Abstract
2019 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for the Republic of Fiji
Fund Relations
(As of December 31, 2019)
Membership Status: Joined: May 28, 1971; Article VIII
General Resources Account:
| SDR Million | Percent of Quota | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota | 98.40 | 100.00 |
| Fund holdings of currency | 74.30 | 75.51 |
| Reserve position in Fund | 24.14 | 24.53 |
| SDR Million | Percent of Quota | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota | 98.40 | 100.00 |
| Fund holdings of currency | 74.30 | 75.51 |
| Reserve position in Fund | 24.14 | 24.53 |
SDR Department:
| SDR Million | Percent of Allocation | |
|---|---|---|
| Net cumulative allocation | 67.09 | 100.00 |
| Holdings | 44.01 | 65.59 |
| SDR Million | Percent of Allocation | |
|---|---|---|
| Net cumulative allocation | 67.09 | 100.00 |
| Holdings | 44.01 | 65.59 |
Outstanding Purchases and Loans: None
Latest Financial Arrangements: None
| Type Stand-By | Date of Arrangement | Expiration Date | Amount Approved (SDR Million) | Amount Drawn Allocation (SDR Million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 8, 1974 | Nov. 7, 1975 | 3.25 | 0.00 |
| Type Stand-By | Date of Arrangement | Expiration Date | Amount Approved (SDR Million) | Amount Drawn Allocation (SDR Million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 8, 1974 | Nov. 7, 1975 | 3.25 | 0.00 |
Projected Payments to Fund:1
(SDR Million; based on existing use of resources and present holdings of SDRs):
| Forthcoming | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |
| Principal | |||||
| Charges/Interest | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.26 |
| Total | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.26 |
| Forthcoming | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |
| Principal | |||||
| Charges/Interest | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.26 |
| Total | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.25 | 0.26 | 0.26 |
Exchange Rate Arrangements: Fiji’s de facto exchange rate arrangement is a conventional peg.
Since April 1975, the exchange rate of the Fiji dollar has been linked to a basket of currencies of Fiji’s five major trading partners: the U.S., Australian, and New Zealand dollars; the pound sterling (replaced by the Euro at the beginning of 1999); and the Japanese yen. The weights used in the basket, based mainly on the value of trade and tourist transactions are reviewed annually. The exchange rate of the Fiji dollar against U.S. dollar, the intervention currency, is determined daily by the Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF) in relation to the currency basket. The RBF’s buying and selling rates for transactions in U.S. dollars are communicated to commercial banks. The exchange rate was F$2.17 per U.S. dollar as of December 20, 2019.
Exchange and capital controls were tightened significantly in early 2009 following the devaluation of the currency. Some of the exchange restrictions have been eliminated and amended since then. Remaining exchange restrictions subject to Article VIII arise from the Fiji Revenue and Customs Authority tax certification requirements on the transfer abroad of profits and dividends, on the proceeds of airline ticket sales, and on the making of external debt and maintenance payments and from limits on large payments (e.g., oil imports and dividends repatriation of foreign banks).
Details about current and past exchange control policies can be found in https://rbf.gov.fj/Left-Menu/Financial-Market-Operations/Exchange-Control.
Last Article IV Consultation: The 2018 Article IV consultation discussions were held in Suva during December 3–18, 2018. The consultation (Country Report No. 19/57) was completed by the Executive Board on February 12, 2019. Fiji is on a 12-month cycle.
Resident Representative: The Regional Resident Representative Office for Pacific Islands based in Suva, Fiji was opened on September 13, 2010 and the office covers Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. Ms. Leni Hunter is the resident representative.
Relations with Other International Financial Institutions
World Bank: http://financesapp.worldbank.org/en/countries/Fiji/.
Asian Development Bank: https://www.adb.org/countries/fiji/main.
