In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.
The staff report highlights that the economy of Kiribati showed resilience from the global crisis owing to infrastructure projects financed by foreign assistance. Executive Directors stressed the importance of preserving real per capita value of the Revenue Equalization Reserve Fund to ensure fiscal sustainability and intergenerational fairness. They appreciated the multiyear budget framework, which helped in designing realistic fiscal plans. Directors noted the joint IMF-World Bank debt sustainability analysis and encouraged authorities to secure grant financing to support the country’s development needs.
Tonga’s high debt and the apparent ineffectiveness of the monetary transmission mechanism constrain the authorities’ ability to support growth. In the near term, the strength of the global recovery is by no means assured, and there are multiple risks that could weaken prospects in both Europe and the United States. A further rise in world commodity and food prices would also hit Tonga hard, feeding through to inflation, growth, and the current account deficit. Tonga’s high public debt now poses a major risk to economic prospects.
The staff report for Vanuatu’s 2009 Article IV Consultation discusses economic developments and policies. Vanuatu is well placed to take countercyclical measures should growth slow more than expected. Although close monitoring of banks is necessary given the rapid growth in the private sector credit last year, the wide differential in policy rates between Vanuatu and its major trading partners suggest that there is some scope for monetary easing if things deteriorate more than expected.
The key findings of the Republic of Palau’s 2010 Article IV Consultation shows that the single most important issue in Palau remains fiscal policy, including its effect on medium-term growth, as fiscal consolidation proceeds. The global financial crisis followed on the heels of a massive terms-of-trade shock, leading to a sharp curtailment of foreign direct investment and private credit. Tourism tumbled following an airline bankruptcy, and construction activity fell as major infrastructure projects reached completion.
Papua New Guinea’s 2005 Article IV Consultation reports that the economy continues to perform well as the recovery maintains its momentum and the authorities adhere to disciplined fiscal and monetary policies. The central government budget has been estimated to be once more in surplus in 2005, as mining and petroleum revenue remain strong and overall expenditure is kept in check, resulting in a further reduction in public sector debt. Monetary policy has achieved a favorable combination of relatively low interest rates and inflation.
The economy has recovered following the stabilization of commodity and food prices. The Article IV discussions focused on policies to secure a sustained recovery and achieve long-term economic and fiscal sustainability. The recovery will likely remain weak, and the consolidated fiscal surplus is expected to decline in the near term. Long-term sustainability could be achieved through increasing the fiscal surplus. The reliability, coverage, and timeliness of economic statistics need to be improved to guide policies. The global crisis has increased the urgency of major fiscal and structural reforms.
This 2019 Article IV Consultation with Lebanon highlights that Lebanon’s economic position continues to be very difficult, with very low growth, high public debt and large twin deficits. While financial stability has been maintained, deposit inflows, critical to finance the budget and external deficits, slowed down during the past year, reducing the authorities’ room for manoeuvre. The new government has taken some important policy steps to start the needed policy adjustment, which could help raise confidence among investors and donors. The highest priority is the implementation of a sustainable fiscal adjustment that will bend down the path of the public debt-to-gross domestic product ratio through a combination of revenue and expenditure measures. This needs to be complemented by structural reforms and concessionally financed investment to raise Lebanon’s growth potential and help external adjustment, as well as policies to build further buffers in Lebanon’s financial sector. Structural reforms should prioritize reforming the electricity sector, removing impediments to and lowering the cost of doing business, as well as improving governance and reducing corruption.
