Download or read book Effects of the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) on Taxation and Interest Spending of National Governments written by Mr.Francesco P. Mongelli and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1997-07-01 with total page 37 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper examines the interest spending and taxation channels through which EMU could affect the public finances. It provides a framework for examining different views on a further narrowing of interest rate differentials. A model of Blanchard and Fischer is amended to analyze the two channels, and empirical evidence on the tax harmonization process is presented. The paper argues that “high-debt” and “high-tax” countries pursuing prudent fiscal policies could benefit the most from EMU: if monetary and widespread fiscal discipline are jointly established, interest rates could decline rapidly, while tax harmonization is likely to be gradual.