Economic Fluctuations in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author/Editor:

Giovanni Melina ; Rafael A Portillo

Publication Date:

March 5, 2018

Electronic Access:

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Summary:

We compare business cycle fluctuations in Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries vis-à-vis the rest of the world. Our main results are as follows: (i) African economies stand out by their macroeconomic volatility, which is is reflected in the volatility of output and other macro variables; (ii) inflation and output tend to be negatively correlated; (iii) unlike advanced economies and emerging markets (EMs), trade balances and current accounts are acyclical in SSA; (iv) the volatility of consumption and investment relative to GDP is larger than in other countries; (v) the cyclicality of consumption and investment is smaller than in advanced economies and EMs; (vi) there is little comovement between consumption and investment; (vii) consumption and investment are strongly positively correlated with imports.

Series:

Working Paper No. 2018/040

Subject:

English

Publication Date:

March 5, 2018

ISBN/ISSN:

9781484344880/1018-5941

Stock No:

WPIEA2018040

Pages:

32

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