Fiscal Policy and the Current Account

• Published in: IMF economic review Vol. 59; no. 4; pp. 603 - 629
• Main Authors: ABBAS, S. M. ALI, BOUHCA-HAGBE, JACQUES, FATÁS, ANTONIO, MAURO, PAOLO, VELLOSO, RICARDO C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Palgrave Macmillan 2011; Palgrave Macmillan UK; Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. (Springer)
• Series: IMF Economic Review
• Subjects: Analysis; C01; C40; Capital Markets; Consumption; Developing countries; E60; E61; E62; E65; Economic conditions; Economic development; Economic growth; Economic Policy; Economic theory; Economics; Economics and Finance; Emerging markets; Exports; Financial economics; Fiscal policy; Fixed exchange rates; Floating exchange rates; Foreign exchange rates; GDP; Government spending; Gross Domestic Product; Interest rates; International Economics; International monetary fund; International trade; Labor supply; Low income groups; Macroeconomics/Monetary Economics//Financial Economics; Management; Real exchange rates; Solvency; Studies; Tax increases; Value-added resellers; United States; E62; E61; E65; C01; E60; C40
• ISSN: 2041-4161; 2041-417X
• DOI: 10.1057/imfer.2011.22

This paper examines the relationship between fiscal policy and the current account, drawing on a large sample of advanced, emerging, and low-income economies and using a variety of statistical methods: panel regressions, an analysis of large fiscal policy and current account changes, and panel vector autor egressions (VAR). On average, across estimation methods, a strengthening in the fiscal balance by 1 percentage point of GDP is associated with a current account improvement of about 0.3 percentage point of GDP. With our preferred estimation method (quarterly structural VAR using government consumption to identify fiscal policy shocks), the relationship is stronger, in the 0.3–0.5 range. The association is stronger in emerging markets and low-income countries; in economies that are more open to trade; and when the economy is somewhat overheated to begin with. The effect is, however, notably weaker during episodes of large fiscal policy and current account changes, suggesting that fiscal policy may have a more limited role in correcting large external imbalances.