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Europe > Ireland

You are looking at 1 - 10 of 34 items for :

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Cover IMF Working Papers
Accounting for Cloud Computing in the National Accounts
Mr. Andrew Baer
,
Mr. Kwangwon Lee
, and
James Tebrake
Digitalization and the innovative use of digital technologies is changing the way we work, learn, communicate, buy and sell products. One emerging digital technology of growing importance is cloud computing. More and more businesses, governments and households are purchasing hardware and software services from a small number of large cloud computing providers. This change is having an impact on how macroeconomic data are compiled and how they are interpreted by users. Specifically, this is changing the information and communication technology (ICT) investment pattern from one where ICT investment was diversified across many industries to a more concentrated investment pattern. Additionally, this is having an impact on cross-border flows of commercial services since the cloud service provider does not need to be located in the same economic territory as the purchaser of cloud services. This paper will outline some of the methodological and compilation challenges facing statisticians and analysts, provide some tools that can be used to overcome these challenges and highlight some of the implications these changes are having on the way users of national accounts data look at investment and trade in commercial services.
Keywords:
WP; cloud computing service; cloud service; IT service; cloud computing firm; Cloud storage service; computer processing firm; computer services export; delivery model; sector use cloud computing service; software service; use cloud computing service; cloud computing; information and communication technology; national accounts; data center; f irst company; service delivery model; cloud data storage service; cloud services from the IT services firm; cloud computing provider; Imports; Service exports; Information technology in revenue administration; Employee contributions; Global
Cover IMF Working Papers
Trade Uncertainty and Investment in the Euro Area
Mr. Christian H Ebeke
and
Jesse Siminitz
We analyze the impact of trade policy uncertainty on investment in the euro area. Our identification strategy assumes that countries that are relatively more dependent on global trade networks exhibit a higher sensitivity of investment with respect to trade uncertainty. We find that the investment-to-GDP ratio is on average 0.8 percentage points lower for five quarters following a one standard deviation increase in the level of trade uncertainty. We demonstrate that these results are unlikely to be driven by omitted variables and that they are robust to different measures of trade uncertainty and trade openness. Our analysis suggests that the detrimental effect of trade tensions goes beyond lower trade growth, as uncertainty can reduce investment and the economy’s long-term growth potential.
Keywords:
trade tensions; uncertainty; trade openness; investment; euro area; trade uncertainty; uncertainty shock; area trade flow; trade growth; trade openness variable; tension indicator; trade measure; trade tension level; uncertainty variable; Trade policy; Trade balance; Protectionism; Exports; Global
Cover Policy Papers
Collaboration Between Regional Financing Arrangements and the IMF
International Monetary Fund
The Global Financial Safety Net (GFSN) has expanded considerably since 2008, including in the non-traditional elements of the safety net such as Regional Financing Arrangements (RFAs). The resulting multi-layered structure of the GFSN makes collaboration between its various elements more important than in the past. Specifically, stronger collaboration between the Fund and RFAs would help increase the effective firepower of the GFSN and ensure a timely deployment of resources. The Fund’s experience in macroeconomic adjustment and its universal risk pooling would combine with the greater regional knowledge and country ownership brought the RFA. In this way, improved collaboration between the Fund and RFAs, including in co-financing, would significantly reduce the risk of contagion by encouraging countries to seek early assistance from the Fund. This paper is part of a broader set of proposals to fortify the GFSN (IMF, 2017b, c, d). It proposes both modalities for collaboration—across capacity development, surveillance, and lending—and some operational principles to help guide future co-lending between the Fund and the various RFAs. To date, the only operational guidance to facilitate collaboration has been limited to the high-level 2011 G20 Principles for Cooperation between the IMF and RFAs. Building on several case studies and the principles derived from them, this paper proposes an operational framework for future engagement. It aims to start a more structured dialogue between the Fund and individual RFAs on the modalities of how best to work together.
Keywords:
PP; financing; IMF-RFA collaboration; lending; country; program conditionality; Fund resource; Fund financing; Fund staff; Fund-supported program; transparency practice; policy framework; cooperating RFAs; Fund mission chief; Fund policy; financing assurance; Macro-fiscal framework; Crisis prevention; Global financial crisis of 2008-2009; Comparative advantage; Global; Europe
Cover The International Monetary Fund and the Learning Organization
The International Monetary Fund and the Learning Organization
The Role of Independent Evaluation
Moisés J. Schwartz
and
Ray C. Rist

