Konjunkturbuffert

Konjunkturbuffert (Swedish: "business cycle buffer" or "countercyclical buffer") is an economic policy concept describing reserves or instruments designed to moderate the effects of economic fluctuations. The aim is to build up resources in periods of economic expansion and make them available during downturns, thereby stabilizing output, employment and public finances.

Typical forms of konjunkturbuffert include budgetary surpluses set aside in "rainy day" funds, sovereign wealth funds financed by resource revenues, and automatic fiscal stabilizers embedded in tax and benefit systems. In the financial regulatory context, the term can also refer to countercyclical capital buffers that require banks to hold extra capital in booms to absorb losses in recessions.

Design features commonly discussed are rules versus discretion for accumulation and release, clear trigger conditions tied to macroeconomic indicators, legal safeguards for governance, and transparency to reduce politicization. Well-designed buffers can smooth public spending, reduce procyclicality, lower borrowing costs in crises and improve credibility of policy.

Criticisms and challenges include incorrect timing of accumulation or release, opportunity costs of holding reserves, political pressures to use or avoid buffers, and difficulties in estimating appropriate buffer size. Effectiveness depends on institutional quality, fiscal space, and the ability to coordinate with monetary and financial policies.