Perspectives on the Role of a Central Bank
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hhhd ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution This page intentionally left blank ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution ggggs Paul A. Volcker Miguel Mancera Jean Godeaux Proceedings of a conference held in Beijing, China, January 5-7, 1990 People's Bank of China International Monetary Fund United Nations Development Programme Washington, D.C., 1991 ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution © 1991 International Monetary Fund Cover design by IMF Graphics Section Cataloging-in-Publication Data Perspectives on the role of central bank / Paul A. Volcker, Miguel Mancera, Jean Godeaux [speakers]. — Washington, D.C.: International Monetary Fund, 1991. p. ; cm. Proceedings of a conference held in Beijing, China, Janu- ary 5-7, 1990. Jointly sponsored by: People's Bank of China, Interna- tional Monetary Fund, and United Nations Development Programme. ISBN 1-55775-206-0 1. Banks and banking, Central — Congresses. 2. Monetary policy — Congresses. I. Volcker, Paul A. II. Mancera, Miguel. III. Godeaux, Jean. HG1811.P47 1991 Price: US$12.50 Address orders to: International Monetary Fund, Publication Services 700 19th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20431, U.S.A. Telephone: (202) 623-7430 Telefax: (202) 623-7491 Cable: Interfund ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution Foreword a1 he International Conference on Central Banking, jointly spon- sored by the People's Bank of China (PBC), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), was held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China on January 15-17, 1990. The conference was chaired by Richard D. Erb, Deputy Managing Director of the IMF, and co-chaired by Li Guixian, State Councillor and Governor of the PBC, and Roy D. Morey, Resident Representative, UNDP. Opening remarks were given by Mr. Erb, Gover- nor Li, and Mr. Morey, and at each session presentations were made by a representative of the People's Bank of China as well as by Paul A. Volcker, former Chairman of the Board of Governors of the U.S. Federal Reserve System, Miguel Mancera, Governor of the Bank of Mexico, and Jean Godeaux, former Governor of the National Bank of Belgium and former President of the Bank for International Settlements. At the end of each session, Mr. Erb gave a summing up of the discussion. The conference was attended by over forty senior Chinese govern- ment officials and academics from the State Planning Commission, the State Commission for Restructuring the Economic System, the State Council Development Research Center, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade, the Ministry of Materials, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Agriculture, the State Audit Administration, the State Statis- tics Bureau, the State Price Bureau, the State Administration of Taxa- tion, the specialized banks, the provinces of Guangdong, Jiangsu, Lia- oning, Qinghai, and the municipalities of Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Wuhan, and Chongqing. The purpose of the conference was to invite leading central bankers from different parts of the world to discuss their experiences with various aspects of central banking with senior Chinese government officials. The main issues were the role of monetary policy in macro- economic management, its formulation and implementation, the role of central banks in the supervision and regulation of the financial sys- tem, and the internal structure and responsibilities of central banks. V ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution vi FOREWORD The book is compiled from speeches made at the conference and is jointly published, both in Chinese and English, by the PBC, the IMF, and the UNDP. ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution Preface s1 his book presents the proceedings of a conference on the role of central banks held in Beijing, China, in January 1990. The purpose of the conference was to bring to China the experience of central banks in other countries. Three distinguished and experienced central bankers were invited: Paul A. Volcker, former Chairman of the Board of Gover- nors of the U.S. Federal Reserve System, Miguel Mancera, Governor of the Bank of Mexico, and Jean Godeaux, former Governor of the Bank for International Settlements. To set a context for the discussion from the perspective of China's experience, senior officials from the People's Bank of China also gave presentations. Given the breadth, depth, and diversity of experience reflected in each of their presentations and the relevance of that experience to other countries, it was decided to pub- lish the proceedings. China is not alone in its interest in central banking. In recent years, because of concerns about persistent inflation, as well as concerns about the safety and soundness of banking systems, many industrial and developing countries have been examining the role of their central banks. These examinations reflect a renewed awareness of the signifi- cant impact central bank policies and decisions can have on economic performance. In addition, many countries implementing economic re- forms have taken steps to strengthen their central banks. