IMF Staff Papers articles from November 2008

IMF Staff Papers archives from November 2008

Super cycles in real metals prices?
November 1, 2008... Many market observers believe that metal prices currently in the early phase of a "super cycle" driven by the industrialization and urbanization of the Chinese economy, and perhaps other economies as well. Alan Heap of Citigroup, for example,...

Mortality and lifetime income: evidence from U.S. social security records.
November 1, 2008... Among the most critical issues in designing a public pension scheme are the redistributive aspects of the system. Pension plans, particularly defined benefit plans, can redistribute wealth across population groups in both intended and...

The effect of external conditions on growth in Latin America.
November 1, 2008... Following the economic crises of the late 1990s and the early years of this decade. Latin America has enjoyed an extraordinary recovery. From 2004 to 2007, the region grew at an average rate of over 5 percent, making this period the longest and...

How does the global economic environment influence the demand for IMF resources?
November 1, 2008... Considering the favorable global economic environment over the past few years, it is probably not much of a surprise that the number of IMF arrangements approved recently is well below historical averages. But what--if any--is the link between...

A debt overhang model for low-income countries.
November 1, 2008... Debt overhang--the relationship between heavy debt and low growth is a fundamental concept in the literature that argues in favor of debt relief. Unfortunately, the majority of existing theoretical models are designed for middle-income...