Fiscal Monitor
As the global economy faces increasing fiscal challenges, multilateral surveillance of fiscal developments has become an important part of the IMF’s surveillance responsibilities. The Fiscal Monitor series provides an overview of latest public finance developments, updates the medium-term fiscal outlook, and assesses fiscal implications of policies relevant to the global economy.
The Fiscal Monitor is prepared twice a year by the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department. Its projections are based on the same database used for the World Economic Outlook (WEO) and the Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR). The fiscal projections for individual countries have been prepared by IMF desk economists, and, in line with the WEO guidelines.
2022
Fiscal Monitor, April 2022
April 6, 2022
Amidst pandemic legacies and the war, fiscal policy needs to address the humanitarian crisis and economic disruption while being flexible and ready to adjust as the outlook becomes clearer.
2021
Fiscal Monitor, October 2021
October 7, 2021
Fiscal Monitor Chapter 1 - This report explains how committing to sound public finances, with a credible set of rules and institutions to guide fiscal policy, can help governments address challenges as they try to recover from the pandemic.
Fiscal Monitor, April 2021
April 1, 2021
The April 2021 edition of the Fiscal Monitor focuses on tailoring fiscal responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and adopting policies to reduce inequality and gaps in access to quality public services.
Fiscal Monitor Update, January 2021
January 20, 2021
Flexible government actions are necessary to ensure swift and extensive vaccine rollouts, protect the most vulnerable households and otherwise viable firms, and foster a durable and inclusive recovery. This Fiscal Monitor Update analyzes measures to date and the scope for more, depending on country circumstances, and tracing the implications for fiscal debts and deficits.
2020
Fiscal Monitor, October 2020 - Policies for the Recovery
October 14, 2020
Chapter 1 of the October 2020 Fiscal Monitor discusses fiscal policies during and after the pandemic that save lives and livelihoods and revive growth and job creation. Chapter 2 of the October 2020 Fiscal Monitor discusses how public investment can contribute to the recovery, create jobs, and strengthen resilience to future crises.
Fiscal Monitor - April 2020
April 6, 2020
Chapter 1 of April 2020 edition of Fiscal Monitor
discusses fiscal policies to support people in response to the COVID-19
pandemic. Chapter 2 of the April 2020 edition of the Fiscal
Monitor discusses fiscal policies to reinvigorate economic growth and
counter adverse macroeconomic shocks. Chapter 3 discusses how state-owned enterprises have
evolved in recent decades and how countries can get the most out of them.
2019
Fiscal Monitor: How to Mitigate Climate Change
October 16, 2019
This report emphasizes the environmental, fiscal, economic, and administrative case for using carbon taxes, or similar pricing schemes such as emission trading systems, to implement climate mitigation strategies. It provides a quantitative framework for understanding their effects and trade-offs with other instruments and applies it to the largest advanced and emerging economies. Alternative approaches, like “feebates” to impose fees on high polluters and give rebates to cleaner energy users, can play an important role when higher energy prices are difficult politically. At the international level, the report calls for a carbon price floor arrangement among large emitters, designed flexibly to accommodate equity considerations and constraints on national policies. The report estimates the consequences of carbon pricing and redistribution of its revenues for inequality across households. Strategies for enhancing the political acceptability of carbon pricing are discussed, along with supporting measures to promote clean technology investments.
Fiscal Monitor: Curbing Corruption
April 1, 2019
This report discusses fiscal policies to prepare for the next downturn and foster long-term inclusive growth by adapting to changing demographics, advancing technology, and deepening global integration. It also covers recent fiscal developments and the fiscal outlook in advanced economies, emerging markets, and low-income developing countries; recent trends in government debt and analysis of changes in fiscal balances, revenue, and spending; and potential fiscal risks. The report takes on in-depth look at how corruption impacts government policies and operations, the fiscal costs, and how fiscal institutions can help fight corruption.
2018
IMF Fiscal Monitor: Managing Public Wealth, October 2018
October 4, 2018
Public sector balance sheets bring together the entirety of what the state owns and owes, offering a broader fiscal picture beyond debt and deficits. Once governments understand the size and nature of public assets, they can start managing them more effectively, raising considerable additional revenue. Also, public sector balance sheet analysis allows for better risk management and policymaking. The Fiscal Monitor provides governments the tools to analyze the resilience of public finances. By identifying risks within the balance sheet, governments can act to manage or mitigate those risks early, rather than dealing with the consequences after problems occur. Balance sheet analysis raises the tenor of the policy debate, asking how public wealth can be better used to meet society’s economic and social goals.
IMF Fiscal Monitor: Capitalizing on Good Times, April 2018
April 6, 2018
The April 2018 edition of Fiscal Monitor is focused on two broad themes: the burden of high global debt and the opportunities and challenges of digital government.