IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/imf/imfwpa/2018-189.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Fiscal Transparency, Borrowing Costs, and Foreign Holdings of Sovereign Debt

Author

Listed:
  • Laurent Kemoe
  • Zaijin Zhan

Abstract

This paper explores the effects of fiscal transparency on the borrowing costs of 33 emerging and developing economies (EMs), and on foreign demand for their sovereign debt. Using multiple indicators, including a constructed one based on the published data in the IMF’s Government Finance Statistics Yearbook, we measure the separate effects of the three dimensions of fiscal transparency: openness of the budget process, fiscal data transparency, and accountability of fiscal actors. The results suggest that higher fiscal transparency reduces sovereign interest rate spreads and increases foreign holdings of sovereign debt, with each dimension of fiscal transparency playing a different role. Availability of detailed cross-country comparable fiscal data, especially for balance sheet items, has shown to increase foreign investors’ willingness in holding EM sovereign debt.

Suggested Citation

  • Laurent Kemoe & Zaijin Zhan, 2018. "Fiscal Transparency, Borrowing Costs, and Foreign Holdings of Sovereign Debt," IMF Working Papers 2018/189, International Monetary Fund.
    • Handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2018/189
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.aspx?sk=46180
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Guillermo A. Calvo & Leonardo Leiderman & Carmen M. Reinhart, 1996. "Inflows of Capital to Developing Countries in the 1990s," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 10(2), pages 123-139, Spring.
    2. Serkan Arslanalp & Tigran Poghosyan, 2016. "Foreign Investor Flows and Sovereign Bond Yields in Advanced Economies," Journal of Banking and Financial Economics, University of Warsaw, Faculty of Management, vol. 2(6), pages 45-67, June.
    3. Chinn, Menzie D. & Ito, Hiro, 2006. "What matters for financial development? Capital controls, institutions, and interactions," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(1), pages 163-192, October.
    4. Jing Cynthia Wu & Fan Dora Xia, 2016. "Measuring the Macroeconomic Impact of Monetary Policy at the Zero Lower Bound," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 48(2-3), pages 253-291, March.
    5. Comelli, Fabio, 2012. "Emerging market sovereign bond spreads: Estimation and back-testing," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 598-625.
    6. Elif Arbatli & Julio Escolano, 2015. "Fiscal Transparency, Fiscal Performance and Credit Ratings," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 36, pages 237-270, June.
    7. International Monetary Fund, 2005. "Fiscal Transparency and Economic Outcomes," IMF Working Papers 2005/225, International Monetary Fund.
    8. Sangyup Choi & Ms. Yuko Hashimoto, 2017. "The Effects of Data Transparency Policy Reforms on Emerging Market Sovereign Bond Spreads," IMF Working Papers 2017/074, International Monetary Fund.
    9. Edwards, Sebastian, 1986. "The pricing of bonds and bank loans in international markets : An empirical analysis of developing countries' foreign borrowing," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 565-589, June.
    10. Ms. Elif C Arbatli Saxegaard, 2011. "Economic Policies and FDI Inflows to Emerging Market Economies," IMF Working Papers 2011/192, International Monetary Fund.
    11. Mr. Sanjeev Gupta & Mr. Amine Mati & Mr. Emanuele Baldacci, 2008. "Is it (Still) Mostly Fiscal? Determinants of Sovereign Spreads in Emerging Markets," IMF Working Papers 2008/259, International Monetary Fund.
    12. Barry Eichengreen & Ashoka Mody, 1998. "What Explains Changing Spreads on Emerging-Market Debt: Fundamentals or Market Sentiment?," NBER Working Papers 6408, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Ms. Laura E. Kodres & Kristian Hartelius & Kenichiro Kashiwase, 2008. "Emerging Market Spread Compression: Is it Real or is it Liquidity?," IMF Working Papers 2008/010, International Monetary Fund.
    14. Mr. Serkan Arslanalp & Mr. Takahiro Tsuda, 2014. "Tracking Global Demand for Emerging Market Sovereign Debt," IMF Working Papers 2014/039, International Monetary Fund.
    15. Mr. Balazs Csonto & Mr. Iryna V. Ivaschenko, 2013. "Determinants of Sovereign Bond Spreads in Emerging Markets: Local Fundamentals and Global Factors vs. Ever-Changing Misalignments," IMF Working Papers 2013/164, International Monetary Fund.
    16. Stiglitz, Joseph E & Weiss, Andrew, 1981. "Credit Rationing in Markets with Imperfect Information," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 71(3), pages 393-410, June.
    17. Mr. Fabio Comelli, 2012. "Emerging Market Sovereign Bond Spreads: Estimation and Back-testing," IMF Working Papers 2012/212, International Monetary Fund.
