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Europe > Switzerland

You are looking at 1 - 10 of 92 items for :

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Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Switzerland: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
This Selected Issue Paper studies the relationship between monetary policy, financial conditions, and real activity during the current monetary policy-tightening episode in Switzerland. After a review of various channels through which monetary policy changes affect financial conditions, the paper shows that the transmission of policy rates to market rates has been swift and that the exchange rate is an important channel. The response of real activity to tightening financial conditions has remained broadly in line with past tightening episodes. The interest rate increase has influenced cash flows for households due to higher mortgage interest expenses. Higher interest rates also lead to higher rental cost for non-homeowners. Policy rate adjustments affect the average interest rates of mortgages and thus the mortgage reference interest rate, which is a factor for rent adjustments by Swiss regulation. Monetary tightening has contributed to a slowdown of private credit and house-price growth. Growth of mortgage loans, which represent 85 percent of bank lending, moderated to 2.4 percent in 2023 from 3.5 percent in 2022.
Keywords:
mortgage price; market valuation; real estate price development; monetary policy transmission; B. Beveridge Curve dynamics; Real estate prices; Mortgages; Labor markets; Inflation; Central bank policy rate; Global; Europe
Cover Policy Papers
Review of Data Provision to the Fund for Surveillance Purposes
International Monetary Fund
Data provision by member countries is a key input into the IMF’s surveillance activities. The 2024 Review of Data Provision to the Fund for Surveillance Purposes took place against the backdrop of profound shifts in the global economy, highlighting the important need for adequate macroeconomic and financial data to inform analysis and policymaking. This Review achieved a substantial, but manageable, update to the overall envelope of data that members are required to provide to the Fund in the areas of public sector, foreign exchange intervention, and macrofinancial indicators. Addressing these data gaps will reduce blind spots and support even-handedness in Fund surveillance. The Review also introduced a more structured and transparent assessment of data adequacy for surveillance. This strengthened framework will facilitate policy dialogue with the authorities on data issues and improve prioritization of capacity development efforts. Finally, the Review confirmed the long-standing practice of not applying the remedial framework when members do not provide certain data categories that the Fund considers outdated.
Keywords:
data; public sector; fiscal policy; foreign exchange intervention; swaps; repos; financial system; banks; non-banks; bilateral surveillance; multilateral surveillance; data provision; IMF data standards initiative; Fund member; data adequacy; adequacy assessment framework; Nonbank financial institutions; Credit; Global
Cover Policy Papers
Resilience and Sustainability Trust―2024 Contribution Agreements with Belgium, Malta, Qatar, and Switzerland
International Monetary Fund. Finance Dept.
and
International Monetary Fund. Legal Dept.
This paper presents Resilience and Sustainability (RST) contribution agreements finalized with four contributors between October 2023 and March 15, 2024. The concluded agreements provide for contributions in a total amount of about SDR 1.2 billion across the three RST accounts – the loan account, deposit account, and reserve account. The new agreements with four members add critical resources that support the continued smooth operations of the RST.
Keywords:
Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST); Contribution agreements; Resource adequacy; Funding; Contributions; transparency policy; deposit account claim; DA agreement; DA portion; DA contribution; DA assets; Loans; SDR interest rate
Cover IMF Working Papers
Monetary Policy Pass-Through to Interest Rates: Stylized Facts from 30 European Countries
Robert C. M. Beyer
,
Ruo Chen
,
Florian Misch
,
Claire Li
,
Ezgi O. Ozturk
, and
Lev Ratnovski
The extent to which changes in monetary policy rates lead to changes in loan and deposit rates for households and firms, referred to as ‘pass-through’, is an important ingredient of monetary policy transmission to output and prices. Using data on seven different bank interest rates in 30 European countries, different approaches, and the full sample as well as a subsample of euro area countries, we show that a) the pass-through in the post-pandemic hiking cycle has been heterogenous across countries and types of interest rates; b) the pass-through has generally been weaker and slower, except for rates of non-financial corporation loans and time deposits in euro area countries; c) differences in pass-through over time and across countries for most deposit rates are correlated with financial sector concentration, liquidity, and loan opportunities, and d) the effects of pass-through to outstanding mortgage rates on monetary transmission on prices and output are heterogenous across countries.
Keywords:
Monetary Policy Transmission; Monetary Policy Pass-Through; NFC loan rate; pass-through to rate; transmission to output; Deposit rates; Central bank policy rate; Mortgages; Loans; Financial sector; Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
Digital Tokens: A Legal Perspective
Mr. José M. Garrido
Tokens are units digitally represented in a distributed ledger or blockchain. The various uses of this technology have the potential to transform a wide array of economic activities, from traditional commercial transactions to sophisticated financial undertakings. This paper explores the similarities and differences of tokens with traditional legal instruments in commercial law and how tokens could offer superior solutions, provided that proper legal foundations are established for their operation, including aspects of the law of securities and consumer protection law.
Keywords:
