Central Bank Quasi-Fiscal Losses and High Inflation in Zimbabwe
Central Bank Quasi-Fiscal Losses and High Inflation in Zimbabwe

Author: Sònia Muñoz

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 2007-04

Total Pages: 26

ISBN-13:

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Zimbabwe's failure to address continuing central bank quasi-fiscal losses has interfered with both monetary management and the independence and credibility of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ). Realized quasi-fiscal losses are estimated to have amounted to about 75 percent of GDP in 2006. Because they were financed by creating money creation or issuing RBZ securities, they contributed to the four-digit inflation reached in 2006. The remedy for the current situation is clearly to eliminate the causes of losses by implementing measures to improve the cash-flow of the bank and restore its financial position.

The Quality of Eligible Collateral, Central Bank Losses and Monetary Stability
The Quality of Eligible Collateral, Central Bank Losses and Monetary Stability

Author: Philipp Lehmbecker

Publisher: Peter Lang

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 276

ISBN-13: 9783631580769

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This book investigates to what extent the quality of eligible collateral is able to explain inflation. Addressing this question, hypotheses derived from the Theory of Property Economics by Heinsohn & Steiger are tested. Data are collected using a questionnaire, answered by central banks. An index of the quality of eligible collateral is constructed. Regression analyses are performed based on a sample of 62 countries for the period 1990 to 2003. A negative, robust and statistically significant correlation between inflation and the quality of eligible collateral is found. Central bank independence cannot contribute to the explanation of inflation. The result supports the theory of Heinsohn & Steiger: Securitisation of central bank lending is crucial for price stability.

Do Central Banks Need Capital?
Do Central Banks Need Capital?

Author: Mr.Peter Stella

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 1997-07-01

Total Pages: 40

ISBN-13: 1451850506

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Central banks may operate perfectly well without capital as conventionally defined. A large negative net worth, however, is likely to compromise central bank independence and interfere with its ability to attain policy objectives. If society values an independent central bank capable of effectively implementing monetary policy, recapitalization may become essential. Proper accounting practice in determining central bank profit or loss and rules governing the transfer of the central bank’s operating result to the treasury are also important. A variety of country-specific central bank practices are reviewed to support the argument.

Chad
Chad

Author: International Monetary Fund. African Dept.

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 2013-09-09

Total Pages: 42

ISBN-13: 1484324072

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This paper analyzes the effect of an IMF Staff-Monitored Program for Chad to enhance economic development. Weak institutional capacity and governance concerns have limited economic development and donor support in Chad. It is highlighted that the reduction in the nonoil primary deficit envisaged in the 2013 budget appears appropriate, but expenditures linked to the regional security situation and lower than anticipated oil revenues imply large financing needs. There are significant economic and political risks to program implementation,; the regional security situation remains volatile, and the economy is highly dependent on volatile oil revenue.

Issues in the Governance of Central Banks
Issues in the Governance of Central Banks

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 189

ISBN-13: 9789291317912

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This report by the Central Bank Governance Group presents information intended to help decision-makers set up governance arrangements that are most suitable for their own circumstances. The report draws on a large body of information on the design and operation of central banks that the BIS has brought together since it initiated work on central bank governance in the early 1990s. The need to deal with chronic inflation in the 1970s and 1980s prompted the identification of price stability as a formal central bank objective and led to a significant reworking of governance arrangements. The current global financial crisis could have equally important implications for central banks, particularly with respect to their role in fostering financial stability. Although it is too early to know how central banking will change as a result, the report takes an important first step in identifying governance questions that the crisis poses.

Global Financial Stability Report, April 2012
Global Financial Stability Report, April 2012

Author: International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 2012-04-18

Total Pages: 94

ISBN-13: 1616352477

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The April 2012 Global Financial Stability Report assesses changes in risks to financial stability over the past six months, focusing on sovereign vulnerabilities, risks stemming from private sector deleveraging, and assessing the continued resilience of emerging markets. The report probes the implications of recent reforms in the financial system for market perception of safe assets, and investigates the growing public and private costs of increased longevity risk from aging populations.

Financial Repression is Knocking at the Door, Again
Financial Repression is Knocking at the Door, Again

Author: Mr.Etibar Jafarov

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 2019-09-30

Total Pages: 66

ISBN-13: 151351248X

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Financial repression (legal restrictions on interest rates, credit allocation, capital movements, and other financial operations) was widely used in the past but was largely abandoned in the liberalization wave of the 1990s, as widespread support for interventionist policies gave way to a renewed conception of government as an impartial referee. Financial repression has come back on the agenda with the surge in public debt in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis, and some countries have reintroduced administrative ceilings on interest rates. By distorting market incentives and signals, financial repression induces losses from inefficiency and rent-seeking that are not easily quantified. This study attempts to assess some of these losses by estimating the impact of financial repression on growth using an updated index of interest rate controls covering 90 countries over 45 years. The results suggest that financial repression poses a significant drag on growth, which could amount to 0.4-0.7 percentage points.

Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe

Author: International Monetary Fund. African Dept.

Publisher: International Monetary Fund

Published: 2020-03-26

Total Pages: 125

ISBN-13: 1513537725

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This 2019 Article IV Consultation focuses on Zimbabwe’s near- and medium-term challenges and policy priorities and was prepared before COVID-19 became a global pandemic that has resulted in unprecedented strains in global trade, commodity, and financial markets. It, therefore, does not reflect the implications of these developments and related policy priorities. The outbreak has greatly amplified uncertainty and downside risks around the outlook. The IMF staff is closely monitoring the situation and will continue to work on assessing its impact and the related policy response in Zimbabwe and globally. With another poor harvest expected, growth in 2020 is projected at near zero, following a sharp contraction in 2019, with food shortages continuing. With no progress on clearing longstanding external arrears, the authorities face a difficult balance of pursuing tight monetary, to reduce very high inflation, and fiscal policies to address the macroeconomic imbalances and build confidence in the currency, while averting a crisis. Pressures are mounting to increase spending on wages and for social protection to mitigate the impact of the weather shocks and high inflation. While the 2020 budget includes a significant increase in social spending, it is likely insufficient to meet the pressing needs.

Central Banking in the Twentieth Century
Central Banking in the Twentieth Century

Author: John Singleton

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2010-11-25

Total Pages: 351

ISBN-13: 1139495208

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Central banks are powerful but poorly understood organisations. In 1900 the Bank of Japan was the only central bank to exist outside Europe but over the past century central banking has proliferated. John Singleton here explains how central banks and the profession of central banking have evolved and spread across the globe during this period. He shows that the central banking world has experienced two revolutions in thinking and practice, the first after the depression of the early 1930s, and the second in response to the high inflation of the 1970s and 1980s. In addition, the central banking profession has changed radically. In 1900 the professional central banker was a specialised type of banker, whereas today he or she must also be a sophisticated economist and a public official. Understanding these changes is essential to explaining the role of central banks during the recent global financial crisis.