KREDIT und KAPITAL - Issue 4/1979


Contents


Articles

Mayekawa, Haruo
Monetary Policy in Japan: A Review of its Conduct During the Past Ten Years

Lucia, Joseph L.
The Empirical Validity of Central Banking Theories in the United States of America: An Evaluation

Nölling, Wilhelm
Staatsverschuldung ohne Ende?

Timmermann, Vincenz
Produktionsstruktur, Nachfragestruktur und Beschäftigung in einer wachsenden Wirtschaft

Scholz, Walter
Zinsänderungsrisiken im Jahresabschluß der Kreditinstitute


Reports

Von Rosen, Rüdiger
Belgrader Währungskonferenz im Zeichen weltweiter Inflationsbeschleunigung


Book Reviews

Laidler, David E. W.
The Demand for Money: Theories and Evidence
(Manfred Borchert)

Teigen, Ronald L. (Editor)
Readings in Money, National Income and Stabilization Policy
(Ernst Baltensperger)

Stützel, Wolfgang
Volkswirtschaftliche Saldenmechanik. Ein Beitrag zur Geldtheorie
(Manfred Teschner)

Dreißig, Wilhelmine (Hrsg.)
Probleme des Finanzausgleichs I
(Paul-Helmut Huppertz)

Zippel, Wulfdieter
Gegenstand und Analyse der Pläne zur Neugestaltung der internationalen Geldverfassung
(Wolfgang Filc)

Klein, John J.
Money and the Economy
(Werner Lachmann)

Albrecht, Werner
Wechselkurssicherung
(Hans-Joachim Reichert)


Summaries

Mayekawa, Haruo
“Monetary Policy in Japan - A Review of its Conduct During the Past Ten Years”

This article reviews the conduct of monetary policy in Japan over the past ten years. During this period, in contrast to the preceding decade when the major objective of monetary policy was restraint of excessive economic expansion and correction of balance-of-payments deficits and when credit rationing was the main mechanism of monetary restraint, a number of important changes in the behaviour of the Japanese economy called for the modification of the framework for monetary management. The first of such changes was the emergence of the public sector as a large net borrower in the financial market. The second was the growing importance of external influences on domestic monetary developments as a result of the increased Integration of the Japanese economy with those of other countries. The third was a weakening of autonomous demand after the termination of the period of high economic growth when underlying demand, pressure remained strong. In the light of these changes, the Bank of Japan made various attempts to adapt the technique of monetary management and policy Instruments to the new situation. More recently, efforts have been strengthened to liberalise interest rates, so that they should play a larger role in the allocation of funds to both the public and private sectors. In 1978, the Bank of Japan introduced a new practice of publishing the projected growth rate of M2 during the current quarter in the hope that it will help deepen the general public's understanding about the importance of the money supply. For the Bank of Japan, the proper control of the money supply will continue to remain an important task in its efforts to achieve price stability, while attaining a reasonably high rate of economic growth and promoting balance-of-payments adjustment.

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Lucia, Joseph L.
„The Empirical Validity of Central Banking Theories in the United States of America: An Evaluation“

An analysis of the variables the Federal Reserve is able to control indicates monetary policy has been very much money market oriented as the Fed offset reserve gains (or losses) stemming from market forces and loan demand. Together with their money market orientation, the central bank allowed the monetary aggregates to behave in a procyclical rather than a contracyclical manner; the federal funds rate, on the other hand, did behave more contracyclically. Contrary to popular impression, monetary policy was, in the main, accomodative to fiscal policy by moving in the same direction as the budget, raising questions as to the alleged independence of the U. S. central bank.

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Nölling, Wilhelm
“Unending Public Debt?”

