scholarly journals The Fiscal Policy of Bulgaria from the Standpoints of the Business Cycle and the Twin Deficits Hypothesis

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 256-269
Author(s):  
I. Todorov ◽  
◽  
K. Durova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Business Cycle ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Currency Board ◽  
Twin Deficits ◽  
State Budget ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
The Business Cycle ◽  
The Current Account

Macroeconomic management of a small open economy in a currency board arrangement faces two serious problems: first, under a fixed exchange rate, fiscal policy is the only effective macroeconomic instrument for smoothing out the business cycle; second, the twin deficits phenomenon, if it exists, may jeopardize the stability of the currency board arrangement. This paper uses quarterly seasonally adjusted Eurostat data for the period of 1999–2019, the Hodrick–Prescott filter and a vector autoregression (VAR) to answer the three questions that are of utmost importance to Bulgarian policy-makers: first, is the discretionary fiscal policy of the Bulgarian government procyclical or countercyclical? Second, do the automatic stabilizers in the Bulgarian state budget function properly? Finally, is the twin deficits hypothesis valid for Bulgaria? Our findings imply that the fiscal discretion of the Bulgarian government is procyclical, while the automatic fiscal stabilizers do not work effectively. The first part of the twin deficits hypothesis (the causal link between the fiscal balance and the current account balance) is confirmed but the second part of the twin deficits hypothesis (the positive relationship between the fiscal balance and the current account balance) is rejected for Bulgaria. It may be inferred that both sides of the Bulgarian state budget (revenue and expenditure) need to be improved in order to increase the effectiveness of Bulgaria’s fiscal policy. Low budget deficits (not higher than 3% of GDP) are recommended for improving the current account balance and encouraging economic growth.

scholarly journals The Influence of Taxes on Inflows and Outflows of Foreign Direct Investment

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 244-255
Author(s):  
I. M. Drapkin ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Open Economy ◽  
Small Open Economy ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Currency Board ◽  
Twin Deficits ◽  
State Budget ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
The Current Account

Macroeconomic management of a small open economy in a currency board arrangement faces two serious problems: first, under a fixed exchange rate, fiscal policy is the only effective macroeconomic instrument for smoothing out the business cycle; second, the twin deficits phenomenon, if it exists, may jeopardize the stability of the currency board arrangement. This paper uses quarterly seasonally adjusted Eurostat data for the period of 1999–2019, the Hodrick–Prescott filter and a vector autoregression (VAR) to answer the three questions that are of utmost importance to Bulgarian policy-makers: first, is the discretionary fiscal policy of the Bulgarian government procyclical or countercyclical? Second, do the automatic stabilizers in the Bulgarian state budget function properly? Finally, is the twin deficits hypothesis valid for Bulgaria? Our findings imply that the fiscal discretion of the Bulgarian government is procyclical, while the automatic fiscal stabilizers do not work effectively. The first part of the twin deficits hypothesis (the causal link between the fiscal balance and the current account balance) is confirmed but the second part of the twin deficits hypothesis (the positive relationship between the fiscal balance and the current account balance) is rejected for Bulgaria. It may be inferred that both sides of the Bulgarian state budget (revenue and expenditure) need to be improved in order to increase the effectiveness of Bulgaria’s fiscal policy. Low budget deficits (not higher than 3% of GDP) are recommended for improving the current account balance and encouraging economic growth.

scholarly journals Występowanie deficytów bliźniaczych w wybranych państwach Unii Europejskiej i w Polsce w latach 2009–2018

2021 ◽  
pp. 157-178
Author(s):  
Izabela , Piotr Cirin Zawiślińska ◽  
Piotr Cirin
Keyword(s):  
Current Account ◽  
Debt Crisis ◽  
Balance Of Payments ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Budget Deficits ◽  
Twin Deficits ◽  
State Budget ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Internal Balance ◽  
The Current Account