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), conceived more than four decades earlier, stands as the institution of the world most closely asso- ciated with the central banks of its growing membership. The evolution and role of the IMF has enabled it to identify with and support the process of developing effective central banks in countries undergoing economic reform. This conference is but one example of the many ways the IMF plays this role, but, more generally, the entire activities of the IMF are directed toward promoting economic growth with stability in a framework of international cooperation. Central banks are key institu- tions in this process. RICHARD D. ERB Deputy Managing Director International Monetary Fund vii ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution This page intentionally left blank ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution Acknowledgmet ajl1 success of the International Conference on Central Banking, held in Beijing, China in January 1990, is due to the mutual efforts of Gyorgy Szapary and Linda M. Koenig, of the International Monetary Fund, Governor Li Guixian, of the People's Bank of China, and Roy D. Morey, of the United Nations Development Programme, all of whom carefully nurtured the idea of such a conference into reality. My sincere thanks go also to Dai Qianding, Executive Director, and Zhang Zhixiang, Alternate Executive Director, for their untiring assis- tance and advice, to the many translators at the conference who ably provided simultaneous translation, and to Juanita Roushdy, of the Ex- ternal Relations Department of the IMF, who edited the proceedings. RICHARD D. ERB Deputy Managing Director International Monetary Fund IX ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution This page intentionally left blank ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution Contents Page Foreword v Preface vii Acknowledgment ix Overview 1 Opening Remarks 4 Richard D. Erb 4 Li Guixian 5 Roy D. Morey 7 Session I Role of Monetary Policy 9 Introduction Richard D. Erb 9 Speakers — Li Guixian 9 hs Paul A. Volcker 12 Miguel Mancera 18 Jean Godeaux 23 Summary of Discussion Richard D. Erb 26 Session II Implementation of Monetary Policy 28 Speakers — Zhou Zhengying 28 dds Paul A. Volcker 32 Miguel Mancera 36 Jean Godeaux 41 Summary of Discussion Richard D. Erb 42 xi ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution xii CONTENTShhhh Page Session III Role of Regulation and Supervision of the Central Bank 45 Speakers — Tong Zengyin 45 Paul A. Volcker 47 Miguel Mancera 52 Jean Godeaux 56 Summary of Discussion Richard D. Erb 59 Session IV Structure of the Central Bank 61 Speakers — Chen Yuan 61 sff Paul A. Volcker 64 Miguel Mancera 70 Jean Godeaux 75 Summary of Discussion Richard D. Erb 79 Conference Summary 81 Speakers — Richard D. Erb 81 Paul A. Volcker 83 Miguel Mancera 84 Jean Godeaux 85 List of Participants 86 ©International Monetary Fund. Not for Redistribution Overviejj A conference, jointly sponsored by the People's Bank of China, the International Monetary Fund, and the United Nations Develop- ment Programme was held in Beijing on January 15-17, 1990. The following are some of the most important points made at the conference by the guest central bankers. During their presentations, and the discussions, the guest central bankers drew on their own expe- riences as well as their knowledge of developments in a broad range of countries. KEY OBJECTIVES OF ECONOMIC POLICY AND ROLE OF THE CENTRAL BANK It was agreed that every government faces multiple objectives. Among these are growth, development, full employment, external equilibrium, price stability, and equitable income distribution. The key question for the meeting was in what way the central bank can best contribute to the achievement of these objectives. All agreed that the central bank should assign priority to the achievement of price stability, as this is a necessary condition for maintaining high saving and invest- ment, exchange rate stability, and good longer-range planning—all of which are crucial to economic growth and development, whatever the particular mix of central direction and market regulation. IMPORTANCE OF OTHER POLICY ISSUES TO THE EFFECTIVENESS OF MONETARY POLICY Monetary policy implementation and its success in achieving price stability in every country depend importantly upon the structure of the economy, and on other economic policies. Some of the key structural factors mentioned included the degree of price and wage flexibility and the rate of saving. For example, price and wage flexibility were seen as essential if reliance is to be placed on greater market regulation. Among other government policies, fiscal policy is especially important. As indi- cated by the experience of many developing and developed countries, excessive fiscal deficits can make the implementation of monetary pol- icy much more difficult by putting pressure on the central bank to finance the deficit directly, where that is permitted, or indirectly, by 1 ©International Monetary Fund.