## Belgium: Selected Issues

_IMF Staff Country Reports, March 2, 2023_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Belgium: Selected Issues](https://www.imf.org/en/publications/cr/issues/2023/03/01/belgium-selected-issues-530360)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/publications/cr/issues/2023/03/01/belgium-selected-issues-530360/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/publications/cr/issues/2023/03/01/belgium-selected-issues-530360/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/publications/cr/issues/2023/03/01/belgium-selected-issues-530360/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Published: March 2, 2023
- Series: IMF Staff Country Reports

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### Overview and purpose
- Examines features of Belgium’s wage-formation process.
- Identifies weaknesses and offers policy recommendations that "strive to strike a balance between maintaining benefits of wage indexation while attenuating drawbacks for the economy."
- Assesses how "inflation at record levels is putting the sustainability of Belgium’s wage indexation system to the test by weighing on corporate and government finances."

### Inflation dynamics and drivers
- Current price pressures in Belgium "show parallels to periods of elevated inflation in recent history yet also involve some important differences."
- "Energy price inflation in Belgium is among the highest in the euro area, in part driven by the relatively low taxation of energy products."
- "Compared to the median euro area country, Phillips curve estimates point toward some differences in the inflation-setting process and inflation persistence in Belgium."

### Wage-formation characteristics and risks
- Wage formation in Belgium is "characterized by the desire to shield households from purchasing-power losses while protecting the competitiveness of a highly open economy."
- Despite "successfully maintaining wage competitiveness in recent years, the current run-up in inflation is prone to put the wage-setting framework under additional strain."

### Policy focus and recommendations (high-level)
- Aim to preserve benefits of wage indexation (household purchasing power protection) while mitigating economic drawbacks (corporate and government fiscal strain).
- Address energy taxation as a contributor to elevated energy price inflation.
- Consider implications from Phillips curve evidence for inflation persistence when designing wage- and inflation-related policies.

### Publication metadata and key statistics
- Title: Belgium: Selected Issues
- Date: March 2, 2023
- Pages: 73
- Volume: 2023
- Issue: 099
- Series: Country Report No. 2023/099
- Stock No: 1BELEA2023002
- ISBN: 9798400237515
- ISSN: 1934-7685

*IMF Staff Country Reports — Belgium: Selected Issues*

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## Content in this bundle

- **Belgium: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 23/99; Febuary 10, 2023**
  - [Belgium: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 23/99; Febuary 10, 2023 (Markdown version)](/-/media/files/publications/cr/2023/english/1belea2023002.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [Belgium: Selected Issues; IMF Country Report No. 23/99; Febuary 10, 2023 (PDF)](/-/media/files/publications/cr/2023/english/1belea2023002.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

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_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/cr/issues/2023/03/01/belgium-selected-issues-530360_