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Europe > Iceland

You are looking at 1 - 10 of 522 items

Cover Global Financial Stability Notes
Pension Funds and Financial Stability
This Global Financial Stability Note examines the growth of the pension fund sector and the potential financial stability implications. Historically, pension funds have been seen as a contributor to financial stability because of their long-term and well-diversified liabilities. However, the sector has undergone significant structural shifts accelerated by a prolonged period of low interest rates, increasing its exposure to traditional risks while introducing emerging risks; this is reflected in growing intra-financial sector interconnectedness and exposure to long-term sovereign bonds. The recent transition to higher interest rates should be positive for the pension sector, albeit its pace and abruptness has been associated with liquidity stress and contagion risks in some countries.
Keywords:
Pension Funds; Financial Stability; Assets; Risks; Pension Plans; major pension fund sector; IMF Library; major pension savings market; structural liquidity; asset-liability duration mismatch; risk analysis; Pension spending; Pensions; Financial sector stability; Liquidity risk; Global
Cover Global Financial Stability Notes
Pension Funds and Financial Stability

This Global Financial Stability Note examines the growth of the pension fund sector and the potential financial stability implications. Historically, pension funds have been seen as a contributor to financial stability because of their long-term and well-diversified liabilities. However, the sector has undergone significant structural shifts accelerated by a prolonged period of low interest rates, increasing its exposure to traditional risks while introducing emerging risks; this is reflected in growing intra-financial sector interconnectedness and exposure to long-term sovereign bonds. The recent transition to higher interest rates should be positive for the pension sector, albeit its pace and abruptness has been associated with liquidity stress and contagion risks in some countries.
Keywords:
asset-liability mismatch; asset side liquidity; cash flow; pension fund assets; investment risk; Pension spending; Financial sector stability; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Front Matter
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
Keywords:
inflation expectation; FX Market shallowness; Currency markets; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Front Matter
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.

IMF Country Report No. 24/221
Keywords:
monetary policy stance; IMF's transparency policy; policy effort; macroeconomic policy; A. fiscal policy; Inflation; Currency markets
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Iceland: 2024 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; and Staff Report
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.

1. The economy is cooling, narrowing domestic and external imbalances built-up during the post-pandemic period. A coordinated tightening of monetary and fiscal policies has successfully slowed domestic demand growth, reduced inflationary pressures, and strengthened the current account. Implementation of past Article IV recommendations has been good (Annex IV).
Keywords:
headline inflation; IMF staff calculation; inflation outlook; soft landing; net error
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Iceland: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.

Selected Issues
Keywords:
core CPI; ISK FX volatility; inflation--output trade-off; FX Market depth; inflation targeting monetary policy regime
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Iceland: Staff Report for the 2024 Article IV Consultation—Informational Annex
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.

ICELAND
Keywords:
implementation of HIPC initiative; Exchange rate arrangements; Fiscal law; Bank supervision; Multiple currency practices
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Iceland: 2024 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; and Staff Report
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
The 2024 Article IV Consultation with Iceland highlights that following an impressive recovery from shocks in recent years, tight monetary and fiscal policies have slowed domestic demand growth, strengthened the current account, and started to lower inflationary pressures. A coordinated tightening of macroeconomic policies has successfully narrowed domestic and external imbalances built up during the post-pandemic period. Appropriately tight macroeconomic policies are expected to dampen economic growth in the near term, while medium-term growth prospects are favorable. Reactivation of the fiscal rules in 2026 presents an opportunity to revisit their design to ensure fiscal policy is both sustainable and contributes to macroeconomic stability. An application of the IMF’s Integrated Policy Framework to Iceland suggests some benefits of foreign exchange interventions during times of stress. Structural policies should focus on gradually reducing state involvement in collective wage bargaining, accelerating the green transition, and further diversifying the economy.
Keywords:
monetary policy stance; holdings of SDR; calibrating Policy; inflation expectation; EU regulations-credit bureaus; Inflation; Central bank policy rate; Housing prices; Fiscal rules; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
Iceland: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
This Selected Issues paper presents a pilot study on integrated policy framework (IPF) in Iceland. The IPF helps assess the appropriate policy responses to shocks for economies vulnerable to capital flow volatility, allowing for some market frictions. Iceland is an advanced economy pilot under the IPF with some of the frictions identified under the IPF framework. The Central Bank of Iceland implements an inflation targeting regime with the possibility of currency intervention within its mandate. The foreign exchange (FX) market in Iceland is assessed to be shallower than in other advanced economies, especially around episodes of global economic and financial stress. Foreign currency assets are mainly due to portfolio allocation of the large pension sector. The authorities should explore options to deepen the foreign currency derivatives market in a manner consistent with continued foreign exchange market stability. Iceland has a history of disruptive speculative foreign currency trading, which points to the need for moving cautiously with reforms to deepening the FX derivatives market. Reforms that could be explored include reassessing the limits on commercial banks’ derivative transactions. This would encourage greater participation of foreign investors in the domestic bond market and facilitate hedging of FX risk, thereby reducing the likelihood of disruptive exchange rate movements.
Keywords:
inflation expectation; FX Market shallowness; QIPF model; Iceland pilot study; staff team of the International Monetary Fund; Currency markets; Inflation; Central bank policy rate; Global
Cover IMF Staff Country Reports
St. Kitts and Nevis: Selected Issues
International Monetary Fund. Western Hemisphere Dept.
This Selected Issues paper on St. Kitts and Nevis studies economic benefits from energy transition. Cheaper and more stable energy prices can support macroeconomic stability. In addition to the aforementioned effects, low and stable energy prices can mitigate the adverse impact from terms-of-trade shocks and reduce inflation volatility, thus contributing to smoothing out economic cycles. The energy landscape of St. Kitts and Nevis calls for energy reform. The two islands of St. Kitts and Nevis rely heavily on fossil fuels, primarily diesel, to power their grids without Interconnection. The analysis uses cross-country examples to examine the channels through which the adoption of renewable energy on a large scale can yield numerous long-term economic benefits. Transitioning to domestic renewable energy sources could stabilize domestic energy prices and reduce the volatility of inflation. A sharp reduction in energy costs in St. Kitts and Nevis could promote sectoral diversification. High-energy costs can prohibit economic diversification, particularly into energy intensive industries.
Keywords:
energy transition index; staff team of the International Monetary Fund; carbon capture in St. Kitts and Nevis; inflation volatility; copyright page; Renewable energy; Electricity; Energy prices; Non-renewable resources; Caribbean; Global