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The relation between financial market development and the severity of business cycles in the economy of the United Arab Emirates is investigated. No evidence is found of a dampening effect from financial deepening on cyclical fluctuations in the short-run, but strong effects in the long-run. These results extend recent findings on the financial development/economic growth nexus and imply that growth volatility reductions expected from further financial developments are slow to materialize especially in countries with relatively large and well-functioning financial sectors.

We utilize time series tests with structural breaks to test for an adverse impact on economic growth rates in North Africa associated with the recent US financial crisis and global recession. One or two breaks are identified for each country, except for Morocco where no break is found, while breaks coincide with the 2008 financial crisis in only two of the six countries (Libya and Mauritania). These findings suggest that, in general, shocks from the recent financial crisis have only temporary effects on economic growth in these countries. Impulse response functions with breaks confirm these results. We conclude by suggesting explanations for these findings.