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Debt securities dominated portfolio inflows into emerging markets in January 2021. Jonathan Fortun reports $44.2 billion entering debt and $9.4 billion entering equities, with Chinese stocks receiving $6.2 billion of the equity flows. The composition shows how heavily the continued recovery depended on bond investment.
Read the workLarge pandemic deficits were set to keep government funding requirements elevated even as emerging economies recovered. Jonathan Fortun and Sergi Lanau develop a framework to monitor those needs and the currency composition of debt service. Their February 2021 assessment identifies Brazil and South Africa as facing the highest public financing requirements that year.
Read the workThe authors compare US and euro-area output-gap estimates with core inflation using Phillips curves, highlighting the uncertainty involved in measuring economic slack.
Read the workThe report estimates the relationship between economic growth and job creation in emerging markets, asking whether slower underlying growth can support adequate employment outcomes.
Read the workHow bond yields react to unexpectedly strong data can reveal whether markets trust central bank guidance. Robin Brooks and Jonathan Fortun revisit turning points in the 2013 taper tantrum, when positive surprises increasingly pushed US rates higher. Their January 2021 comparison uses that experience to assess the credibility of the Federal Reserve’s new average inflation targeting framework.
Read the workThe pandemic widened emerging market fiscal deficits largely through higher spending, making an economic recovery alone insufficient to restore earlier balances. A new dataset of historical spending surges shows that much of the increase often becomes permanent. The January 2021 analysis therefore frames deficit reduction as a spending adjustment challenge as well as a growth question.
Read the workA strong December rebound brought emerging market portfolio inflows to $313 billion for 2020. Jonathan Fortun reports $45.9 billion entering during the final month, comprising $29.3 billion in equities and $16.6 billion in debt. Chinese equities accounted for $13.2 billion of December’s inflows into stocks.
Read the workAccess to international bond markets improved for emerging and frontier borrowers during 2020. Jonathan Fortun and coauthors find the recovery concentrated in sovereigns with investment grade ratings, while riskier issuers also regained access. Côte d’Ivoire’s return marked the first issuance from sub Saharan Africa since the pandemic began, with Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria expected to follow in 2021.
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