Rethinking fiscal policy—global perspectives

The Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE) will host a joint conference with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Rethinking fiscal policy—global perspectives. The conference will feature keynote speeches from Heather Boushey, member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, Gita Gopinath, first deputy managing director of the IMF, Lawrence H. Summers, Charles W. Eliot University Professor and President Emeritus of Harvard University, and panel sessions with experts and policymakers from the United States, other advanced economies, and emerging markets.

Governments across the world broke new ground with their interventions to limit the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. Measures to help people and firms stay afloat were quick, impactful, and often innovative, in countries at all levels of economic and financial development. But evaluation of those interventions is needed to best target future support, limit unnecessary spending, and monitor and manage lingering fiscal risks. The pandemic led to a rethinking of the role of government during crises, but also under normal economic conditions.