Gatekeepers of growth : the international political economy of central banking in developing countries

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Bibliographic Information

Gatekeepers of growth : the international political economy of central banking in developing countries

Sylvia Maxfield

Princeton University Press, c1997

  • : pbk

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Note

Includes bibliographical references (p. [151]-179) and index

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

: pbk ISBN 9780691002439

Description

Central banks can shape economic growth, affect income distribution, influence a country's foreign relations, and determine the extent of its democracy. While there is considerable literature on the political economy of central banking in OECD countries, this is the first book-length study focused on central banking in emerging market countries. Surveying the dramatic worldwide trend toward increased central bank independence in the 1990s, the book argues that global forces must be at work. These forces, the book contends, center on the character of international financial intermediation. Going beyond an explanation of central bank independence, Sylvia Maxfield posits a general framework for analyzing the impact of different types of international capital flows on the politics of economic policymaking in developing countries. The book suggests that central bank independence in emerging market countries does not spring from law but rather from politics. As long as politicians value them, central banks will enjoy independence. Central banks are most likely to be independent in developing countries when politicians desire international creditworthiness. Historical analyses of central banks in Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, and Thailand, and quantitative analyses of a larger sample of developing countries corroborate this investor signaling explanation of broad trends in central bank status.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments1Central Bank Independence: Why the Interest?32The Political Sources of Central Bank Independence193International Capital Flows and the Politics of Central Bank Independence354Central Bank Independence in the 1990s505The Politics of Changing Central Bank Authority: Thailand716The Politics of Changing Central Bank Authority: Mexico917The Politics of Changing Central Bank Authority: South Korea1078The Politics of Changing Central Bank Authority: Brazil1219Conclusion138Notes151Index181
Volume

ISBN 9780691026879

Description

Central banks can shape economic growth, affect income distribution, influence a country's foreign relations and determine the extent of its democracy. This study focuses on central banking in emerging market economies. Surveying the dramatic worldwide trend towards increased central bank independence in the 1990s, the book argues that global forces must be at work. These forces, the book contends, centre on the character of international financial intermediation. Going beyond an explanation of central bank independence, Maxfield posits a general framework for analyzing the impact of different types of international capital flows on the politics of economic policymaking in developing countries. The book suggests that central bank independence in emerging market countries does not spring from law but rather from politics. As long as politicians value them, central banks will enjoy independence. Historical analyses of central banks in Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Thailand, and quantitative analyses of a larger sample of developing countries corroborate this investor signalling explanation of broad trends in central bank status.

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