87th Annual Report, 2016/17
The current economic upswing provides an opportunity to build greater economic resilience, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) writes in its 87th Annual Report. This involves shoring up the global economy's ability to withstand shocks and adapt to new trends, and preventing the emergence of imbalances.
Annual Report economic chapters: Overview | PDF (132 pages)
Speeches and presentations on the Annual Report by Jaime Caruana, General Manager; Claudio Borio, Head of the Monetary and Economic Department; Hyun Song Shin, Economic Adviser and Head of Research.
Remarks by Claudio Borio and Hyun Song Shin at the media teleconference held on 21 June 2017.
87th Annual Report by chapter
What a difference a year can make in the global economy, in terms of both facts and, above all, sentiment. The facts paint a brighter picture. There are clear signs that growth has gathered momentum. Economic slack in the major economies has diminished further; indeed, in some of them unemployment rates have fallen back to levels consistent with full employment. More...
Financial markets in the second half of 2016 and the first half of 2017 were confronted by a changing political environment as the economic background brightened. Political events surprised markets, notably the June 2016 vote in the United Kingdom to leave the European Union (Brexit) and, most of all, the US presidential election in November. More...
The global economy's cyclical upswing strengthened considerably during the year under review. By early 2017, virtually all major economies were expanding, and survey data confirmed the favourable short-term outlook. Slack in advanced economies shrank, especially in the labour market, and many emerging market economies (EMEs) benefited from higher commodity prices. Consumption growth was a key driver of demand, but business investment also showed signs of a rebound. More...
Monetary policy continued to be generally very accommodative in the year under review. The Federal Reserve quickened its pace of policy rate normalisation while the Bank of Japan and ECB maintained their expansionary stances. Many other advanced economy and emerging market economy (EME) central banks kept policy rates range-bound near historical lows. More...
The financial sector faces an improving but still challenging environment. The near-term economic outlook has brightened substantially, and financial headwinds have turned into tailwinds in many advanced economies. Even so, uncertainty about the sustainability of the expansion lingers alongside structural challenges, such as technological innovation and consolidation pressures. And interest rates and term premia remain low across the major economies, compressing intermediation margins. More...
Globalisation has had a profoundly positive impact on people's lives over the past half-century. Nevertheless, despite its substantial benefits, it has been blamed for many shortcomings in the modern economy and society. Indeed, globalisation has faced more severe criticism than technological innovation and other secular trends that have potentially had even more profound consequences. More...