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Development of local currency bond markets overview of recent developments and key themes prepared for the G20 IFAWG

At the Cannes Summit in 2011,the G20 launched an initiative to develop local currency bond markets (LCBMs) through an action plan. Deepening the financial market in a given country provides several benefits, which are particularly relevant in the current macroeconomic and financial context: (1) it increases a country’s ability to withstand volatile capital flows, (2) it reduces the reliance on foreign borrowing and the risks linked to currency mismatch, (3) it contributes to the reduction of current account imbalances, (4) it mitigates the need for large precautionary reserve holdings, and (5) it allows balance sheets to adjust more smoothly, therefore improving the capacity of macroeconomic policies to respond to shocks. The action plan targeted three key areas for progress: (1) scaling up technical assistance, (2) improving the database, and (3) monitoring the progress made on an annual basis. In support of the G20 Action Plan for LCBM, international organizations (IOs) have sustained their enhanced collaboration and information sharing to improve resource allocation and the effectiveness of technical assistance (TA). Given the potential benefits of LCBMs, and the general recognition that LCBMs—particularly nongovernment bond markets—remain underdeveloped as a vehicle for mobilizing domestic and international financing for EMEs (inclusive of middle-income countries),the work program of the G20 Study Group on Long-Term Investment Financing also includes analytical work on LCBMs as part of a broader, more holistic approach to domestic capital market development.[…]