On Tue, 7 Nov 1995, Harry M. Cleaver wrote: > On Tue, 7 Nov 1995, Doug Henwood wrote: > > > The current issue of the IMF Survey (November 6, 1995), reports on the > > Fund's new data initiative, which would "encourage," in their > > ever-so-persuasive way, countries to publish a minimum set of economic > > statistics "on a regular and timely basis." Here's what the IMF considers > > the "absolute minimum" of crucial indicators: "exchange rates; > > international reserves; the balance sheet of the central bank; reserve or > > base money; interest rates; the consumer price index; exports/imports; > > external current account balance; overall fiscal balance; external debt and > > debt service; and GDP." Conspicuously absent: wage and (un)employment > > figures, obviously not important to the big domes in Washington. > > > > Doug > > > Now Doug, wages and unemployment ARE important to the IMF, but when your > real goals (a decrease of the former and an increase of the latter) might > deligitimize your public image, you keep them in the background. No need > to publish them up front where you might have to discuss them. Let > others bring them up and then you can express your regrets over the > unfortunate by-products of oh-so-necessary structural adjustment.:-( > > Harry > ........................................................................... > Another statistics, though very important, is not published by international agengies including the IMF. That statistics is income redistribution. Availability of it is important in terms of evaluation of a country's economic policy under IMF or other organization supervision.There are numerous other statistics which help to gauge countries' economic/social performance. We need to know measures like real wages, real minimum wage, an index of (unemployment+inflation+interest rate). Fikret Ceyhun Dept. of Economics e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Univ. of North Dakota voice: (701)777-3348 office University Station, Box 8369 (701)772-5135 home Grand Forks, ND 58202 fax: (701)777-5099
