Additional Spending and Forgone Revenue in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

(Percent of G20

Budgetary fiscal support to people and firms has varied widely across countries.
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Current Fiscal Issues

Fiscal Monitor: Policies for the Recovery

Chapter 1 - Fiscal Policies to Address the COVID-19 Pandemic

The report draws some early lessons from governments’ fiscal responses to the pandemic and provides a roadmap for the recovery. Governments’ measures to cushion the blow from the pandemic total a staggering $12 trillion globally. These lifelines and the worldwide recession have pushed global public debt to an all-time high. But governments should not withdraw lifelines too rapidly. Government support should shift gradually from protecting old jobs to getting people back to work and helping viable but still-vulnerable firms safely reopen. The fiscal measures for the recovery are an opportunity to make the economy more inclusive and greener.

Chapter 2 - Public Investment for the Recovery

This chapter argues that governments need to scale up public investment to ensure successful reopening, boost growth, and prepare economies for the future. Low interest rates make borrowing to invest desirable. Countries that cannot access finance will, however, need to do more with less. The chapter explains how investment can be scaled up while preserving quality. Increasing public investment by 1 percent of GDP in advanced and emerging economies could create 7 million jobs directly, and more than 20 million jobs indirectly. Investments in healthcare, housing, digitalization, and the environment would lay the foundations for a more resilient and inclusive economy.

Special Series on COVID-19

The Special Series notes are produced by IMF experts to help members address the economic effects of COVID-19. The series addresses issues in tax policy, tax administration, public financial management, expenditure policy, and macro-fiscal policies.

Global debt  

Global debt is at all times high.



Blogs

Fiscal Policy for an Unprecedented Crisis


Public Investment for the Recovery


Mission Impossible? Can Fragile States Increase Tax Revenues?


How Strong Infrastructure Governance Can End Waste in Public Investment
Aging Economies May Benefit Less from Fiscal Stimulus


Technical Notes

Background Note: Finance in Common Summit, November 2020
How to Design Tax Policy in Fragile States
Revenue Administration : Short-Term Measures to Increase Customs Revenue in Low-Income and Fragile Countries
Tax Expenditure Reporting and Its Use in Fiscal Management : A Guide for Developing Economies

Working Papers

Country Reports