New Challenges in the Use of Government Debt Issuance Procedures, Techniques and Policies in OECD Markets

Government debt issuance procedures and policies differ across OECD jurisdictions, in particular in terms of technical standards for selling techniques, primary dealer systems and other primary market arrangements. However, the increased integration of global financial markets (including the jump in the integration of European government debt markets since the introduction of the Euro) has been an important catalyst in the

OECD Sovereign Borrowing Outlook 2009

Many OECD governments are facing unprecedented challenges in the markets for bonds and bills, as a result of the explosive growth in their borrowing needs. Amidst an unusually uncertain economic outlook, the gross borrowing needs of OECD governments are expected to reach almost USD 12 trillion in 2009. The key policy issue is how to raise smoothly new funds at low cost, while also managing a rapidly growing debt stock. For the time

Dealing with the financial crisis and thinking about the exit strategy

This article looks at the stages of crisis management and some of the different degrees of transparency on losses and risks in the US and Europe. It also compares alternative approaches to dealing with impaired assets used in the USA and Europe. Exposure to off-balance losses remains a key issue. Europe, surprisingly, has been and remains the major issuer of collateralised synthetic obligations that have been so prominent in the

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• OECD Journal: Financial Market Trends

Expanded Government Guarantees for Bank Liabilities: Selected Issues

Government provision of a safety net for financial institutions has been a key element of the policy response to the current crisis. In the process, existing guarantees have been expanded and new ones introduced, including, in particular, in relation to bank liabilities. Among other things, such guarantees create costs that arise as a result of potential distortions of incentives and competition. To limit such distortions it is

Security-Related Terms in International Investment Law and in National Security Strategies

Building a workable framework for international investment policy requires developing a mutually-understood vocabulary for key policy terms. This fact-finding study, prepared in support of discussions at a March 2009 “Freedom of Investment” Roundtable hosted at the OECD, explores the meaning of three terms – essential security interests, public order and national security – that are used frequently in international policy dialogue,

Retirement Saving and the Payout Phase: how to get there and how to get the most out of it

In the wake of a dramatic financial crisis and with the first waves of baby boomers approaching retirement we hardly need to think about how best arrive at the pension funds’ payout phase. This paper argues that there is a urgent need to raise retirement saving, to reduce defined contribution plan members’ exposure to investment risks and to provide the financial industry with cheap and safe payout instruments. These challenges are

Investment policies and economic crises: lessons from the past

The present crisis, the deepest and most widespread in our lifetimes, is causing economic hardship worldwide. This paper reviews the experience of earlier crises – whether national, international or sectoral – to understand better both the nature of the various investment policy responses and their implications for international investment and long-term sustainable growth. These policy responses are then compared with recent measures