Pacific Financial Technical Assistance Center: https://www.pftac.org/content/PFTAC/en1/reports11.html#tab_5
Statistical Issues
| I. Assessment of Data Adequacy for Surveillance |
| General: Data provision is broadly adequate for surveillance. Macroeconomic data are improving, owing in part to the considerable technical assistance provided by the Fund and PFTAC in recent years. |
| The Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF) publishes the Annual Report, the Quarterly Review, and the monthly Economic Review. The Fiji Bureau of Statistics (FBoS) publishes a quarterly Current Economic Statistics and a monthly Statistical News. The Ministry of Finance and National Planning (MoF) issues the Budget Address and the Supplement to the Budget Address on an annual basis. All of these publications are received by APD on a regular basis. |
| In September 2018, the authorities began publishing key macroeconomic data via a National Summary Data Page (NSDP) under the enhanced General Data Dissemination System (e-GDDS) to support surveillance and improve data transparency (See Staff Report Annex VI: Fiji Implements the Enhanced General Data Dissemination System). |
| National Accounts: Production-side estimates of GDP by production at current and constant 2014 prices are available up to 2018; current price estimates of GDP by expenditure and income are available to 2017 and will be updated to 2018 by early-2020. Estimates were rebased from 2011 to 2014 in 2019 mainly using the 2013/14 Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) and the 2014 Business Census to derive new benchmarks. |
| Price statistics: CPI data are published monthly using 2014 weights derived from the 2013/14 HIES survey. Quarterly PPIs for goods and services (experimental) are available from 2011 to 2019:Q2. |
| Government finance statistics: Fiji compiles and submits annual GFS data for budgetary central government (BCG), exclusive of the classifications of the functions of government. The most recent submission was in December 2018 and the submission included data for the fiscal years 2016 and 2017. Re-classification of BCG expenditure data is required to improve the integrity of the fiscal data and prepare the data for general government consolidation. Ongoing chart of accounts reforms for BCG, planned for implementation mid-August 2020, may see some improvements for GFS reporting. The authorities continue to make progress in collecting source data required to expand general government coverage; however, delays are experienced to obtain audited annual financial statements from statutory bodies and state-owned enterprises. The authorities are encouraged to review and update outstanding fiscal metadata as part of the process to produce its NSDP under the e-GDDS. |
| Monetary and financial statistics: Data on the central bank, other depository corporations (ODCs), and other financial corporations (OFCs) are comprehensive and provided to APD and STA on a regular and timely basis using the standardized reporting forms. Monetary and financial statistics (MFS) that are in line with the Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual (MFSM) are published on the RBF’s website and International Financial Statistics. The full implementation of STA’s technical assistance missions’ recommendations, including enhancing source data for ODCs and OFCs as well as compilation of a financial corporations survey with full institutional coverage, will significantly improve the quality and cross-country comparability of MFS. |
| Financial sector: Fiji reports to STA for publication on the IMF’s website, all core financial soundness indicators (FSIs) and seven encouraged FSIs for deposit takers on a quarterly basis and with one quarter timeliness. Coverage and timeliness of FSIs for other sectors need to be improved as currently two FSIs are reported to STA with a longer time lag. |
| Balance of payments: Balance of payments statistics weaknesses persist and there is a need to improve the coverage, classification and compilation methodology of the external sector statistics (ESS). Fiji reports its balance of payments data for dissemination purposes in the Fund’s International Financial Statistics (IFS) and in the Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook (BOPSY). FBoS has undertaken a number of actions that were recommended to improve timeliness in ESS dissemination and to enhance consistency with the sixth edition of the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6), albeit at a slow pace. |
| II. Data Standards and Quality |
| Fiji is an e-GDDS participant and publishes key macroeconomic data via an NSDP. |
| I. Assessment of Data Adequacy for Surveillance |
| General: Data provision is broadly adequate for surveillance. Macroeconomic data are improving, owing in part to the considerable technical assistance provided by the Fund and PFTAC in recent years. |
| The Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF) publishes the Annual Report, the Quarterly Review, and the monthly Economic Review. The Fiji Bureau of Statistics (FBoS) publishes a quarterly Current Economic Statistics and a monthly Statistical News. The Ministry of Finance and National Planning (MoF) issues the Budget Address and the Supplement to the Budget Address on an annual basis. All of these publications are received by APD on a regular basis. |
| In September 2018, the authorities began publishing key macroeconomic data via a National Summary Data Page (NSDP) under the enhanced General Data Dissemination System (e-GDDS) to support surveillance and improve data transparency (See Staff Report Annex VI: Fiji Implements the Enhanced General Data Dissemination System). |
| National Accounts: Production-side estimates of GDP by production at current and constant 2014 prices are available up to 2018; current price estimates of GDP by expenditure and income are available to 2017 and will be updated to 2018 by early-2020. Estimates were rebased from 2011 to 2014 in 2019 mainly using the 2013/14 Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) and the 2014 Business Census to derive new benchmarks. |
| Price statistics: CPI data are published monthly using 2014 weights derived from the 2013/14 HIES survey. Quarterly PPIs for goods and services (experimental) are available from 2011 to 2019:Q2. |
| Government finance statistics: Fiji compiles and submits annual GFS data for budgetary central government (BCG), exclusive of the classifications of the functions of government. The most recent submission was in December 2018 and the submission included data for the fiscal years 2016 and 2017. Re-classification of BCG expenditure data is required to improve the integrity of the fiscal data and prepare the data for general government consolidation. Ongoing chart of accounts reforms for BCG, planned for implementation mid-August 2020, may see some improvements for GFS reporting. The authorities continue to make progress in collecting source data required to expand general government coverage; however, delays are experienced to obtain audited annual financial statements from statutory bodies and state-owned enterprises. The authorities are encouraged to review and update outstanding fiscal metadata as part of the process to produce its NSDP under the e-GDDS. |
