Front Matter Page
IMF Country Report No. 19/181
SWITZERLAND
SELECTED ISSUES
June 2019
This Selected Issues paper on Switzerland was prepared by a staff team of the International Monetary Fund as background documentation for the periodic consultation with the member country. It is based on the information available at the time it was completed on June 4, 2019.
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© 2019 International Monetary Fund
Front Matter Page
SWITZERLAND
SELECTED ISSUES
June 4, 2019
Approved By
The European Department
Prepared by Apostolos Apostolou, Sylwia Nowak (both EUR), Tryggvi Gudmundsson (MCM), and Shafik Hebous (FAD).
Contents
THE SWISS FRANC—LIVING IN A MULTIPOLAR WORLD
A. Introduction
B. Related Literature
C. Estimating the De Facto Swiss Franc Currency Regime
D. Interpretation and Implications
TABLE
1. Swiss Franc Exchange Regime Estimation Results
References
SWITZERLAND’S INTERNATIONAL RESERVES
A. Reserve Accumulation
B. Some Additional Motives for Holding Reserves
C. Reserve Management and Asset Allocation
D. Reserve Coverage, Gross International Liabilities, and SNB Capital, Income and Distribution
References
SWITZERLAND: CROSS-BORDER WAGE GAPS—POSSIBLE DRIVERS
A. Drivers of Swiss Wages—Stylized Facts
B. Are Swiss Wages in Line with Swiss Fundamentals?
C. What Explains the Dynamics of Cross Border Wage Gaps?
D. Conclusions
FIGURE
1. Swiss Wages in the International and Regional Context, 1991–2017
TABLES
1. Estimates of Wage Phillips Curves
2. Short-term Drivers of Nominal Wage Gap
ANNEXES
I. Cross Border and Posted Workers
II. Cointegration Tests
References
FISCAL FEDERALISM IN SWITZERLAND
A. The Fiscal Role of Cantons
B. Inter-Governmental Fiscal Transfers
FIGURES
1. Expenditure and Tax Decentralization in OECD Countries, 2016
2. Public Debt by Government Level
3. Cantonal Debt (Maastricht Definition), 2016
4. Resource Equalization, 2018
TABLE
1. Task Allocation Across Levels of Government