The aim of the article is to determine the degree, direction and strength of impact of the studied variables, i.e. the state budget balance and the current account balance as part of Poland's balance of payments in the years 2009-2018 against the background of selected European Union (EU) countries. The main research questions focus on determining the type of relationships connecting the studied deficits in the light of previous studies dedicated to the twin deficits hypothesis. The methodology used is based on integrated correlation analysis, linear regression and an analysis of the coefficient of variation. As a result of the study, a strong correlation was found between the cumulative values of the studied deficits, which confirms the existence of the twin deficits hypothesis in Poland in the examined period and means that the budget deficit affects the current account balance. A change in the cumulative balance of the budget by 1% leads to a change in the cumulative balance of the current account of the balance of payments by 0.89%. It can be presumed that the problem of budget deficits and the related debt crisis as well as balance of payments balances under the dichotomy of "surplus north" and "deficit south" in the next decade will be one of the most conflicting and disintegrative for the EU. Thus, the search for a path to budget (internal) balance and balance of payments (external) is one of the key challenges for maintaining cohesion and maintaining sustainable development both in Poland and the entire EU.

scholarly journals Contradicting the twin deficits hypothesis: The role of tax revenues composition

2014 ◽  
Vol 61 (6) ◽  
pp. 653-667 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alka Obadic ◽  
Tomislav Globan ◽  
Ozana Nadoveza
Keyword(s):  
Current Account ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Twin Deficits ◽  
Main Hypothesis ◽  
Tax Revenues ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
Tax Systems ◽  
The Current Account

The general theory of twin deficits hypothesis does not consider specific characteristics of domestic tax systems, i.e. whether the revenue side of the budget is dominated by indirect or by direct taxes. The main hypothesis of the paper is that in countries with fiscal systems dominated by indirect taxes, the deterioration of the current account balance would imply higher fiscal revenues due to larger imports and consumption. The hypothesis is based on the characteristics of domestic tax systems of Bulgaria, Croatia, Poland and Romania in which indirect tax revenues account for the majority of total budget tax revenues. Results suggest that the co-movements of the current account and the fiscal balance cannot be explained by the twin deficit theory in countries with indirect tax-oriented systems. These results imply that only the structural economic transformation and export orientation of the economy may reverse the causality direction between two deficits.

What Explains Current Account Surplus in Korea?

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 70-93
Author(s):  
Chirok Han ◽  
Kwanho Shin
Keyword(s):  
Exchange Rate ◽  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Budget Deficits ◽  
Current Account Surplus ◽  
Short Run ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Current Account

Since the currency crisis in 1998, Korea has experienced continuous current account surpluses. Recently, the current account surplus increased more rapidly—amounting to 7.7 percent of GDP in 2015. In this paper, we investigate the underlying reasons for the widening of Korea's current account surpluses. We find that the upward trend in Korea's current account surpluses is largely explained by its demographical changes. Other economic variables are only helpful when explaining short run fluctuations in current account balances. Moreover, we show that Korea's current account surplus is expected to disappear by 2042 as it becomes one of the most aged economies in the world. Demographic changes are so powerful that they explain, quite successfully, the current account balance trends of other economies with highly aged populations such as Japan, Germany, Italy, Finland, and Greece. When we add the real exchange rate as an additional explanatory variable, it is statistically significant with the right sign, but the magnitude explained by it is quite limited. For example, to reduce the current account surplus by 1 percentage point, a 12 percent depreciation is needed. If Korea's current exchange rate is undervalued 4 to 12 percent less than the level consistent with fundamentals, it is impossible to reduce Korea's current account surplus to a reasonable level by adjusting the exchange rate alone. Another way to reduce current account surplus is to expand fiscal policies. We find, however, that the impact of fiscal adjustments in reducing current account surplus is even more limited. According to our estimates, reducing the current account surplus by 1 percentage point requires an increase in budget deficits (as a ratio to GDP) of 5 to 6 percentage points. If we allow endogenous movements of exchange rate and fiscal policy, the impact of exchange rate adjustment increases by 1.6 times but that of fiscal policy decreases that it is no longer statistically significant.

scholarly journals The Twin Deficits Phenomenon: Evidence from Pakistan

2000 ◽  
Vol 39 (4II) ◽  
pp. 535-550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anjum Aqeel ◽  
Mohammed Nishat
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Budget Deficit ◽  
Current Account Deficit ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Improved Performance ◽  
Necessary And Sufficient ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Current Account

