Actualités
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Colloques & congrès
5 dernières bases de données
Publications
Dans un souci de transparence et d’information, le BFP publie régulièrement les méthodes et résultats de ses travaux. Les publications sont organisées en séries, entre autres, les perspectives, les working papers et planning papers. Certains rapports peuvent également être consultés ici, de même que les bulletins du Short Term Update publiés jusqu’en 2015. Une recherche par thématique, type de publication, auteur et année vous est proposée.
Working Papers - Working Paper 08-00 (en),
Working Papers - Working Paper 07-00 (nl),
Working Papers - Working Paper 06-00 (fr),
Prévisions & perspectives - Economic Forecasts 2001 (fr), (nl),
Working Papers - Working Paper 05-00 (en),
The Belgian economy has entered a period of strong cyclical growth since activity accelerated strongly in the second half of last year. Benefiting from an important positive carry-over effect, the increase in GDP should be 3.8% this year. Next year economic growth should be 3.1%.
Despite two consecutive years of strong growth, pressure on the goods and labour market should remain limited. The sustained growth in business investment and a rise in the labour supply could raise potential growth in Belgium. In the special topic of this issue, it is shown that this increase in the labour supply should result from higher participation rates.
Moreover, the acceleration in the general consumer price index seen in recent months and the rise in our inflation forecast for the year 2000 are only marginally influenced by domestic cost components in general, and by wage costs in particular, but can principally be explained by the increase in import prices, especially oil prices, whose effect was strengthened by the fall in the effective euro exchange rate.
As in 2000, economic growth in 2001 will be broadly based. It will be stimulated by a positive contribution from foreign trade and a still vigorous domestic demand, despite a slowdown following the very dynamic expansion of domestic demand this year. Growth of private employment will hardly weaken in 2001. The improvement in employment during the 2000-2001 period will lead to a further increase in the employment rate. From 1995 to 2001, the employment rate should gain 3.4 percentage points in all.
Séries clôturées - Short Term Update 03-00 (en),
Autres publications - Relocation 2000 (nl),
Prévisions & perspectives - Economic Outlook 2000-2005 (fr), (nl),
Working Papers - Working Paper 04-00 (fr),
Economic activity in Belgium increased strongly during the second half of last year thanks to the net improvement in export growth as well as sustained internal demand. On average, GDP growth reached 2.5% in 1999, confirming the scenario of a short-lived slowdown between mid-98 and mid-99.
The upward trend in nearly all demand components will result in a positive carry-over effect for the year 2000. Moreover, leading indicators are so far pointing towards a further improvement in economic growth in the first half of the current year, with growth stabilising at a high level in the third quarter. This year, Belgian GDP growth should reach 3.2%. Internal demand will be boosted by sustained growth in private consumption, thanks among other things to a high job creation rate (+1.4%), and also by a positive contribution from stockbuilding towards economic growth (+0.3%). The contribution of external trade (+0.4%) will be favoured by the dynamism of world trade and the improvement in price competitiveness. The public sector borrowing requirement should diminish and nearly reach equilibrium (-0.1% of GDP), thanks to the fall in interest payments and the increase in the primary surplus.
The medium-term outlook for Belgium is pointing towards a GDP growth rate of 2.6% per year during the 2001-2005 period, mostly supported by exports and business investment. The economic fundamentals of the euro area should be the main driving force behind those prospects: fiscal consolidation should not require new measures and the slightly accelerated pace of inflation (around 2% in the medium term) in Europe should not threaten price stability and the low level of real interest rates. Despite the further significant decrease of the unemployment rate in the euro area, acceleration in wage inflation should be limited.
Annual employment growth in Belgium should be around 0.8% between 2001 and 2005. The labour force will still increase in spite of unfavourable demographic developments (the baby-boom generation is entering the 55-60 age range), thanks to higher participation rates among females and over-50s. The acceleration of wage inflation in Belgium should be broadly in line with the average of our three main trading partners. The pace of growth in consumer prices should be around 1.5% on average between 2000 and 2005. On the basis of a “no change in policy” scenario, the general government financing capacity should become positive from 2001 onwards. Compared to the budgetary target set out in the 2000-2003 stability program (surplus of 0.2% GDP in 2003), “cumulative budgetary margins” will reach 2.2% GDP in 2005.