Tokens; Commercial Law; Securities Law; Fintech; Consumer Protection; token taxonomy; non-fungible token; del Mercado de Valores; digital signature; token offering; aspects of the law of securities; Securities; Blockchain and DLT; Smart contracts; Virtual currencies; Securities regulation; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Switzerland: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
This Selected Issues paper on Switzerland focuses on assessing Swiss National Bank (SNB) balance sheet changes in 2022. This paper clarifies the main underlying drivers, discusses potential implications, or lack thereof, on monetary and fiscal policies, and assesses the SNB’s financial performance. Central banks’ financial results are not directly comparable with each other, given their non-profit nature, the differences in their mandates and, importantly, their different accounting policies. In particular, many other central banks would have recorded much larger financial losses in 2022 if mark-to-market accounting were applied. The SNB’s financial loss in 2022 is not expected to have an impact on monetary policy operations. The SNB has appropriately warned about risks to its balance sheet, including during periods of high profitability. In addition, the SNB put in place sound safeguards against such risks, and provided transparent communications on its investment strategy. Nevertheless, large balance sheets are subject to risks, highlighting communication challenges during periods of both large profits and losses. In this context, the SNB should continue to regularly review its investment strategy and maintain adequate safeguards.
Keywords:
ECB monetary policy; monetary policy shock; SNB balance sheet; Switzerland NBFIs; mitigation target; Greenhouse gas emissions; Stock markets; Nonbank financial institutions; Climate policy; Global; Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
Calibrating Macroprudential Policies in Europe Amid Rising Housing Market Vulnerability
Ms. Laura Valderrama
Housing market developments are in the spotlight in Europe. Over-stretched valuations amid tightening financial conditions and a cost-of-living crisis have increased risks of a sustained downturn and exposed challenging trade-offs for macroprudential policy between ensuring financial system resilience and smoothing the macro-financial cycle. Against this backdrop, this paper provides detailed considerations regarding how to (re)set macroprudential policy tools in response to housing-related systemic risk in Europe, providing design solutions to avoid unintended consequences during a tightening phase, and navigating the trade-offs between managing the build-up of vulnerabilities and the macro-financial cycle in a downturn. It also proposes a novel framework to measure the effectiveness of tools and avoid overlaps by quantifying the risks addressed by different macroprudential instruments. Finally, it introduces a taxonomy allowing to assess a country’s macroprudential stance and whether adjustments to current policy settings are warranted—such as the relaxation of capital-based tools and possibly some borrower-based measures in the event of a more severe downturn.
Keywords:
Housing markets; household vulnerability; income distribution; economic cycle; financial stability; macroprudential policy.; Macroprudential policy; housing market vulnerability; Policy tool; calibrating Macroprudential policies in Europe amide; Macroprudential Policy stance framework; Countercyclical capital buffers; Mortgages; Housing prices; Credit; Europe; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Switzerland: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
Selected Issues
Keywords:
Macroprudential policy intervention; revaluation loss; stress test scenario; D. policy implication; equity investment; B. natural gas reliance in Switzerland; Mortgages; Natural gas sector; Exchange rate revaluation; Foreign assets; International investment position; Global; Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
A Medium-Scale DSGE Model for the Integrated Policy Framework
Mr. Tobias Adrian
,
Vitor Gaspar
, and
Mr. Francis Vitek
This paper jointly analyzes the optimal conduct of monetary policy, foreign exchange intervention, fiscal policy, macroprudential policy, and capital flow management. This policy analysis is based on an estimated medium-scale dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model of the world economy, featuring a range of nominal and real rigidities, extensive macrofinancial linkages with endogenous risk, and diverse spillover transmission channels. In the pursuit of inflation and output stabilization objectives, it is optimal to adjust all policies in response to domestic and global financial cycle upturns and downturns when feasible—including foreign exchange intervention and capital flow management under some conditions—to widely varying degrees depending on the structural characteristics of the economy. The framework is applied empirically to four small open advanced and emerging market economies.
Keywords:
Monetary Policy; Foreign Exchange Intervention; Fiscal Policy; Macroprudential Policy; Capital Flow Management; Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium Model; Small Open Economy; Policy transmission mechanisms; price inflation; scenario assumption; policy rule parameter; policy rule response coefficient; Mortgages; Consumption; Foreign exchange intervention; Inflation; Capital flow management; Global; Africa
Cover International Monetary Fund Annual Report 2021 Financial Statements
International Monetary Fund Annual Report 2021 Financial Statements
International Monetary Fund. Secretary's Department

Abstract

The audited financial statements that follow form Appendix VI of the International Monetary Fund's Annual Report 2021 and can be found, together with Appendixes I through V and other materials, on the Annual Report 2021 web page (www.imf.org/AR2021). They have been reproduced separately here as a convenience for readers. Quarterly updates of the IMF's Finances are available at www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/quart/index.htm.

Keywords:
fair value; unit of account; audit evidence; SDR basket currency; SDR position; fixed income; Financial statements; Credit risk; Income; Credit; Loans; Africa; Global; Middle East and Central Asia; Asia and Pacific; Western Hemisphere; Europe