

International Monetary Fund
The latest research, analysis and thought leadership on pressing economic and policy issues of the day—written by IMF staff and officials.
Latest articles from International Monetary Fund
The Evidence Is in on Negative Interest Rate Policies
Interest rates are low, and “lower for longer” has become something of a mantra among policy makers, regulators, and other market watchers. But negative interest rates raise an entirely new set of questions. After eight years of experience with negat...
Staying Afloat: New Measures to Support European Businesses
Much of Europe rang in the start of 2021 with new lockdowns and weak economic activity. Europe now needs to gradually change the support to firms from providing liquidity toward strengthening their equity. With containment measures preventing many fi...
The Haves and Have-nots Of the Digital Age
Accelerated by the pandemic, the digital future is coming at us faster than ever before, and maybe faster than we can imagine. In this issue, we explore the possible consequences—the good, the bad, and the gray. Automation has destroyed jobs, some pe...


The Great Divergence: A Fork in the Road for the Global Economy
As G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meet virtually this week, the world continues to climb back from the worst recession in peacetime since the Great Depression. But it is going to be a long and uncertain ascent. Before the crisis, we...


Structural Factors and Central Bank Credibility Limit Inflation Risks
After ending last year with unexpectedly strong vaccine success and hope that the pandemic and economic distress it caused would recede, we woke up to the reality of new virus variants and the unpredictable, winding road that it can lead the world do...
Public and Private Money Can Coexist in the Digital Age
We value innovation and diversity—including in money. Anne’s 10 dollars in Bank A can be transferred to Bob’s Bank B because they are redeemed into central bank currency in between—an asset both banks trust, hold, and can exchange. In short, the opti...