Financial Development In MENA Countries Research Articles

Current Account Balance and Financial Development in MENA Countries: The Role of Institutions

Current Account Balance and Financial Development in MENA Countries: The Role of Institutions

Financial development and energy consumption: Is the MENA region different?

This paper examines the relationship between financial development and energy consumption estimations in the major MENA countries (Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen) over the period 1996 to 2014. We consider the energy use in kg of oil equivalent per capita as a dependent variable that reflects the cross-country energy consumption. We measure the level of financial development in the MENA countries by considering banking indicators. Extending the model of Sadorsky (2011), we estimate both linear and non-linear dynamic panel model. We use new robust econometrics to take into account heterogeneity and nonlinearity and we control the estimation results for the period of the global financial crisis. The results of the study report a positive and statistically significant relationship between the intermediation capacity of the banking system as well as its size and energy consumption. The findings also confirm a non-linear and inverted U-shaped relationship between financial development and energy demand for the MENA region. This implies that initially energy demand increases with financial development and then, at a turning point of financial development, it declines. The policy implications of these results are discussed.

Governance and Financial Development: Evidence from the Middle East and North Africa Region

Since the 1990s, the promotion of good governance has been a priority for major international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. This article aims to estimate the effect of institutional development on financial development in MENA countries during the period 1996 to 2013. Drawing on Demetriades and Luintel (1996) and Ito (2006), the econometric approach used is based on the GMM, the autocorrelation test for errors of Arellano and Bond (1991), and the over-identification test of Sargan for dynamic panel data. The results derived from this study show a considerable delay in financial development in MENA countries compared to several other emerging countries in Asia and Latin America. Furthermore, it shows a negative effect of institutional development on financial development. This unexpected relationship between these two variables has two explanations. First, the delusory level of institutional development of some countries in the region actually remains under the threshold beyond which it begins to positively affect the financial sector. Second, the political unrest experienced by the region during the study period has encouraged the informal financial sector to the detriment of the formal sector.

What drives the development of the MENA financial sector?

We explore a wide range of macroeconomic, fiscal and institutional factors in order to assess their relevance as determinants of financial development in MENA countries. A first interesting result is that bank and non-bank development are affected differently by the determinants under consideration. For example, growth does not promote banking activity; it promotes development of stock market liquidity. While we find that better institutions, in general, have a positive and significant effect on financial development, some institutional aspects matter more than others do. We also present evidence on the impact of macroeconomic factors, such as investment, inflation, savings, trade openness and financial liberalization, as key determinants of financial development in the MENA region, further reflecting a sharp contrast between bank and non-bank activity. Our results are robust to different specifications and different estimation techniques.

The quality of institutions and financial development in mena countries: An empirical investigation

This paper provides new evidence that sheds light on the influence of institutional quality on financial development using data from Middle East and North African (MENA) countries over the period of 1984-2007. To measure institutional quality we construct a yearly composite index (INST) using the International Country Risk Guide’s (ICRG). The results of both panel data and IV techniques of estimation show that the institutional quality is more relevant for banking sector than for stock market development. Examining the impact of five sub-indicators of the composite ICRG index on financial sector development, we find that some institutional aspects matter more than others do. While law and order are the most relevant determinant of banking sector development, corruption and investment profile are of secondary importance for banking sector development. We also find that, investment profile is the most relevant determinant of stock market development. It has a positive significant effect on market index and stock market liquidity.

What Drives Financial Sector Development in the MENA Region?

The study has considered determinants of financial sector development in the MENA region. We explore a wide range of macroeconomic, fiscal and institutional factors in order to assess their relevance as determinants of financial development in MENA countries. A first interesting result is that bank and non-bank development is differently affected. For example, growth does not promote banking activity; it promotes development of the stock market. While we find that better institutions, in general, have a positive and significant effect on financial development, some institutional aspects matter more than others do. We also present evidence on the impact of macroeconomic factors, such as investment, inflation, saving, trade openness and financial liberalization, as key determinants of financial development in the MENA region, also reflecting a sharp contrast between bank and non-bank activity. Our results are robust to different specifications and different estimation techniques.