| Monetary and financial statistics: Data on the central bank, other depository corporations (ODCs), and other financial corporations (OFCs) are comprehensive and provided to APD and STA on a regular and timely basis using the standardized reporting forms. Monetary and financial statistics (MFS) that are in line with the Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual (MFSM) are published on the RBF’s website and International Financial Statistics. The full implementation of STA’s technical assistance missions’ recommendations, including enhancing source data for ODCs and OFCs as well as compilation of a financial corporations survey with full institutional coverage, will significantly improve the quality and cross-country comparability of MFS. |
| Financial sector: Fiji reports to STA for publication on the IMF’s website, all core financial soundness indicators (FSIs) and seven encouraged FSIs for deposit takers on a quarterly basis and with one quarter timeliness. Coverage and timeliness of FSIs for other sectors need to be improved as currently two FSIs are reported to STA with a longer time lag. |
| Balance of payments: Balance of payments statistics weaknesses persist and there is a need to improve the coverage, classification and compilation methodology of the external sector statistics (ESS). Fiji reports its balance of payments data for dissemination purposes in the Fund’s International Financial Statistics (IFS) and in the Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook (BOPSY). FBoS has undertaken a number of actions that were recommended to improve timeliness in ESS dissemination and to enhance consistency with the sixth edition of the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6), albeit at a slow pace. |
| II. Data Standards and Quality |
| Fiji is an e-GDDS participant and publishes key macroeconomic data via an NSDP. |
Fiji—Table of Common Indicators Required for Surveillance
(As of December, 2019)
Includes reserve assets pledged or otherwise encumbered as well as net derivative positions.
Both market-based and officially determined, including discount rates, money market rates, and rates on treasury bills, notes, and bonds.
Foreign, domestic bank, and domestic nonbank financing.
The general government consists of the central government (budgetary funds, extra budgetary funds, and social security funds) and stat and local governments. For Fiji, General Government is the same as Central Government.
Daily (D), monthly (M), quarterly (Q), and annually (A).
Fiji—Table of Common Indicators Required for Surveillance
(As of December, 2019)
| Date of latest observation | Date received | Frequency of Data5 | Frequency of Reporting5 | Frequency of Publication5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exchange Rates | 12/2019 | 12/2019 | D | D | D |
| International Reserve Assets and Reserve Liabilities of the Monetary Authorities1 | 11/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Reserve/Base Money | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Broad Money | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Central Bank Balance Sheet | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Consolidated Balance Sheet of the Banking System | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Interest Rates2 | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Consumer Price Index | 11/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Revenue, Expenditure, Balance and Composition of Financing3– Central Government | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Stocks of Central Government and Central Government-Guaranteed Debt | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| External Current Account Balance | Q2, 2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
| Exports and Imports of Goods and Services | Q2, 2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
| GDP | 2018 | 09/2019 | A | A | A |
| Gross External Debt | Q2/2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
| International Investment Position | Q2/2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
Includes reserve assets pledged or otherwise encumbered as well as net derivative positions.
Both market-based and officially determined, including discount rates, money market rates, and rates on treasury bills, notes, and bonds.
Foreign, domestic bank, and domestic nonbank financing.
The general government consists of the central government (budgetary funds, extra budgetary funds, and social security funds) and stat and local governments. For Fiji, General Government is the same as Central Government.
Daily (D), monthly (M), quarterly (Q), and annually (A).
Fiji—Table of Common Indicators Required for Surveillance
(As of December, 2019)
| Date of latest observation | Date received | Frequency of Data5 | Frequency of Reporting5 | Frequency of Publication5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exchange Rates | 12/2019 | 12/2019 | D | D | D |
| International Reserve Assets and Reserve Liabilities of the Monetary Authorities1 | 11/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Reserve/Base Money | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Broad Money | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Central Bank Balance Sheet | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Consolidated Balance Sheet of the Banking System | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Interest Rates2 | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Consumer Price Index | 11/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Revenue, Expenditure, Balance and Composition of Financing3– Central Government | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| Stocks of Central Government and Central Government-Guaranteed Debt | 10/2019 | 12/2019 | M | M | M |
| External Current Account Balance | Q2, 2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
| Exports and Imports of Goods and Services | Q2, 2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
| GDP | 2018 | 09/2019 | A | A | A |
| Gross External Debt | Q2/2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
| International Investment Position | Q2/2019 | 10/2019 | Q | Q | Q |
Includes reserve assets pledged or otherwise encumbered as well as net derivative positions.
Both market-based and officially determined, including discount rates, money market rates, and rates on treasury bills, notes, and bonds.
Foreign, domestic bank, and domestic nonbank financing.
The general government consists of the central government (budgetary funds, extra budgetary funds, and social security funds) and stat and local governments. For Fiji, General Government is the same as Central Government.
Daily (D), monthly (M), quarterly (Q), and annually (A).