Varieties of Monetary Reforms : Lessons and Experiences on the Road to Monetary Union

In a single volume, this book treats the theoretical, empirical, and case studies approaches to the implementation of monetary reforms and discusses specific countries' experiences with these approaches. The analyses are not restricted to central bank or exchange rate reforms, but consider all the principal tools of monetary reforms in this volume. The first section surveys and examines the types of monetary reforms. The second and third sections examine the pros and cons of exchange rate management and central bank independence. The final section of the book presents case studies on monetary and central bank experiences in Germany, the United States, Canada and Hungary. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Varieties of Monetary Reforms....Pages 1-21 Optimal Currency Areas: A Fresh Look at the Traditional Criteria....Pages 23-43 Exchange Rate Pegging as a Disinflation Strategy: Evidence from the European Monetary System....Pages 45-72 How Much to Commit to an Exchange Rate Rule: Balancing Credibility and Flexibility....Pages 73-94 Central Bank Dependence and Inflation Performance: An Exploratory Data Analysis....Pages 95-131 Political Effects on Central Bank Behaviour: Some International Evidence....Pages 133-163 Reputation, Central Bank Independence and the ECB....Pages 165-191 An Institutional Analysis of the Proposed European Central Bank with Comparisons to the U.S. Federal Reserve System....Pages 193-218 Monetary Union and Monetary Policy: A Review of the German Monetary Union....Pages 219-245 Designing a Central Bank in a Federal System: The Deutsche Bundesbank, 1957-1992....Pages 247-277 Rules, Discretion, and Central Bank Independence: The German Experience, 1880-1989....Pages 279-321 The Origins of the Monetary Union in the United States....Pages 323-349 On the Coyne-Rasminsky Directive and Responsibility for Monetary Policy in Canada....Pages 351-366 Crippled Monetary Policy in Transforming Economies: Why Central Bank Independence Does not Restore Control....Pages 367-382 Back Matter....Pages 383-385