54 research outputs found
From Transition to Monetary Integration: Revenues from Seignorage in Poland
No full textThe analysis presented in the paper focuses on seigniorage revenues in the period of transition to market economy and fiscal consequences of European monetary integration. A comprehensive framework for a measurement of seigniorage revenues in transition eriod is presented and estimates of its sources and uses in the period 1990–2000 are computed and analyzed. The analysis reveals that in Poland at the end of the last decade revenues from the money creation have not been extensively used as a tool for financing government expenditures. Furthermore, it is shown that, in contrary to the transition period, an accession to European Monetary Union will be accompanied by significant fiscal gains resulting from redistribution of seigniorage wealth between member countries.seigniorage, central banks, economies in transition, National Bank of Poland, NBP, European integration, EMU.
Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment in Georgia
No full textForeign direct investment (FDI) brings host countries capital, productive facilities, and technology transfers, as well as new jobs and management expertise. Thus it is important to understand why in many countries FDI inflow is lower than it would be expected. The goal of this study is to investigate factors determining flow of FDI in Georgia. The key point of the analysis is the impact of stability of economic and legal environment on the pattern of FDI. In particular, we show that (i) the variability of basic macroeconomic fundamentals decreases the flow of FDI, (ii) high volatility of fiscal, business regulations makes FDI smaller, (iii) unstable economic environment does not attract long term investors but mainly speculative capital. Based on theoretical findings we formulate clear message to policy makers stating that in order to expect significant flow of long term and non-speculative foreign capital, first of all, a stable economic and legal environment is needed.Foreign Direct Investment, FDI, determinants of FDI, Georgia
Health Care in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland - the medium term fiscal aspects
No full textThe paper provides perspective of recent developments in health care reforms in three fast-reforming transition economies: the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. The two former countries have been implementing reforms since early 1990s, while Poland started its reform on January 1, 1999 only. But the reforms are not over: in all three countries further changes are envisaged. The objective of this paper is to assess the current situation from a fiscal perspective. This, of course, is not the only criterion, but still vital enough to deserve careful analysis.Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, health care
The Development of Financial Markets in Poland
No full textThis project analyzing the development of Polish financial markets sponsored by the USAID grant was aimed at examining selected problems of the banking system and financial markets in Poland. The main criterion for selection of these problems was their potential usefulness for policy-makers at the present stage of the economic transformation. The studies within the project address the issues that require special attention of policy-makers in their efforts to design future stages of the economic transformation and to formulate a program of effective preparations for the EU accession. The topics examined include: the advancement of risk management in the banking system, the economic and legal aspects of capital account liberalization, contagion effects of world financial crises, and sensitivity of financial markets to exchange rate policies. The studies find visible improvements in the methodology of risk management in the banking system in Poland and in the institutional framework of financial markets. It is further suggested that a larger participation of foreign, more xperienced banks would improve efficiency of Poland's financial institutions. It remains debatable whether the banks ought to evolve in the directions of universal or specialized nstitutions. The financial system is prone to contagion effects of external financial crises as documented by the impact of the Asian and the Russian crisis episodes. Several measures aimed at developing an effective cushion against potential contagion effects of financial crisis are proposed. They include: an effective system of bank monitoring and supervision, a lower reliance on debt in relation to equity, a low (less than a multiple of three) ratio of M2 money to foreign exchange reserves, a higher degree of transparency of financial institutions, more transparent fiscal and monetary policies, and a significant increase in national savings. The advancement of capital account liberalization shall not be restrained by taxes on foreign exchange transactions or by similar measures aimed at containing capital flows. Capital controls could be devastating to still very fragile and volatile Polish financial markets.
