
Hoda Selim
,
Ms. Gwenaelle Suc
, and
Qing Zhao
This paper takes stock of unorthodox expenditure procedures in CEMAC and WAEMU countries and assesses their potential fiscal impact. “Unorthodox procedures” are defined as spending practices that bypass legal provisions governing public expenditure processes and circumvent regular controls or other budgetary rules, including those related to budget time limits, approved ceilings, or approved appropriations. The paper shows that despite PFM reforms, recourse to such procedures has persisted—resulting in the accumulation of arrears; inadequate fiscal reporting, including large stock-flow adjustments; and corruption vulnerabilities.
Keywords:
Budget institutions; budget execution; expenditure controls; fiscal reporting; public financial management; Francophone Africa; procedures in CEMAC; PFM principle; WAEMU country; Multiyear expenditure; control procedure; Budget execution processes; Expenditure control; Budget planning and preparation; Africa; West Africa; post disbursement regularization; cash disbursement; budget authority; expenditure ceiling
Cover IMF Working Papers
Trust What You Hear: Policy Communication, Expectations, and Fiscal Credibility
Mr. Nicolas End
and
Mr. Gee Hee Hong
How do policy communications on future f iscal targets af fect market expectations and beliefs about the future conduct of f iscal policy? In this paper, we develop indicators of f iscal credibility that quantify the degree to which policy announcements anchor expectations, based on the deviation of private expectations f rom official targets, for 41 countries. We find that policy announcements partly re-anchor expectations and that f iscal rules and strong fiscal institutions, as well as a good policy track record, contribute to magnifying this effect, thereby improving fiscal credibility. Conversely, empirical analysis suggests that markets reward credibility with more favorable sovereign financing conditions.
Keywords:
Fiscal credibility; fiscal policy; forecast errors; private expectations; fiscal institutions; fiscal rules; fiscal councils; fiscal surprises; market expectation; credibility indicator; policy track record; government announcement; forecast bias; imprudent government; Fiscal rules; Budget planning and preparation; Fiscal stance; Macro-fiscal analysis; Global
Cover IMF Working Papers
Gender Budgeting in G20 Countries
Virginia Alonso-Albarran
,
Ms. Teresa R Curristine
,
Gemma Preston
,
Alberto Soler
,
Nino Tchelishvili
, and
Sureni Weerathunga
Achieving gender equality remains a significant challenge, that has only deepened with the on-set of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gender budgeting (GB) can help promote gender equality by applying a gender perspective to fiscal policies and the budget process. This paper takes stock of GB practices in G20 countries and benchmarks country performance using a GB index and data gathered from an IMF survey. All G20 countries have enacted gender focused fiscal policies but the public financial management (PFM) tools to operationalize these policies are far less established. We find that notwithstanding heterogeneity across countries, the average G20 level of GB practice is relatively low. More progress has been made establishing GB frameworks and budget preparation tools than with budget execution, monitoring and auditing. Too few countries assess the upfront impact of policies on gender and/or evaluate ex-post the effectiveness of policies and programs. Where GB features are in place, they tend to operate as an ‘add-on’, rather than a strategic and integral part of resource allocation decisions. Progress with GB does not appear to be dependent on the level of country development. Key to future efforts will be harnessing opportunities for integrating GB tools into existing PFM systems and more closely linking GB initiatives with PFM reforms.
Keywords:
G20; Gender Equality; Gender Budgeting; Public Financial Management; GB practice; GB tool; Gender budgeting (Gb; GB index; IMF Gender Budgeting approach; Gender inequality; Gender budgeting; Budget planning and preparation; Women; Africa
Cover IMF Working Papers
Brazil: Tax Expenditure Rationalization Within Broader Tax Reform
Maria Delgado Coelho
The excessive complexity and burden of the Brazilian tax system, riddled by cumulative indirect taxes and heavy payroll contributions, have led to an accumulation of fiscal incentives aimed at reducing its burden on taxpayers and productive activities. Federal and subnational tax expenditures currently stand at over 5 percent of GDP. Rationalizing them can only be comprehensively feasible in the context of a broader sequenced tax reform, and could reduce resource misallocation and income inequality, as well as provide new revenues.
Keywords:
rationalization experience; Labor tax wedge; sequenced tax reform; cost of capital; zero rating; tax relief; single tax; Tax expenditures; Corporate income tax; Tax incentives; Personal income tax; Social security contributions; Global