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Business and Economics > Finance: General

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Cover IMF Working Papers
Government Debt and Growth: The Role of R&D
Can Sever
Economic growth in the advanced economies (AEs) has been slowing down since the early 2000s, while government debt ratios have been rising. The recent surge in debt at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has further intensified concerns about these phenomena. This paper aims to offer insight into the high-debt low-growth environment in AEs by exploring a causal link from government debt to future growth, specifically through the impact of debt on R&D activities. Using data from manufacturing industries since the 1980s, it shows that (i) government debt leads to a decline in growth, particularly in R&D-intensive industries; (ii) the differential effect of government debt on these industries is persistent; and (iii) more developed or open financial systems tend to mitigate this negative impact. These findings contribute to our understanding of the relationship between government debt and growth in AEs, given the role of technological progress and innovation in economic growth.
Keywords:
Government debt; fiscal policy; economic growth; R&D; innovation; financial development; economic growth in the advanced economies; R&D activity; impact of debt; debt level; affect tax dynamics; Financial sector development; Manufacturing; Productivity; Aging; Global
Cover IMF Working Papers
The Right Tool for the Job? Mortgage Distress and Personal Insolvency during the European Debt Crisis
Mr. Wolfgang Bergthaler
,
Jose M Garrido
, and
Anjum Rosha
The European debt crisis in the early to mid 2010s brought to the fore the issue of household debt distress: in the countries affected, widespread over-indebdtedness resulted in serious financial and social challenges. The crisis was primarily a mortgage debt crisis, but in several cases, the legal response was based on the introduction of personal insolvency procedures. This paper examines the challenges in designing and implementing legal reforms in this area to promote a better understanding of the main considerations in resolving personal insolvency and distressed mortgage debt in the context of crises. Lessons from the European crisis may prove valuable when dealing with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine on household debt distress.
Keywords:
consumer insolvency; household debt; mortgage debt; consumer debt; household debt distress; mortgage debt crisis; B. mortgage debt distress; mortgage distress; Solvency; Mortgages; Corporate insolvency; Debt sustainability; Debt settlement; Europe
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Cyprus: 2019 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for Cyprus
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
This 2019 Article IV Consultation with Cyprus discusses that following a period of very rapid growth in the aftermath of the economic crisis, growth is gradually settling in at a more sustainable but still relatively robust pace despite the external slowdown. Output is projected to rise by around 3 percent in 2019–20, supported by construction and services sectors. Good progress has been made in addressing domestic and external stability risks arising from legacies of the financial crisis. Sales of nonperforming loans (NPLs), amendments to the foreclosure and insolvency framework and resolution of a large systemic bank have helped strengthen bank balance sheets. Reversal of reforms to the foreclosure framework would hinder ongoing NPL resolution efforts and create risks for financial stability. Realization of contingent liabilities from the still weak banking sector or increased fiscal spending pressures could undermine investor confidence, raising interest costs and depressing growth. Cyprus needs to build on recent gains by advancing reforms to secure macroeconomic stability, enhance efficiency and strengthen productivity and growth potential.
Keywords:
ISCR; CR; Cyprus; growth; Cyprus economy; EFF arrangement; debt; banking sector vulnerability; liability positions vis-à-vis nonresident; Republic of Cyprus' bond; debt vulnerability; Nonperforming loans; Loans; Fiscal stance; Global; Europe
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Cyprus: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
This Selected Issues paper assesses Cyprus’s export competitiveness and understands factors that could explain export developments, particularly in the services sector. Although Cyprus has been able to leverage its strategic location to diversity its markets for goods exports, as a small island economy, opportunities for diversifying its products mix is more limited. Services exports have performed better in the post-crisis period buoyed by the recovery in Europe and the impact of technological advances on global Information and Communication Technologies-enabled trade. Policies to support greater market diversification, enhance competition and efficiency and strengthen technological adoption would help exports growth. Studies have established the relationship between price and cost competitiveness with trade performance. Cyprus has performed reasonably well with strong service exports over the past few years, aided by improvements in cost competitiveness and a recovery in the European export markets. Policymakers should exploit opportunities brought by the digital transformation while addressing the accompanied risks.
Keywords:
ISCR; CR; export; bank; Cyprus; Cypriot bank; challenger bank; banks in Cyprus; IMF staff calculation; services export; Service exports; Exports; Digitalization; Export performance; Fintech; Global; Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
Breaking the Bank? A Probabilistic Assessment of Euro Area Bank Profitability
Mr. Selim A Elekdag
,
Sheheryar Malik
, and
Ms. Srobona Mitra
This paper explores the determinants of profitability across large euro area banks using a novel approach based on conditional profitability distributions. Real GDP growth and the NPL ratio are shown to be the most reliable determinants of bank profitability. However, the estimated conditional distributions reveal that, while higher growth would raise profits on average, a large swath of banks would most likely continue to struggle even amid a strong economic recovery. Therefore, for some banks, a determined reduction in NPLs combined with cost efficiency improvements and customized changes to their business models appears to be the most promising strategy for durably raising profitability.
Keywords:
WP; profitability distribution; bank profitability; NPL ratio; standard deviation; bank ROE probability distributions; banks performance; loan growth; Ulster bank Ireland DAC; alpha bank AE; probability distributions; bank capital; indebted bank borrower; probability distributions for a representative; bank return on assets; Bank soundness; Nonperforming loans; Personal income; Yield curve; Loan loss provisions; Global; Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
The Long Shadow of the Global Financial Crisis: Public Interventions in the Financial Sector
Ms. Deniz O Igan
,
Hala Moussawi
,
Alexander F. Tieman
,
Ms. Aleksandra Zdzienicka
,
Mr. Giovanni Dell'Ariccia
, and
Mr. Paolo Mauro
We track direct public interventions and public holdings in 1,114 financial institutions over the period 2007–17 in 37 countries based on publicly available information. We use aggregate official data to validate this new dataset and estimate the fiscal impact of interventions, including the value of asset holdings remaining in state hands at end-2017. Direct public support to financial institutions amounted to $1.6 trillion ($3.5 trillion including guarantees), with larger amounts allocated to lower capitalized and less profitable banks. As of end-2017, only a few countries had fully divested the initial support they provided during the crisis. Public holdings were divested faster in better capitalized, more profitable, and more liquid banks, and in countries where the economy recovered faster. In countries where the government stake remained high relative to the initial intervention, private investment and credit growth were slower, financial access, depth, efficiency, and competition were worse, and financial stability improved less.
Keywords:
WP; bank characteristic; bank variable; country condition; return on assets; intervened bank; Financial crisis; Government interventions; Bank resolution; asset holding; asset quality; system assets; government intervention; asset purchase; cash flow; Stocks; Financial sector; Loans; Liquidity; State-owned banks; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Republic of Armenia: Detailed Assessment of Observance of the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
This detailed assessment of observance has been conducted against the standard issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision in 2012. The report also highlights that the Central Bank of Armenia has made significant progress in its approach to banking supervision with adoption of the risk-based program (RBS) framework and addressing gaps in the regulatory framework identified in the 2012 Basel Core Principles assessment. Improvements have been made in the regulatory regime regarding requirements for risk management, stress testing, corporate governance, country risk and consolidated supervision. Although the supervisory regime has recently transitioned from a rules-based to an RBS, there is a need for continued refinement of the program for more granular assessments of firms’ capital needs. The process for conducting risk assessments of each firm has identified a need for building a stronger and more structured (system-wide) understanding of the level and magnitude of risk and the risk management capabilities across banking firms.
Keywords:
ISCR; CR; risk management; central bank; risk profile; business plan; bank's Board; internal audit; senior management; credit risk; risk appetite; corporate culture; Market risk; Credit risk; Bank risk management; Stress testing; Bank supervision; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Euro Area Policies: Financial Sector Assessment Program-Technical Note-Systemic Risk Analysis
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
This technical note consists of five chapters focusing on various aspects of systemic risk analysis across the euro area financial system. The chapters cover bank profitability, balance sheet- and market-based interconnected analysis, contingent claims analysis, and a brief discussion of data gaps in the nonbank, non-insurance (NBNI) financial sector. The ongoing economic recovery will support euro area bank profitability in general, but it is unlikely to resolve the structural challenges faced by the least profitable banks despite some recent improvements. This is important because persistently weak bank profitability is a systemic financial stability concern. Empirical analysis of 109 major euro area banks over 2007–2016 reveals that real GDP growth and the NPL ratio are the most reliable determinants of profitability, after accounting for other factors. Although higher growth would raise profits, a large swath of banks with the weakest profitability would most likely continue to struggle even with a robust recovery. Therefore, banks should take advantage of the current upswing by resolutely addressing their NPL stocks—such a strategy holds the most promise for weak banks’ profitability prospects.
Keywords:
ISCR; CR; bank; OFI residual; other financial institution; Pd dynamics bank; bank profitability; soundness indicator; Euro area policy; Bank soundness; Spillovers; Nonperforming loans; Commercial banks; Insurance companies; Global; Europe
Cover A Compass to Prosperity
A Compass to Prosperity
The Next Steps of Euro Area Economic Integration
International Monetary Fund

