Fiscal Policy

IMF Fiscal Indicators

IMF Fiscal Monitor Crisis spreads to other countries Background Reading

Can you run a deficit every year?

If then Debt-to-GDP ratio stays stable. If > then deficit is “unsustainable” Sustainable Deficit A growing economy allows the government to borrow some money every year and still keep debt in line with overall GDP

Primary Deficit Simplified Government Budget Primary Expenditure (Total Expenditure less Interest Paid) - Primary Revenue (Total Revenue less Interest Income) Primary Budget Deficit + Net Interest Payments on Existing Debt General Budget Deficit

Sustainable Primary Deficit If then stays stable.

Primary Balance % of GDP

Types of Taxes Taxes on Value Added and Imports + Taxes on Income and Wealth (Income Taxes, Corporate Profits Tax, Capital Gains Taxes, Property Taxes) + Social Security Contributions Total Taxes

Tax Revenues % of GDP Greece Germany Revenue Statistics - Comparative tables aspx

Types of Expenditure Consumption Expenditure + Compensation of Gov’t Employees + Gross Capital Formation + Social Benefits & Transfer Payments Primary Expenditure Goods expenditure measured in GDP

Consequences of Deficits Austerity Inflation Default

P Y Y*Y* AD Austerity and the Output Gap P*P* SRAS YPYP AD ′ Economy in LT equilibrium 2.Government imposes austerity program – cuts spending, transfers, inceases taxes 3.AD Curve shifts inward. Recessionary Gap

Austerity has a negative effect on business cycles. IMF

Deficits and Inflation Government generates revenues by printing new money (referred to as seignorage). Government facing borrowing constraints may be forced to rely on inflation tax for deficit financing and real returns to owning money. Explain the link between deficits and inflation.

Israel

Default and Restructuring Argentina IMF Study BBC Story

Stabilization policy In an economy subject to shocks to aggregate demand (animal spirit shocks, external shocks, asset market shocks), the economy will have a self-correcting mechanism. However, if this self-correction mechanism takes a long time to work, then government may use policy to speed adjustment. ◦ Use expansionary policy to close a recessionary gap ◦ Use contractionary policy to close an inflationary gap

P Y Y*Y* AD Demand Driven Recession w/ Counter-cyclical fiscal policy P*P* SRAS YPYP AD ′ Economy in LT equilibrium 2.Demand shifts in 3.Government increases spending to shift the AD curve back 3 Recessionary Gap

P Y Y*Y* AD Demand Driven Expansion w/ Counter-cyclical fiscal policy P*P* SRAS YPYP AD ′ Economy in LT equilibrium 2.Demand shifts out 3.Government cuts spending to shift the AD curve back 3 Inflationary Gap

Lags and Fiscal Policy Administrative lags for fiscal policy may likely be large. Except in absolute dictatorships, government will have mechanisms for building a consensus for expenditures. Adjusting this consensus will be time consuming. If lags are too long, stabilizing government spending or transfer payments may have a destabilizing effect, shifting out demand after the economy has already recovered.

Tax Smoothing Governments in most economies issue debt to make up for shortfalls in revenues in relation to spending. Budget Deficit = Outlays – Revenues Tax collection is cyclical so the budget deficit tends to be counter-cyclical. Maintaining a balanced budget over the cycle means raising taxes in a recession an cutting taxes in a boom which makes the business cycle more extreme.

Learning Outcomes Use growth rate of GDP, interest rates, and the debt to GDP ratio to identify the sustainable general and primary deficit level. Use AS-AD model to identify the effects of fiscal policy on the output gap and the inflation rate.