Abstract

The benefits of independent evaluation in international financial institutions have long been recognized. However, independent evaluation in these organizations is of increased relevance during uncertain times that call for more credible and legitimate institutions. While evaluation has long played a function in the IMF, and its role has expanded substantially with the creation of the IEO, independent evaluation has yet to take on a role within the IMF that fully reflects its potential contribution. A strong global economy requires a strong IMF, and a strong IMF requires a strong independent evaluation culture and practice. The establishment of the IEO was only the start of a process that still needs to be fostered and cultivated. Successful independent evaluation is important for the IMF to be perceived as legitimate and credible—and to achieve it, the independent evaluation function needs to be further integrated in the learning process and culture of the Fund. Independent evaluation has played a significant role in contributing to the improvement of the IMF, but the pending challenge is for the IMF and the IEO to create a shared culture that fully embraces the purpose and mission of the IEO, and the learning opportunities offered by independent evaluation. The IMF’s organizational culture has a profound role to play in prompting actions to make learning from independent evaluation a more vibrant element of the Fund’s activities. This book calls on IMF management to take a more active role in instilling the positive value of independent evaluation across the organization and thus enabling independent evaluation to bring the IMF closer to what the literature defines as the ideal of a “learning organization.”

Keywords:
BOOK; evaluation; IEO; organization; IEO report; IEO evaluation; learning organization; evaluation report; IEO recommendation; Poverty reduction strategy; Trade policy; Public sector; Financial Sector Assessment Program; Global; Sub-Saharan Africa; East Asia; evaluation function; Exchange rate policy; Internal audit; Caribbean
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
United Kingdom: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
This paper aims to provide European Union (EU), while recognizing that the choice of whether to remain in the EU is for U.K. voters to make and that their decisions will reflect both economic and noneconomic factors. The question of EU membership is both a political and an economic issue, and the referendum has sparked a wide-ranging debate on the United Kingdom’s role in the EU. Given the range of plausible alternative arrangements with the EU, the number of channels by which countries could be affected and the range of possible effects on the United Kingdom and other economies are broad.
Keywords:
ISCR; CR; EU membership; UK economy; single market; EU country; EU migrant; EU budget; UK-EU trade; EU regulation; EU economy; EU directive; EU immigrant; Exports; Migration; Tariffs; Income; Foreign direct investment; Global; Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
Reassessing the Productivity Gains from Trade Liberalization
Mr. JaeBin Ahn
,
Ms. Era Dabla-Norris
,
Mr. Romain A Duval
,
Bingjie Hu
, and
Lamin Njie
This paper reassesses the impact of trade liberalization on productivity. We build a new, unique database of effective tariff rates at the country-industry level for a broad range of countries over the past two decades. We then explore both the direct effect of liberalization in the sector considered, as well as its indirect impact in downstream industries via input linkages. Our findings point to a dominant role of the indirect input market channel in fostering productivity gains. A 1 percentage point decline in input tariffs is estimated to increase total factor productivity by about 2 percent in the sector considered. For advanced economies, the implied potential productivity gains from fully eliminating remaining tariffs are estimated at around 1 percent, on average, which do not factor in the presumably larger gains from removing existing non-tariff barriers. Finally, we find strong evidence of complementarities between trade and FDI liberalization in boosting productivity. This calls for a broad liberalization agenda that cuts across different areas.
Keywords:
WP; input tariff; output tariff; tariff data; Trade; Productivity; Tariffs; Inputs; Liberalization; FDI; Reforms; Growth; tariff rate; complementarity regression; tariff liberalization; Total factor productivity; Foreign direct investment; Trade liberalization; Global; research department; fiscal affair; productivity gains from trade liberalization
Cover IMF Working Papers
Fiscal Devaluation in a Monetary Union
Philipp Engler
,
Mr. Giovanni Ganelli
,
Juha Tervala
, and