Abstract

A speech delivered by the IMF's Managing Director Christine Lagarde at the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) as part of the Institute's Europe Lecture Series in Berlin, Germany, on March 26, 2018.

Keywords:
SPE; euro; Euro area policymaker; banking union; Euro area bank; Area member; Area counterpart; area policymaker; monetary policy; Capital markets; Monetary unions; Economic unions; Deposit insurance; Europe; Global
Cover Staff Discussion Notes
Trade-offs in Bank Resolution
Mr. Giovanni Dell'Ariccia
,
Mr. Maria Soledad Martinez Peria
,
Ms. Deniz O Igan
,
Elsie Addo Awadzi
,
Mr. Marc C Dobler
, and
Mr. Damiano Sandri
This SDN revisits the debate on bank resolution regimes, first by presenting a simple model of bank insolvency that transparently describes the trade-off involved between bail-outs, bail-ins, and larger capital buffers. The note then looks for empirical evidence to assess the moral hazard consequences of bail-outs and the systemic spillovers from bail-ins.
Keywords:
SDN; bail in; bail-in power; central bank; public funds; holding company; Bank resolution; Spillovers; Financial regulation; resolution regime; bank stakeholder; recognition clause; bail-in process; bail-in regime; equity capital; bank equity; EU bail-in event; bail-out expectation; Bank resolution framework; Moral hazard; Financial sector stability; Global