The Use and Effectiveness of Macroprudential Policies: New Evidence

Using a recent IMF survey and expanding on previous studies, we document the use ofmacroprudential policies for 119 countries over the 2000-13 period, covering manyinstruments. Emerging economies use macroprudential policies most frequently, especiallyforeign exchange related ones, while advanced countries use borrower-based policies more.Usage is generally associated with lower growth in credit, notably in household credit.Effects are less in financially more developed and open economies, however, and usagecomes with greater cross-border borrowing, suggesting some avoidance. And whilemacroprudential policies can help manage financial cycles, they work less well in busts.