The Q&A in this issue features seven questions on the role of precautionary savings in open economies (by Damiano Sandri); the research summaries are "The Macroeconomics of Aid (by Andrew Berg, Rafael Portillo, and Luis-Felipe Zanna) and "The Building Blocks to Measure Inflation" (by Mick Silver). The issue also lists the contents of the March 2011 issue of the IMF Economic Review, Volume 59 Number 1; visiting scholars at the IMF during January?March 2011; and recent IMF Working Papers and Staff Discussion Notes.
International Monetary Fund. External Relations Dept.
This paper discusses the role of the IMF in financial stability and planning in world trade. The paper highlights that the IMF was set up to assist in the maintenance of an international monetary system that is conducive to the expansion of international trade. To this end, the IMF was provided with both a regulatory and financial role. In the execution of these functions, the IMF has gradually evolved as a center for international financial cooperation and a source of advice and technical assistance to its members.