    18. Mr. George Kopits & Mr. J. D. Craig, 1998. "Transparency in Government Operations," IMF Occasional Papers 1998/001, International Monetary Fund.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Amr Hosny, 2020. "Nonresident holdings of domestic debt in Nigeria: Internal or external driven?," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 32(3), pages 472-485, September.
    2. Mustafa Akay & Berat Bayram & Abdullah Kazdal & Muhammed Hasan Yilmaz, 2020. "Investigating Regime-Dependent Dynamics in Country Risk Premium: Evidence from Turkey and Emerging Markets," CBT Research Notes in Economics 2008, Research and Monetary Policy Department, Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Weneyam Hippolyte Balima & Jean-Louis Combes & Alexandru Minea, 2015. "Sovereign Debt Risk in Emerging Countries: Does Inflation Targeting Adoption Make Any Difference?," CERDI Working papers halshs-01128239, HAL.
    2. Csontó, Balázs, 2014. "Emerging market sovereign bond spreads and shifts in global market sentiment," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(C), pages 58-74.
    3. Audzeyeva, Alena & Fuertes, Ana-Maria, 2018. "On the predictability of emerging market sovereign credit spreads," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 140-157.
    4. Sensoy, Ahmet & Ozturk, Kevser & Hacihasanoglu, Erk & Tabak, Benjamin M., 2017. "Not all emerging markets are the same: A classification approach with correlation based networks," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 163-186.
    5. Agur, Itai & Chan, Melissa & Goswami, Mangal & Sharma, Sunil, 2019. "On international integration of emerging sovereign bond markets," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 347-363.
    6. Kady Keita & Mr. Gene L. Leon & Frederico Lima, 2019. "Do Financial Markets Value Quality of Fiscal Governance?," IMF Working Papers 2019/218, International Monetary Fund.
    7. Kocsis, Zalan & Monostori, Zoltan, 2016. "The role of country-specific fundamentals in sovereign CDS spreads: Eastern European experiences," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 140-168.
    8. Hajer Dachraoui & Mounir Smida & Maamar Sebri, 2020. "Role of capital flight as a driver of sovereign bond spreads in Latin American countries," International Economics, CEPII research center, issue 162, pages 15-33.
    9. Menna Bizuneh & Menelik Geremew, 2021. "Assessing the Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Emerging Market Economies’ (EMEs) Sovereign Bond Risk Premium and Fiscal Solvency," Eastern Economic Journal, Palgrave Macmillan;Eastern Economic Association, vol. 47(4), pages 519-545, October.
    10. Ashima Goyal & Akhilesh K. Verma & Rajeswari Sengupta, 2022. "External shocks, cross-border flows and macroeconomic risks in emerging market economies," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 62(5), pages 2111-2148, May.
    11. Ratha, Dilip & De, Supriyo & Kurlat, Sergio, 2018. "Does governing law affect bond spreads?," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 60-78.
    12. Jane Mpapalika & Christopher Malikane, 2019. "The Determinants of Sovereign Risk Premium in African Countries," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-20, February.
    13. Brandao-Marques, Luis & Gelos, Gaston & Melgar, Natalia, 2018. "Country transparency and the global transmission of financial shocks," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 56-72.
    14. Erdal Özmen & Özge Doğanay Yaşar, 2015. "Emerging Markets Sovereign Bond Spreads, Credit Ratings and Global Financial Crisis," ERC Working Papers 1510, ERC - Economic Research Center, Middle East Technical University, revised Nov 2015.
    15. Ebeke, Christian & Lu, Yinqiu, 2015. "Emerging market local currency bond yields and foreign holdings – A fortune or misfortune?," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 203-219.
    16. Sawadogo, Pegdéwendé Nestor, 2020. "Can fiscal rules improve financial market access for developing countries?," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    17. Nazim Belhocine & Mr. Salvatore Dell'Erba, 2013. "The Impact of Debt Sustainability and the Level of Debt on Emerging Markets Spreads," IMF Working Papers 2013/093, International Monetary Fund.
    18. Ercio Muñoz S., 2013. "Precio de Materias Primas y Spread Soberano en Economías Emergentes ¿Importa la Concentración de las Exportaciones?," Notas de Investigación Journal Economía Chilena (The Chilean Economy), Central Bank of Chile, vol. 16(1), pages 100-121, April.
    19. Sonenshine, Ralph & Kumari, Sapna, 2022. "The differential impact of political risk factors on emerging market bond spreads and credit rating outlooks," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    20. Jamshed Y. Uppal, 2017. "External Debt Management in Pakistan: A Market-Based Assessment," Lahore Journal of Economics, Department of Economics, The Lahore School of Economics, vol. 22(Special E), pages 25-51, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2018/189. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Akshay Modi (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/imfffus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.