The extraordinarily high, new public borrowing in recent years essentially reflects the budgetary consequences of a public finance policy which, under the gathering clouds of a completely new, deep-rooted growth and employment crisis, had to be framed to meet that challenge successfully. Under the given macroeconomic conditions, it therefore seems remarkable that in the public debate stress was laid primarily on the supposed risks and not first and foremost on the tangible successes of that borrowing. The widespread reproaches and fears that rapid growth of public indebtedness would impart new impetus to inflation and result in the crowding out of private borrowers are in manifest contradiction to the facts. Moreover, the thesis unrelentingly championed by the Council of Experts that the greatly increased public deficits had lamed private willingness to spend and thus at least impaired the success of expansion-oriented public finance policy, if not had a counter productive effect, seems extremely questionable. Grounds for criticism might be found at best in the fact that that policy was not pursued sufficiently consequentially. In principle, however, the debt policy pursued since 1974 must be rated unequivocally as positive from the standpoint of economic policy. There was no alternative This is demonstrated by all indicators relating to the development of the national product, employment and the revenue of public authorities. Insofar as public financing deficits are the expression of automatic stabilizations effects, they will diminish of their own accord as utilization of the production potential increases still further. The indications in this direction are relatively favourable at present. However, special efforts are needed to consolidate the deficits deriving from anticyclical, tax and expenditure policy decisions. On the one hand, the trend. of current, and in particular of personnel expenditures must be kept under as rigid control as possible. On the other hand, however, in the medium run - if public expenditures are to increase further - application of the taxation lever must not be precluded either. In the final analysis, the extent to which public borrowing can be reduced depends solely on the situation and development of our national economy. The better the productive forces are utilized, the more the government loses the right, but also simultaneously the obligation, to take command of available resources by borrowing.

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Timmermann, Vincenz
“Production Structure, Demand Structure and Employment in a Growing Economy”

Applying the hypothesis that in the course of the growth process the economic structure of a country approaches the economic structure of more highly developed countries, this study examines the question of how the anticipatable changes in the production structure and demand structure will affect sectoral employment in the Federal Republic of Germany. In the author's view, input-output analysis a suitable method for investigating his question. The empirical findings permit the conclusion that the changes in intersectoral intermeshing to be expected in Germany in the course of further economic development will be of a predominantly job-creating nature, while the anticipatable changes in demand structure will be of a predominantly job-destroying nature.

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Scholz, Walter
“Risks of lnterest-Rate Changes in the Annual Financial Statements of the Banks”

The author inquires into the determinants of risks of interest-rate changes which result mainly from maturity transformation and from varying agreements on interest-rate adjustment. He defines them as risks from unsettled transactions and draws parallels - with respect to the facts and the terminology - to the risks of forward exchange transactions. The point of departure for calculating the risks of interest-rate changes is not individual balance-sheet items or categories, but the entirety of all interest-bearing credit and debit items contained in a statement of interest-rate changes. The concept of an "open fixed-interest position' is used as a condensed numerical term for the risk of interest-rate changes. This measuring quantity serves the purpose of continual supervision of the risks of interest-rate changes for business policy purposes and is simultaneously the basis for examination of the question of whether these initially latent risks have led to losses that must be shown in the balance sheet in consequence of changes in the market interest level. In Germany at present, losses deriving from risks of interest changes are shown in the balance sheet with an effect on the profit or loss only in the case of securities included in the current assets, write-offs being made on the stock exchange prices. The valuation of the securities at cost, i.e. as investment securities, is then, however, unobjectionable in so far as realization of a loss by selling need not be reckoned with and reserves are formed for risks of interest-changes which have become acute.

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Reports

Von Rosen, Rüdiger
“Monetary Conference of Belgrade Governed by the Worldwide Increase of Inflation”

The Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group together with the meetings preceding them of the IMF Interim Committee, the Group of Ten, Working Party 3 of the OECD and the Development Committee took place this year in Belgrade, the capital city of Yugoslavia, from September 29 to October 5. As in former years, the topics dominating the monetary conference were the situation of the world economy and the international balance of payments adjustment process. The Ministers and central bank Governors also discussed the establishment of a substitution account within the IMF and interest subsidies for loans under the Supplementary Financing Facility. The Executive Committee of the IMF was entrusted with the task of elaborating a plan by the next meeting with respect to both these topics on the agenda and to seek ways and means of subsidizing interest payments. Despite the lack of spectacular decisions the conference may nevertheless prove to be a milestone in international monetary and financial affairs. The appeal of the Managing Director of the Fund to reduce price inflation in all countries even if this involves losses in terms of growth and employment met with broad agreement. It can be considered an encouraging in economic growth, the fight against inflation is to be given top priority.

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