Text Fwd: IMF and Northeast Asian banks clash over West’s financial regulations

'Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun, left, speaks with Dominique Strauss-Kahn, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, during the South Korea-IMF Conference in Daejon, July 13.'

Hankyoreh
IMF and Northeast Asian banks clash over West’s financial regulations
:The IMF defended strong regulations for prevention, while Asian banks said the policy centers around Western countries
July 14, 2010


By Ahn Seon-hee

“It is almost like taking medicine for a sickness you don’t even have.”

“Sometimes you also have to take medicine for prevention.”

On Tuesday, the second day of an “Asia Conference” hosted by the International Monetary Fund and the Ministry of Strategy and Finance in Daejeon, opinions were divided between the IMF and participants over financial regulations that have been stepped up in the wake of the global financial crisis. The IMF actively defended the stronger regulations, but Asian countries, which had no major problems with their banks during the latest financial crisis, showed a tepid response. This represents a 180-degree turn from the Asian foreign exchange crisis over ten years ago, when the IMF “forced” Asian countries to relax their regulations.

CLICK THE LINK FOR MORE READING

Text Fwd: IMF admits mistakes in 1997 crisis countermeasures

'Bank of Korea Governor Kim Choong-soo, Asian Development Bank Governor Kuroda Haruhiko and Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun, from left, listen to a televised speech by Dominique Strauss-Kahn, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, during the South Korea-IMF Conference in Daejon, July 12.' 　

Hankyoreh
IMF admits mistakes in 1997 crisis countermeasures
:The IMF has recently been reaching out to Asian countries as they have become a major group in the world economy
July 13, 2010
By Hwang Bo-yeon

“The conditions demanded by the IMF during the Asian financial crisis were very painful for Asian countries. They may have been more painful than necessary.”

During a conference held in South Korea, the IMF admitted it made mistakes in the rescue program it demanded of South Korea during the financial crisis. It also unleashed a sort of “love offensive” on Asia, which is becoming a major axis of the world economy, saying it wants the fund to become a “second home” for Asia.

CLICK THE ABOVE LINK FOR MORE READING

Text fwd: Markets surge following G20 accord

* Image Source/ caption*
Same as below

"South Korea President Lee Myung-bak, front left, and other world leaders at the G20 Financial Summit in London on April 2."

http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_business/347970.html
Markets surge following G20 accord: G-20 accord offers positive signals for S. Korea’s market, experts say long term effect is unclear
Posted on : Apr.4,2009 12:16 KST

The agreement of the Group of 20 industrialized and emerging economies (G20) reached in their London summit on April 2 (local time) gave a short-lived boost to domestic financial markets. Following a 3.54 percent surge, the stock benchmark KOSPI rose an additional 0.53 percent on Friday and the won, which gained 44.5 won on Thursday, lost 6 won the following day. Experts say the G20 summit announcement could help bolster short-term market sentiments, but how long that impact will last is difficult to determine as there are few detailed action plans coming out of the summit meeting.

The G20 agreed to treble the lending capacity of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by US750 billion dollars and to permit the IMF to offer emergency loans without strings attached to countries in difficulty. Economists indicate that this agreement could support South Korea's economy, although the government has recently said that it will not be seeking a bailout from the IMF to stabilize its financial markets. “The new loan program resolved many problems that the previous systems had, but a bailout from the IMF still has a ‘stigma’ effect that drives down a nation’s overseas credibility,” a finance ministry official said. “We have sufficient foreign exchange reserves,” the spokesperson added.

Economists suggest both the agreement by the heads of states of the G20 countries to continue expansionary monetary polices and the forecast announced that fiscal spending on stimulus measures will increase to 5 trillion dollars from 2 trillion dollars to address global financial turmoil are further good signs. Expanded fiscal spending could lead to a hike in global demand, which would be a boon to our export-driven economy. Still, some suggest that it is disappointing that the G20 has failed to provide detailed numbers on gross domestic products, making it tough to believe their promises. Other economists are concerned that the announcements coming from the G20 summit are vague at a time when European countries are worried about the worsening fiscal state of their economies.

Lee Jong-woo, a senior researcher at HMC Investment & Securities, said, “They talked about figures such as 1.1 trillion dollars in IMF cash and 5 trillion dollars of stimulus measures but there is no action plan that specifies who will pay the money and how the money will be raised. These are issues which even a central government cannot with deal efficiently.” The accord seems to be comprised mainly of rhetoric, making it difficult to determine whether it can achieve what it promises in the long term.” Oh Suk-tae, an economist at Citibank says, “It will not be easy to see a rebound in macroeconomic indicators and corporate earnings in just a few short months. Exports are also not likely to perk up anytime soon.”


Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]

© 2006 The Hankyoreh Media Company.