Systemic Requirements for Monetary Stability in Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union


Book Description

The primary function of banks during economic transformation is seen to be provision of an efficient payments mechanism. The lack of banking skills, particularly in credit allocation, is seen as the major problem in stable monetary systems. This is a problem which can be expected to last many years. The solution is to limit banks to very safe assets (initially central bank liabilities). Combining such safe banks with a monetary rule would provide stable monetary systems during transition.







IMF Staff papers


Book Description

This paper provides a critical survey of the literature on politico-institutional determinants of the government budget. We organize our discussion around two questions: Why did certain OECD countries, but not others, accumulate large public debts? Why did these fiscal imbalances appear in the last twenty years rather than sooner? We begin by discussing the “tax smoothing” model and conclude that this approach alone cannot provide complete answers to these questions. We then proceed to a discussion of political economy models, which we organize into six groups: (1) models based upon opportunistic policy makers and naive voters with “fiscal illusion”; (2) models of intergenerational redistributions; (3) models of debt as a strategic variable, linking the current government with the next one; (4) models of coalition governments; (5) models of geographically dispersed interests; and (6) models emphasizing the effects of budgetary institutions. We conclude by briefly discussing policy implications.




Money, Financial Flows, and Credit in the Soviet Union


Book Description

Economic research monograph on banking and monetary policy in the USSR - covers foreign exchange, trade and the balance of payments, price stabilization policies, the nature of capital flows, foreign investments, financial planning, the credit system, etc. Bibliography pp. 204 to 218, diagram and references.




Working Paper Summaries (WP/94/1 - WP/94/76)


Book Description

The IMF Working Papers series is designed to make IMF staff research available to a wide audience. Almost 300 Working Papers are released each year, covering a wide range of theoretical and analytical topics, including balance of payments, monetary and fiscal issues, global liquidity, and national and international economic developments.




Income, Inequality, and Poverty During the Transition from Planned to Market Economy


Book Description

World Bank Technical Paper No. 394. Joint Forest Management (JFM) has emerged as an important intervention in the management of Indias forest resources. This report sets out an analytical method for examining the costs and benefits of JFM arrangements. Two pilot case studies in which the method was used demonstrate interesting outcomes regarding incentives for various groups to participate. The main objective of this study is to develop a better understanding of the incentives for communities to participate in JFM.







Globalization in Historical Perspective


Book Description

As awareness of the process of globalization grows and the study of its effects becomes increasingly important to governments and businesses (as well as to a sizable opposition), the need for historical understanding also increases. Despite the importance of the topic, few attempts have been made to present a long-term economic analysis of the phenomenon, one that frames the issue by examining its place in the long history of international integration. This volume collects eleven papers doing exactly that and more. The first group of essays explores how the process of globalization can be measured in terms of the long-term integration of different markets-from the markets for goods and commodities to those for labor and capital, and from the sixteenth century to the present. The second set of contributions places this knowledge in a wider context, examining some of the trends and questions that have emerged as markets converge and diverge: the roles of technology and geography are both considered, along with the controversial issues of globalization's effects on inequality and social justice and the roles of political institutions in responding to them. The final group of essays addresses the international financial systems that play such a large part in guiding the process of globalization, considering the influence of exchange rate regimes, financial development, financial crises, and the architecture of the international financial system itself. This volume reveals a much larger picture of the process of globalization, one that stretches from the establishment of a global economic system during the nineteenth century through the disruptions of two world wars and the Great Depression into the present day. The keen analysis, insight, and wisdom in this volume will have something to offer a wide range of readers interested in this important issue.




Research Activities of the IMF, January 1991-December 1998


Book Description

A selective index of major research papers prepared by IMF staff in 1991-98.




Changes in the Russian Banking System


Book Description

Inhaltsangabe:Abstract: This dissertation analyses the structural changes in the Russian banking system and gives insights into the current market situation. Starting with a review of theoretical aspects of banking in Western economies and the rationale for the existence of banks, the deficiencies of the former socialist banking system are exposed. A large section is dedicated to the special role of the banking system during the process of transition and to an evaluation of how far Russian banks rise to the challenges of these tasks. The historical process of reforming the central and commercial banking system is described, laying emphasis on the legislative changes and the means of supervision. The banking system in Russia has been dominated by rapid growth in the last three years due to high profit expectations. However, many banks granted credits to dubious industrial companies and now face a large amount of uncollectable assets in their credit portfolios. The analysis shows that with rising positive real interest rates and growing competition in the banking market, a large number of small and mediumsized banks will either have to admit bankruptcy or be acquired by expanding banks. The emerging interbank, bond and equity markets are illustrated with regard to the influence of banks. The deficiencies in settlement processes, liquidity, trading rules, and private and commercial law are examined. The next urgently required steps in the reform process are listed. The future progress of the Russian banking system however, is not only dependent on legal and structural changes in related financial and capital markets, but based on the critical assumption of peaceful, politically stable and socially balanced developments in Russia. Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents: AbstractIV 1.Introduction1 2.Theoretical Aspects of Banking 2.1Theory of Financial Intermidiation3 2.2Thr, Banking System in a Centrally Planned Economy7 2.3The Role of Banks in Russia's Transition to a Market Economy9 3.The Banking Refomis in Russia 3.1Russian Banking Legislation18 3.1.1The Independence of the Central Bank19 3.1.2The Commercial Banking Legislation23 3.2Russian Banking Supervision24 3.2.1The Licensing Process25 3.2.2Creditor Protection and Assessment of Reliability29 3.2.3Accounting and Audit33 4.The Financial Market Situation in Russia 4.1Russian Commercial Banks36 4.1.1The -Former Specialised Banks36 4.1.2The Ministerial Bank38 4.1.3Independent [...]