Like most developing countries a steady budget deficit in Pakistan is the primary cause of all major ills of the economy. It has varied between 5.4 to 8.7 percent during last two decades. On the other hand the current account deficit varied between 2.7 to 7.2 percent during the same period. The variations in fiscal policy can lead to predictable developments in an open economy’s performance on current account, remains a controversial issue. An important aspect of this issue concerns what is termed as twin deficit analysis, according to which fiscal deficits and current account balances are very closely related so that reductions in the former are both necessary and sufficient to obtain improved performance in the later. Theoretical work on the relationship that exist between variations in fiscal policy and the current account balance has been based upon two types of models. These models are constructed from postulated behavioural relationships that purport to describe how the economy works in aggregate without explaining the behaviour of agents who make up the economy [Mundel (1963); Branson (1976); Dornbusch (1976); Kawai (1985) and Marston (1985)]. The second type of model, derives the important macroeconomic relationships from the microfoundations of individual optimising behaviour [Dixit (1978); Neary (1980); Obstfeld (1981); Persson (1982); Kimbrough (1985); Frenkel and Razin (1986); Cuddington and Vinals (1985, 1986a) and Moore (1989)]. However, both of these approaches have yielded divergent results.

scholarly journals Analyzing Fiscal Balance Evolution for Developed and Emerging Countries

2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 299-310
Author(s):  
Gheorghita Dinca ◽  
Marius Sorin Dinca ◽  
Catalina Popione
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Public Debt ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Time Interval ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Sustainable Fiscal Policy ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
Sustainable Economic Growth

The purpose of our paper is to analyze the main factors which influence fiscal balance’s evolution and thereby identify solutions for configuring a sustainable fiscal policy. We have selected as independent variables some of the main macroeconomic measures, respectively public debt, unemployment rate, economy openness degree, population, consumer goods’ price index, current account balance, direct foreign investments and economic growth rate. Our research method uses two econometric models applied on a sample of 22 countries, respectively 14 developed and 8 emergent. The first model is a multiple regression and studies the connection between the fiscal balance and selected independent variables, whereas the second one uses first order differences and introduces economic freedom as a dummy variable to catch the dynamic influences of selected measures upon fiscal result. The time interval considered was 1999-2013. The results generated using the two models revealed that public debt, current account balance and economic growth significantly influence the fiscal balance. As a consequence, the governments need to plan and implement a fiscal policy which resonates with economy priorities and the phase of the economic cycle, as well as ensure a proper management of the public debt, stimulate sustainable economic growth and employment.

scholarly journals EXAMINING THE TWIN DEFICIT HYPOTHESIS: EVIDENCE FROM SELECTED SADC COUNTRIES (1980-2011)

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
REGINALD CHAONEKA
Keyword(s):  
Granger Causality ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Causal Relation ◽  
Granger Causality Test ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Fiscal Consolidation ◽  
Causality Test ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
The Current Account

This paper investigates the existence of a causal relationship between fiscal balance and current account balance over the period 1980-2011, for nine SADC countries individually. The analysis is conducted within the framework of Granger causality test and Vector Auto Regression (VAR) approach on time series data for each individual country estimates. The Granger causality test results confirm the twin-deficit relationship, with a causal relation from fiscal deficits to external deficits for two countries: Malawi and Zambia together with SADC group average; inverse link operating from external balance to fiscal balance for another two countries: Zimbabwe and Swaziland. Existence of bi-directional causality was confirmed for Botswana and Ricardian Equivalence Hypothesis was confirmed for Mozambique. Results for Angola, South Africa and Seychelles were ambiguous hence inconclusive. The results point to the existence of a direct causal link from fiscal deficit to external deficit. There are indications that fiscal tightening (budget cuts) tends to correct the current account deficit directly. There is need for government to develop new exports, primary products beneficiation (value addition), use of nanotechnology and nurturing new export industries as a long-term measure.In Zimbabwe and to some extent Swaziland the current account can be used to address the budget balance. Countries such as Malawi and Zambia, which have shown evidence of the twin deficit, imply that policymakers must consider fiscal consolidation. Fiscal consolidation has proved to be effective;however half-hearted fiscal adjustments are doomed to fail. The relationship between the twomacroeconomic variables changes over time depending on the dynamics of the economy. Again, given the intricacies that are innate in mixed economies, it may not be possible to authenticate a tight and steady connection between the two deficits. Government Organizations.