Simon Voigts
Using a DSGE model calibrated to the euro area, we analyze the international effects of a fiscal devaluation (FD) implemented as a revenue-neutral shift from employer's social contributions to the Value Added Tax. We find that a FD in ‘Southern European countries’ has a strong positive effect on output, but mild effects on the trade balance and the real exchange rate. Since the benefits of a FD are small relative to the divergence in competitiveness, it is best addressed through structural reforms.
Keywords:
WP; Southern European countries; expenditure switching; Fiscal devaluation; fiscal policy; euro area; currency union; current account; output effect; Southern European countries of the Southern European countries; trade balance effect; open economy; expenditure switching effect; households in Southern European countries; imperfect competition; fiscal devaluation in Southern European countries; deficit in Southern European countries; devaluation in Southern European countries; Value-added tax; Trade balance; Consumption; Personal income tax; Southern Europe
Cover IMF Working Papers
Rebalancing in the Euro Area and Cyclicality of Current Account Adjustments
Mr. Thierry Tressel
and
Mr. Shengzu Wang
The paper examines progress with the external rebalancing of euro area deficit countries. Relative prices are adjusting at different pace across countries and with different compositions of wage cuts and labor shedding. There is so far limited evidence of resource re-allocation from non-tradable to tradable sectors, while improved export performance is still dependent on external demand from the rest of world. Current account adjustments have taken place, reflecting structural changes but also cyclical forces, suggesting that part of the improvements may unwind when cyclical conditions improve. Looking ahead, relying only on relative price adjustments (which adversely affects demand) to rebalance the euro area could prove very challenging. Structural reforms will play an important role in the reallocation of resources to the tradable sector and the associated relative price adjustment, while boosting non-price and price competitiveness.
Keywords:
WP; deficit country; output gap; Rebalancing; Imbalances; Current Account; Euro Area; export performance; import shifter; current account adjustment; Export performance; Exports; Potential output; Labor costs; Global
Cover IMF Research Bulletin
Research Bulletin, June 2014
International Monetary Fund. Research Dept.
Articles in the June 2014 issue of the IMF Research Bulletin look at “The Rise and Fall of Current Account Deficits in the Euro Area Periphery and the Baltics” (Joong Shik Kang and Jay C. Shambaugh) and “The Two Sides of the Same Coin?: Rebalancing and Inclusive Growth in China” (Il Houng Lee, Murtaza Syed, and Xin Wang). The Q&A looks at “Seven Questions on the Monetary Transmission Mechanism in Low-Income Countries” (Andrew Berg, Luisa Charry, Rafael A. Portillo, and Jan Vleck). This issue of the Research Bulletin includes updated listings of IMF Working Papers, Staff Discussion Notes, and Recommended Readings from the IMF Bookstore. Readers can also find information on free access to a featured article from “IMF Economic Review.”
Keywords:
IRB; IMF research bulletin; bulletin; journal website; policy relevance; author guideline; debt challenge; sample content; Current account deficits; Trade balance; Income inequality; Current account; Personal income; Global; Caribbean; Baltics; Sub-Saharan Africa
Cover IMF Working Papers
Cross-Country Experience in Reducing Net Foreign Liabilities: Lessons for New Zealand
Ding Ding
,
Mr. Werner Schule
, and
Ms. Yan M Sun
This paper studies the dynamics of net foreign liabilities across a number of countries. Our historical analysis suggests that an orderly reduction in a country’s net foreign liabilities has mostly occurred when there was significant improvement in gross public savings through deliberate fiscal consolidation measures. Simulations of a dynamic general equilibrium model calibrated for New Zealand indicates that sustained government deficit reduction could improve the country’s net foreign assets by about half of the accumulated public savings. However, given New Zealand’s relatively strong fiscal positions and previous work noting structurally low household savings, an orderly improvement in New Zealand’s external position in the medium term will depend on a structural improvement in private savings.
Keywords:
WP; GDP; crisis; private sector; Net foreign liabilities; Current account balance; Public savings; Fiscal consolidation; crisis risk; exchange rate; crisis database; gross private sector debt; inflation crisis; reductions in NFL; New Zealand's NFL; Foreign liabilities; Foreign assets; Trade balance; Global