The Development of Financial Markets in Poland
No full textThis project analyzing the development of Polish financial markets sponsored by the USAID grant was aimed at examining selected problems of the banking system and financial markets in Poland. The main criterion for selection of these problems was their potential usefulness for policy-makers at the present stage of the economic transformation. The studies within the project address the issues that require special attention of policy-makers in their efforts to design future stages of the economic transformation and to formulate a program of effective preparations for the EU accession. The topics examined include: the advancement of risk management in the banking system, the economic and legal aspects of capital account liberalization, contagion effects of world financial crises, and sensitivity of financial markets to Exchange rate policies. The studies find visible improvements in the methodology of risk management in the banking system in Poland and in the institutional framework of financial markets. It is further suggested that a larger participation of foreign, more experienced banks Gould improve efficiency of Poland's financial institutions. It remains debatable whether the banks ought to evolve in the directions of universal or specialized institutions. The financial system is prone to contagion effects of external financial crises as documented by the impact of the Asian and the Russian crisis episodes. Several measures aimed at developing an effective cushion against potential contagion effects of financial crisis are proposed. They include: an effective system of bank monitoring and supervision, a lower reliance on debt in relation to equity, a low (less than a multiple of three) ratio of M2 money to foreign exchange reserves, a higher degree of transparency of financial institutions, more transparent fiscal and monetary policies, and a significant increase in national savings. The advancement of capital account liberalization shall not be restrained by taxes on foreign exchange transactions or by similar measures aimed at containing capital flows. Capital controls could be devastating to still very fragile and volatile Polish financial markets.Financial Markets, Poland
Independence of a Regulatory Institution - a Means to Alleviate Credibility Problems in the CEE Countries
No full textIn Hungary and the Central-European region, state regulation has been at the forefront of interest since the beginning of the economic transition. Among the many interesting questions raised, we would like to analyze the problem of building an appropriate regulatory system allowing the industry to operate efficiently from a social point of view. We use the term "regulatory system" for the description of decision rights. A particular regulatory system amounts to the allocation of decision rights between the different actors in a regulatory game (regulatory agency, government, courts, consumer organizations, competition office). We do not propose a specific incentive scheme, which must be enforced (and is enforceable), instead we concentrate on the possible enforcement mechanisms.credibility, Hungary
Information-processing, technological progress and regional retail networks dynamics
No full textIn underdeveloped regions retail firms play a significant role in employment creation and provide local governments with large part of their tax revenues. The existence of retail networks is usually explained by spatial factors and economies of scale in transportation and/or increasing returns in storage. In many cases, such as trade in services or goods that cannot be transported or stored, these factors are irrelevant. The hypothesis in the paper is that the existence of retail networks can be explained by the rational behaviour of firms operating in a stochastic environment. It is shown that demand uncertainty serves as an independent source of retail trade, and, consequently, the ability of firms to process information and predict demand affects the characteristics of retail networks. The results indicate that (1) risk-averse firms always devote resources to demand forecasting, (2)producers are better off trading with retailers than with final consumers, (3) the volume of output supplied through the retail network is greater than it would be if producers traded directly with consumers (it improves welfare), (4) the size of retail networks is determined by the variance of demand fluctuations, (5) technological progress in data-processing, which decreases uncertainty about demand, also decreases the size of retail networks. This, in turn,reduces employment and tax revenues in underdeveloped regions.
Central Bank Seigniorage: Czech Republic 1993-1997
No full textIn this paper the concept of total gross seigniorage is used to analyze sources and uses of central bank seigniorage revenues in the Czech Republic during the period 1993-1997. A comprehensive framework for measuring total gross seigniorage and its main components is presented and estimates of seigniorage revenues (sources and uses) are computed and analyzed. The study shows that the conventional concept of monetary seigniorage should not be used as an estimate of government gains from money creation. Moreover, the analysis of the scope of budget deficit financing through money printing in the considered period in the Czech Republic presented in the paper shows that revenue from the creation of money has never been extensively used as a tool for financing government expenditures.Seigniorage, Economies in transition, Czech National Bank
Essays on Monetary Integration, Inflation, and Trade Competitiveness in Transition Countries
No full textThis dissertation contains three essays focused on macroeconomic issues in the Commonwealth Independent States (CIS). The aim of the first essay is to analyze the possible impact of planned monetary integration on public sector revenues from seigniorage in Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. Using the concept of total gross seigniorage, the main sources and uses of the central bank revenues in these countries is investigated. Special attention is given to the role of seigniorage revenues in financing public sector expenditures. Amounts of yearly transfers from central banks to the state budget in Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia are evaluated, and the size of potential gains and losses in seigniorage revenues under different scenarios of monetary integration are estimated. The second paper focuses on the question of how labor market regulations can affect a country's competitive position in international trade and international trade patterns. The analysis shows that differences in labor market flexibility between countries affect their competitive positions in international markets and can serve as an independent cause of international trade. It is argued that an increase in labor market flexibility may change the relative price of goods within the country making it more competitive in international..
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