scholarly journals Fiscal Policy and Current Account Dynamics in the Case of Pakistan

2010 ◽  
Vol 49 (4II) ◽  
pp. 577-592 ◽  
Author(s):  
Attiya Y. Javid ◽  
Muhammad Javid ◽  
Umiama Arif
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Current Account ◽  
Government Spending ◽  
Ricardian Equivalence ◽  
Fiscal Deficit ◽  
Budget Deficits ◽  
Current Account Deficits ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
Private Savings ◽  
The Current Account

The relationship between fiscal policy and the current account has long attracted interest among academic economists and policymakers after introduction of the standard intertemporal model of the current account by Sachs (1981) and its extension by Obstfeld and Rogoff, (1995) in open economy macroeconomics. There are two major strands of the current account literature Mundell-Fleming [Mundell (1968) and Fleming (1967)] and Ricardian equivalence [Barro (1974, 1989)] to explain such variations in the deficits. According to Mundell-Fleming model budget deficits cause current account deficits through stimulating income growth or exchange rate appreciation [Darrat (1988); Abell (1990); Bachman (1992) and Bahmani-Oskooee (1992)]. On the other hand, there is Ricardian view that the financing of budget deficits, either through reduced taxes or by issuing bond does not alter present value wealth of private households since both temporarily reduced taxes and issuance of bonds represent future tax liabilities [Kaufmann, et al. (2002); Evans (1989); Miller and Russek (1989); Enders and Lee (1990) and Kim (1995)]. The underlying reason is that the effects of fiscal deficits on the current account depend on the nature of the fiscal imbalance. For example, in a simple theoretical model in which Ricardian equivalence holds, a cut in lump sum taxes and the ensuing fiscal deficit would not affect the current account as the private savings increase will offset the fiscal deficit but investment will be unchanged. Conversely, a transitory increase in government spending will increase both the fiscal deficit and the current account deficit, a case of twin deficits. And a permanent increase in government spending will have no effects on the current account while its effects on the fiscal balance will depend on whether the extra spending is financed right away with taxes (in which case the fiscal balance is unchanged) or whether it is financed with debt (future taxes) in which case the fiscal balance worsens. Thus, fiscal deficit may or may not lead to current account deficits depending on the nature and persistence of the fiscal shock. There is also a third scenario relate to Recardian view that portrays the possibility of negative relationship between the deficits where, for example, output shock give rise to endogenous movements and two deficits are divergent.

IMF Stabilization Programs, Policy Conduct and Macroeconomic Outcomes: A Case Study of Pakistan

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-62
Author(s):  
Nawaz A. Hakro ◽  
Wadho Waqar Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Current Account ◽  
Inflation Rate ◽  
Current Account Balance ◽  
Macroeconomic Policies ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
Fiscal Balance ◽  
Macroeconomic Impacts ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Imf

This study is designed to assess the macroeconomic performance of fund-supported programs, and the sequencing and ordering of macroeconomic policies in the context of the Pakistan economy. The generalized evaluation estimator technique has been used to assess the macroeconomic impacts of the IMF supported programs. GDP growth, inflation rate, current account balance, fiscal balance and unemployment are used as the target variables in order to gauge economic performance during the program years. The vector of policy variables (that might have been adopted in the absence of programs) and the vector of foreign exogenous variables are also taken as explanatory variables in the model, so that the individual effect of the IMF supported programs could be assessed. The result suggests that as the IMF prescriptions were applied, the current account balance has worsened, the unemployment rate has significantly increased, and the inflation rate has increased during the years of fund-supported programs. Only the budget balance has shown signs of improvement. Furthermore an inadequate sequencing of reforms has contributed to the further worsening of the economic scenario during the program period.

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