Séries clôturées - Short Term Update 02-00 (en),
Prévisions & perspectives - Economic Forecasts 2000 C (fr), (nl),
Working Papers - Working Paper 03-00 (fr), (nl),
Working Papers - Working Paper 02-00 (en),
The recovery in world economic growth in 1999 led to a strong acceleration in economic growth in Belgium during the second half of 1999. Faced with improved prospects, the manufacturing sector is expected to build up stocks again from the fourth quarter of 1999 onwards, after having strongly reduced their stocks during the recent economic slowdown (mid-1998 to mid-1999).
Fixed capital formation in non-industrial sectors increased strongly in 1999, private consumption grew at a relatively sustained pace, and the contribution from external trade was positive. For 1999 as a whole, economic growth in Belgium reached 2.3%. The upward trend of all demand components in the course of 1999, if confirmed, will lead to a positive carry-over effect for the year 2000.
Economic activity in Europe should accelerate in 2000, US economic growth should be sustained and the emerging economies should continue their recovery. Belgian export markets should then grow faster in 2000 than in 1999. Moreover, the depreciation of the euro during the 1999-2000 period and the new cuts in non-wage costs should boost the price competitiveness of the Belgian economy. For the first time for more than 10 years, Belgium should even slightly increase its market shares.
The contribution of stockbuilding towards economic growth should be largely positive, the rate of investment by companies should rise again and household investment should recover. The growth in household disposable income should reach 2.3% in real terms in 2000 (1.4% in 1999), thanks to a new strong creation in employment, a slightly higher growth in real wages and an increase in capital income. Private consumption should rise by 2.1% leaving the savings rate quasi unchanged.
All in all, Belgian GDP growth should reach 3.2% in 2000, thanks to dynamic domestic demand (2.9%) and a net contribution from exports (0.4%).
Oil prices more than doubled between December 1998 and December 1999. Energy prices are not, however, expected to continue rising in 2000, while underlying inflation should accelerate somewhat in the course of the year. The consumption price index should increase by 1.5% in 2000 (compared with 1.1% in 1999) and the health index by 1.3%.
Growth prospects for 2000 should allow a further reduction of the public deficit.
Séries clôturées - Short Term Update 01-00 (en),
Working Papers - Working Paper 01-00 (fr), (nl),
Depuis les années quatre-vingt, un grand nombre d’entreprises publiques ont été privatisées en Europe. Au Royaume-Uni, les premières privatisations ont été réalisées sous le gouvernement Thatcher. En France, après une vague de nationalisations qui a pris fin en 1982, les entreprises publiques ont progressivement été privatisées, sous le président Mitterand, durant la période de coalition dite de "cohabitation". En Belgique, un groupe de travail a été créé en 1986 avec pour mission d’étudier la rationalisation et la privatisation des entreprises publiques et mixtes. Les travaux de ce groupe ont débouché sur la vente ou la vente partielle des entreprises publiques suivantes: la Sabena, Belgacom, la sni et la cger. En Europe, les privatisations les plus récentes ont été réalisées après la chute du mur de Berlin en 1989. Dans l’ancienne république démocratique allemande, les entreprises d’Etat ont été privatisées par la Treuhandanstalt. Les autres pays du Comecon ont également suivi sur la voie des privatisations. En Italie, des privatisations de grande envergure sont réalisées depuis 1997. Ces privatisations étaient indispensables dans l’objectif de pouvoir participer à l’euro dès le 1er janvier 1999.
Séries clôturées - Planning Paper 87 (fr), (nl),
Since our July forecasts, a number of new developments inside and outside Belgium have occurred. Taking those elements into account, a rapid and tentative updating of our forecasts for 1999-2000 has been made.
The first element concerns the good news stemming from the quarterly national accounts of a higher than expected GDP growth in the second quarter of 1999. As a result, over the first half of 1999, Belgian GDP growth reached 1.7% (yoy). The FPB GDP-leading indicator points to a further cyclical upturn in the second half of the year. It is also worth stressing that according to the information available today (in terms of value added, trade and unemployment), the impact of the dioxin crisis is still in line with the assumptions made in our July forecasts.
All in all, GDP growth in 1999 has been revised upward from 1.7% to 1.9%.
As prospects for the world economy are looking brighter now than four months ago and the 2000 Federal Budget is on an expansionary track, GDP growth in 2000 has been revised upward from 2.5% to 3.0%. Both developments are complementary - in the sense that the former primarily triggers exports, whereas the latter in the short-term mainly boosts private consumption- although the impact of the more favourable international environment on GDP growth is more important than the revision coming from the Budget 2000.
