IMF Survey Magazine: IMF Survey Interview

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Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The real estate sector remains a source of financial vulnerabilities in the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (photo: Ian Cumming/Newscom)

Gulf Countries Should Refine Policies to Ensure Financial Stability

March 19, 2014

The experience of the boom and bust in 2008-09 demonstrates the vulnerability of the member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)—Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates—to credit and asset price cycles, and makes macroprudential policies especially important, says IMF.

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Gulf’s economic outlook

Macroprudential policy
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IMF to Strengthen its Standing in Region, says new Asia Head

February 24, 2014
The IMF should be like a family doctor who has an ongoing, close relationship with the patient, and not an emergency physician who appears only at times of crisis, suggests the new Director of the IMF’s Asia and Pacific Department.

Faster, Stronger Growth in Central, Eastern Europe

October 21, 2013
Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe may be confronting a period of slower growth after years of robust expansion, says the International Monetary Fund in a new report which looks at how the region might increase its growth potential.

IMF Explores Ways to Enhance Cooperation with Regional Groups

July 02, 2013
Close cooperation between the IMF and regional financing arrangements can contribute significantly to global financial stability, a new IMF paper says.

IMF Launches Discussion of Sovereign Debt Restructuring

May 23, 2013
The IMF is taking a fresh look at sovereign debt restructuring, with a robust work agenda on this issue in the coming months, said Hugh Bredenkamp, Deputy Director of the IMF’s Policy, Strategy, and Review Department.

IMF to Strengthen Advice on Labor Market Policies

May 08, 2013
Having taken stock of the IMF’s work on job creation and growth, there is scope for the institution to provide more analysis and policy advice to help its members achieve their inclusive growth goals, says IMF Deputy Managing Director Min Zhu in an interview.

Focus on Jobs and Growth, Says IMFC Chair Tharman

April 21, 2013
In an interview, Tharman Shanmugaratnam—Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore and Chair of the IMF’s policy steering committee, the IMFC, underscored the need to refocus policies on sustainable growth and job creation.

Security, Stability Measures Needed to Fix Fragile States

March 29, 2013
A country suffering any or all of the following adverse conditions—political and economic instability, poverty, civil disorder, terrorism, human trafficking, or disease—can be labeled a fragile state. These fragile situations are not limited to low-income countries. The issue of governance is a concern for countries around the world.

Investing in Latin America’s Future

March 25, 2013
Economic growth in Latin America is expected to remain strong in 2013, but the region needs more growth-enhancing and employment-generating policies to reduce poverty and income inequality, said Alejandro Werner, the IMF’s new Director of the Western Hemisphere Department.

Social Safety Nets Key to Helping Poorest in Burkina Faso

February 11, 2013
The IMF is working with Burkina Faso to develop targeted welfare programs aimed at identifying and helping the poorest, but these programs remain a work-in-progress for a country dealing with chronic poverty and an influx of refugees from neighboring Mali.

IMF Support for Greece Moves Ahead with €3.24 Billion Disbursement

January 18, 2013
In recent months, Greece has made impressive progress under the new coalition government in terms of restoring fiscal sustainability and agreeing labor market reforms that are providing a much needed boost to competitiveness.

Africa’s Middle Class Spearheads Economic Growth

December 26, 2013
Africa’s economic growth should be more inclusive, and the middle class has a strong role to play in strengthening this growth, says economist Mthuli Ncube, who also gives his thoughts on the state of data in Africa and the continent’s stellar economic performance.

Spain: Continue Reforms to Strengthen Recovery, Create Jobs

August 02, 2013
Spain’s economy is expected to emerge from recession later this year, but the IMF is calling for the European country to continue with reforms to strengthen its economy and bolster job creation.

Economic Structural Change Vital to Successful Development

June 28, 2013
When a country shifts from being a largely agrarian economy to one based on services or industry, it is said to have undergone “structural change”. This process has taken place in some Asian countries, but many low-income countries have yet to undergo structural transformation.

Eastern Caribbean Currency Union Faces Similar Challenges to Euro Area

May 09, 2013
As the 2008 global crisis deepened, the euro area, the world’s largest and most well-known regional currency union, faced a number of challenges. In many respects, the smaller Eastern Caribbean Economic and Currency Union (ECCU) is an interesting microcosm of the euro area’s problems and its difficulties.

IMF Loan to Help Jamaica Cope With Growth and Debt Challenges

May 01, 2013
The IMF’s Executive Board approved a 48-month, $932 million Extended Arrangement for Jamaica. The program will help create the conditions for sustained growth through a significant improvement in the fiscal and debt positions and in competitiveness.

IMF Weighs Reforms to Debt Limits Policy

April 08, 2013
The IMF is studying ways to strengthen the focus of its debt limits policy on debt sustainability while allowing countries to manage debt in a more flexible way, a new report says. The IMF’s Executive Board has given the green light to develop proposals in the coming months.

IMF Sees Big Gains from Energy Subsidies Reform

March 27, 2013
Subsidies are intended to protect consumers by keeping prices low. But many argue subsidies are inefficient and could be replaced with better means of protecting consumers in need. A new IMF paper urges governments the world over to reform subsidies affecting products ranging from coal to gasoline.

Demand for Tech-savvy Workers Fuels Inequality

February 22, 2013
Over the past several decades, advanced economies have seen a striking rise in inequality. In the United States, the top 0.1 percent of households receive more than 10 percent of national income—more than double the figure of 30 years ago.

Latvia’s Recovery Continues As It Eyes Euro Adoption

January 28, 2013
Despite the recession in the euro area, Latvia’s GDP growth is projected to have exceeded 5 percent for the second year in a row in 2012. The labor market is improving, but unemployment remains too high.

Albania Needs Reforms to Counter Growth Slowdown

January 11, 2013
After showing resilience during the past two years, Albania’s economy is now beginning to slow down, the IMF said in its annual review of the Balkan nation’s economy.

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The IMF Survey welcomes comments, suggestions, and brief readers' letters, a selection of which are posted under What readers say. Letters may be edited. Please address Internet correspondence to imfsurvey@imf.org.