By: Gudrun Johnsen The economic effect of the Covid-19 pandemic varies highly across industrial sectors, education levels and income groups, adding further to inequality across the globe. This calls for highly targeted policy responses for the sake of fiscal prudence and to avoid further economic and financial hardship for those…

By: Rita de la Feria and Agustin Redonda This blog was originally published by Austaxpolicy (here). The economic impact of COVID-19 is both unprecedented and far-reaching. There is now little doubt that the pandemic will disproportionally hit the worse-off, hence exacerbating inequality. It is also clear that the pandemic is…

By: Pierre Monnin An adapted version of this article was originally published (in French) by Le Monde here. The COVID-19 crisis is a stark reminder of how sharply asset values can shift. Amid a crashing demand for oil and gas, giant energy companies like BP, Chevron and Shell massively wrote…

By: Chiara Colesanti Senni and Pierre Monnin Christine Lagarde, the President of the European Central Bank (ECB), this week raised the critical question whether, in view of market failures, market neutrality should remain the guiding principle driving central banks’ policy portfolio management. Her spotlight on market neutrality underscores growing and…

By: Alexander Barkawi The Central Banks and Supervisors Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS), a group of more than 70 central banks and financial supervisors across the globe, has repeatedly highlighted that climate risks are financial risks. Its members have also continuously put a spotlight on the fact that…

By Agustin Redonda Tax expenditures (TEs) — also called tax benefits, tax reliefs, or simply tax subsidies — are used widely to pursue different policy objectives, e.g. boosting innovation and R&D, attracting investment and reducing poverty. Governments worldwide forego significant amounts of revenues through the implementation of these provisions. In…

By Agustin Redonda and Sanjeev Gupta The resources needed for financing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are estimated at US$ 2.5 to 3 trillion per year. According to the IMF, low-income countries (LICs) will need, on average, additional resources amounting to 15.4 percent of GDP to finance the SDGs in…

By: Pierre Monnin The COVID-19 crisis is profoundly and durably transforming our economies. So will the transition to a low-carbon economy, which is necessary to contain the environmental crisis ahead of us. Shifting our economic system from its current state to a sustainable post-COVID version entails large and uncertain transition…

By: Agustin Redonda The economic shock triggered by the current pandemic is unprecedented. The number of victims of COVID-19 has already hit half a million and continues to rise. At the same time, the impact on economic output is massive. According to recent OECD estimates, global economic activity is expected…