The acceleration of Belgian export markets in 2000 should indeed be stronger than previously expected due to higher import growth experienced by our European trading partners as well as in the rest of the world, resulting in stronger export growth than estimated earlier.
Compared to our July forecasts, the budgetary impulse for 2000 taken into account in these new forecasts is more than BEF 30 billion. At this stage, the simulation results in this field must be interpreted with caution. The most important effect of the measures should be seen in the area of private consumption, resulting from an increase in employment (reductions in social contributions) and accordingly in households’ real disposable income (reinforced by tax cuts and higher pensions).
Séries clôturées - Short Term Update 04-99 (en),
Working Papers - Working Paper 08-99 (en),
Working Papers - Working Paper 07-99 (fr), (nl),
Le Colloque organisé en décembre 1997 par le Bureau fédéral du Plan fut l’occasion pour une riche palette de spécialistes de présenter les différents aspects de la question, avec des points de vue variés. L’actualité du vieillissement démographique et de son financement étant toujours de mise, il a paru important de consigner, sous forme de synthèses, les diverses interventions à ces journées. Le Planning Paper 86 complète ainsi, parfois de façon critique, les analyses du Bureau fédéral du Plan déjà largement diffusées
Séries clôturées - Planning Paper 86 (fr), (nl),
Rapports - Sustainable development Report (fr), (nl),
L’étude porte sur les effets macroéconomiques et budgétaires d’opérations de re- déploiement de la pression fiscale et parafiscale consistant en l’instauration d’une cotisation sociale généralisée ( CSG ), qui viendrait remplacer différents prélève- ments fiscaux ou parafiscaux existant actuellement. La pression fiscale de la CSG sur l’ensemble des revenus professionnels, immobiliers et de remplacement se- rait équivalente à celle des prélèvements supprimés; cependant dans la mesure où la CSG serait assise sur une assiette plus large, elle génère un produit net pour les finances publiques. Différentes modalités d’affectation de ce produit sont exa- minées du point de vue des effets macroéconomiques et budgétaires: allègement du déficit des administrations publiques, élargissement de la tranche exonérée de la CSG , baisse des cotisations patronales de sécurité sociale et diminution du taux normal de TVA. La deuxième section du présent rapport présente de façon détaillée les modalités d’introduction de la CSG , les prélèvements supprimés et les diverses affectations du produit net qui sont retenues. La troisième section présente les effets macroéconomiques et budgétaires de la CSG , dans différentes hypothèses d’affectation envisagées
Working Papers - Working Paper 06-99 (fr), (nl),
Rapports - Sustainable development Report Summary 1999 (en), (fr), (nl),
Prévisions & perspectives - Economic Forecasts 2000 (fr), (nl),
In contrast with strong global economic growth in 1998, Belgian exports declined substantially during the third and fourth quarter, as the crisis in South-East Asia and in some other emerging economies progressively affected intra-European trade. Even given a scenario of fairly strong Belgian export recovery during the second half of the current year, the low level reached in the first quarter of 1999 implies a low annual growth rate for exports in 1999.
Employment creation should remain significant in 1999 (about 1.1%); domestic demand (2.1%) should keep driving economic growth, although at a much slower pace than in 1998. The implications of the dioxin crisis remain largely uncertain. Assuming that most detrimental effects would progressively disappear after three months, it should reduce exports in 1999 by 0.3% and GDP by 0.2%. In this scenario, GDP growth in 1999 should be 1.7%; net exports contribution to GDP growth would be negative by 0.2%.
Economic growth in 2000 should attain 2.5% and be supported by better export performance (5.1%): the depreciation of the Euro in 1999 should increase the competitiveness of the Euro-zone, boosting our main export markets. Belgian exports should also take advantage from the decrease in employer's contributions to social security, and from a moderate recovery in our agricultural and agro-industrial exports.
Private consumption growth (1.8%) should remain moderate as no further impulse is expected from households' savings. Business gross capital formation should remain weak. Profits and related revenues should suffer from, among others, the deterioration in the terms of trade due to higher energy prices and the depreciation in the BEF effective exchange rate during the first half of 1999, as well as from the financial consequences of the dioxin crisis.
The pace of economic growth, the different measures limiting wage increases, and the active labour market policy measures should allow employment to keep growing in 2000 (1.0%). Inflation should remain subdued at 1.3%.
Séries clôturées - Short Term Update 03-99 (en),
Bureau fédéral du Plan
