## Transparency Pays: Emerging Markets Share More Data

_IMF Blog, July 7, 2017_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Transparency Pays: Emerging Markets Share More Data](https://www.imf.org/en/blogs/articles/2017/07/07/transparency-pays-emerging-markets-share-more-data)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/blogs/articles/2017/07/07/transparency-pays-emerging-markets-share-more-data/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/blogs/articles/2017/07/07/transparency-pays-emerging-markets-share-more-data/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/blogs/articles/2017/07/07/transparency-pays-emerging-markets-share-more-data/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Authors: Sangyup Choi, Stephanie Medina Cas
- Published: July 7, 2017

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### Main findings on data transparency and borrowing costs
- Greater data transparency leads to a 15 percent reduction in the spreads on emerging market government bonds one year after the transparency improvements are made.
- Analysis uses data from 26 countries and finds a statistically significant effect of data transparency reforms on government bond spreads (the difference between the interest rate on a US government bond and that on a bond issued by another country).
- The government bond spread declines by 15 percent during the baseline horizon of one year, and this effect tends to increase over time.

### Robustness and identification strategies
- Focus on a relatively short period (1-8 quarters) around the reforms to disentangle reforms’ effects from other factors.
- No sign of improvement in a country’s economic condition shortly before the reforms.
- Tests ensure that other important economic and political events—such as a crisis, a loan from the IMF, or the adoption of inflation targeting—do not mask the findings.
- Controls include additional economic factors that may impact spreads, such as the external debt-to-GDP ratio; the significant impact of adopting data standards on government borrowing costs still holds with these controls.

### Data standards initiatives and implementation scope
- Countries use an IMF data standards initiative, the Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS), to compile and publish data on national websites.
- Less demanding alternative: the enhanced General Data Dissemination System (e-GDDS), intended for countries with lower statistical capacity.
- As of June 2017, all the IMF data standards initiatives covered 146 emerging market and developing countries.
- Since late 2015, 20 of these countries have implemented the enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard.

### Regional adoption and examples
- Africa:
  - 13 countries have implemented the enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard including Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania.
  - More countries, including Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, and Mozambique are expected to implement it this year.
- Asia-Pacific:
  - Bhutan, Nepal, and Samoa have implemented the enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard.
  - Micronesia is expected to by the end of July 2017.
  - Bangladesh, Cambodia, Maldives, Mongolia, and Myanmar are all in the pipeline.

### Benefits and mechanisms of transparency reforms
- Countries publish key economic data, such as real GDP growth and the consumer price index, through a National Summary Data Page to provide policymakers, investors, rating agencies, and the public with easy access to information critical for monitoring economic conditions.
- Plans to publish full Advance Release Calendars commit countries to discipline in data publication and reduce uncertainty for investors, further enhancing data transparency.
- Preliminary experience with the enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard suggests improved coordination between a country’s central bank, ministry of finance, and statistics institute — an enhancement in governance.
- Implementation of the enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard is viewed as a step toward adopting the Special Data Dissemination Standard, which can help lower future borrowing costs.

### Policy implications
- Adopting data dissemination standards can materially lower government borrowing costs (15 percent reduction in spreads one year after reforms).
- Countries with limited statistical capacity can "walk before they run" by implementing the enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard as an intermediate step toward the Special Data Dissemination Standard.
- Publishing timely, reliable data and committing to release calendars helps reduce investor uncertainty and strengthens policy credibility.
- Enhanced coordination among central bank, ministry of finance, and statistics institute improves governance and the effectiveness of data dissemination.

*Source: Transparency Pays: Emerging Markets Share More Data (Sangyup Choi, Stephanie Medina Cas, July 7, 2017).*

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## Content in this bundle

- **The Effects of Data Transparency Policy Reforms on Emerging Market Sovereign Bond Spreads**
  - [The Effects of Data Transparency Policy Reforms on Emerging Market Sovereign Bond Spreads (Markdown version)](/external/pubs/ft/wp/2017/wp1774.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [The Effects of Data Transparency Policy Reforms on Emerging Market Sovereign Bond Spreads (PDF)](/external/pubs/ft/wp/2017/wp1774.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}
- **提高透明度不无回报：新兴市场公布更多数据; IMF博客; 2017年7月7日**
  - [提高透明度不无回报：新兴市场公布更多数据; IMF博客; 2017年7月7日 (Markdown version)](/external/chinese/np/blog/2017/070717c.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [提高透明度不无回报：新兴市场公布更多数据; IMF博客; 2017年7月7日 (PDF)](/external/chinese/np/blog/2017/070717c.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}
- **透明性のすすめ:新興市場国の統計データ公表範囲が拡大; サンギュプ・チョイ 、 ステファニー・メディナ・カス, IMFブログ2017 年7月7日**
  - [透明性のすすめ:新興市場国の統計データ公表範囲が拡大; サンギュプ・チョイ 、 ステファニー・メディナ・カス, IMFブログ2017 年7月7日 (Markdown version)](/external/japanese/np/blog/2017/070717j.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [透明性のすすめ:新興市場国の統計データ公表範囲が拡大; サンギュプ・チョイ 、 ステファニー・メディナ・カス, IMFブログ2017 年7月7日 (PDF)](/external/japanese/np/blog/2017/070717j.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}
- **A transparência compensa: mercados emergentes publicam mais dados**
  - [A transparência compensa: mercados emergentes publicam mais dados (Markdown version)](/external/lang/portuguese/np/blog/2017/070717p.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [A transparência compensa: mercados emergentes publicam mais dados (PDF)](/external/lang/portuguese/np/blog/2017/070717p.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}
- **Прозрачность окупается: страны с формирующимся рынком раскрывают больше данных**
  - [Прозрачность окупается: страны с формирующимся рынком раскрывают больше данных (Markdown version)](/external/russian/np/blog/2017/070717r.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [Прозрачность окупается: страны с формирующимся рынком раскрывают больше данных (PDF)](/external/russian/np/blog/2017/070717r.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

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## References

- [عربي](https://blog-montada.imf.org/?p=5462)
- [https://www.imf.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Mexico-City-1024x600-EDGARD-GARRIDO-REUTERS-Newscomrtrleight904752-1099x500.jpg](https://www.imf.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Mexico-City-1024x600-EDGARD-GARRIDO-REUTERS-Newscomrtrleight904752-1099x500.jpg)
- [Special Data Dissemination Standard](http://dsbb.imf.org/Pages/SDDS/Home.aspx)
- [https://www.imf.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/ENG_Jun_6_EM_data_transparency.jpg](https://www.imf.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/ENG_Jun_6_EM_data_transparency.jpg)
- [enhanced General Data Dissemination Standard](http://dsbb.imf.org/Pages/GDDS/Home.aspx)

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/blogs/articles/2017/07/07/transparency-pays-emerging-markets-share-more-data_