Explorations in monetary history: A survey of the literature

Monetary economists have long been interested in economic history as a laboratory for the testing of theory. This paper surveys recent work in monetary history within the context of the modern quantity theory of money and the new classical macroeconomics. Topics surveyed include the development of historical monetary statistics and the determinants of money supply and money demand; historical uses of Granger-Sims causality tests of the relationships between money, prices, and output; historical studies of the secular behavior of velocity; the Great Depression; financial crises; historical evidence for the long-run and short-run neutrality of money; and domestic and international aspects of monetary standards. Each topic surveyed concludes with an evaluation and an agenda for future research.     

Cost and profit efficiency of Chinese banks: A non-parametric analysis

Using a non-parametric technique for data from 1995 to 2004, we investigate the cost and profit efficiency of 28 Chinese commercial banks. We examine the influence of ownership type, size, risk profile, profitability and key environmental changes on the bank efficiency using a Tobit regression. Consistent with the existing literature, we find that profit efficiency levels are well below those of cost efficiency. This suggests that the most important inefficiencies are on the revenue side. Our findings are also consistent with prior evidence on ownership and efficiency: joint-stock banks (national and city-based), on average, appear to be more cost- and profit-efficient than state-owned banks while medium-sized banks are significantly more efficient than small and large banks. These and other results suggest the need for speedier reforms to open the banking market, improving risk management, minimizing the government's capital subsidy and diversifying ownership of Chinese banks.     

The performance of black-owned commercial banks: A comparative analysis

The objective of this study was to examine performance differences among black banks of different asset sizes, as compared with average nonminority banks of similar asset size from 1985 to 1991. The study found that large black banks with assets over $50 million outperformed smaller black banks with assets less than $50 million in terms of return on assets (ROA) and return on owners’ equity. Also, when compared with average nonminority banks with assets less than $300 million, the large black banks exhibited a statistically significant higher ROA than average nonminority banks in 1985 through 1987. However, the differences were found to be statistically insignificant in terms of return on owners’ equity (ROE) during the study period. Regression results show that provision for loan loss, high liquidity, and investment in treasury and government securities continue to impact negatively on small black banks’ performance but these factors have no statistically significant impact on large black banks’ performance.     

Systemically important banks: an analysis for the European banking system

In this paper we perform an empirical analysis to identify systemically important banks by a few individual bank characteristics that are easy to observe in practice. This analysis builds on a new method to construct measures of systemic relevance of individual institutions that are consistent with a risk analysis at the level of the banking system, taking correlations in bank asset returns into account. We derive asset return correlations for a sample of European publicly traded banks from market data and construct two risk measures: incremental value at risk and conditional expected shortfall. Incremental value at risk quantifies the individual contributions of banks to the system’s Value-at-Risk. Conditional expected shortfall measures the increase in the expected system wide deposit insurance liability that would follow from the default of an institution. The analysis of hypothetical defaults of institutions is performed consistently with the observed distribution of asset returns by using the conditional distribution. Both measures are then analyzed in a panel regression where individual characteristics are used to explain incremental value at risk and conditional expected shortfall.     

A survey of cross-sectional and time-series literature on factors affecting child welfare

This paper reviews the literature on the socio-economic determinants of child welfare. Cross-sectional evidence is first analysed. The relevant literature is subdivided into four groups of studies depending on the main factors influencing child welfare: demographic; related to family circumstances; related to health care and sanitation; and economic. The very few time-series studies on this subject are then examined. While the existing literature does not allow definitive conclusions to be drawn on the predominance or relative importance of these four sets of factors, this paper identifies three related research areas for which particularly severe gaps seem to emerge and for which additional investigation appears necessary. These are: over-time studies, studies for low-income, high-mortality countries of Africa, for middle-income countries and for high-income, high-mortality countries, and studies measuring impact on the basis of indicators of welfare other than infant mortality rates.     

Comparing the performance of Chinese banks: A principal component approach

Using previously unavailable central bank data, this paper first uses principal component analysis to derive four measures of a bank's ability to perform the core task of financial intermediation. This study then compares the performance of China's state banks, joint-stock banks, and city commercial banks along these measures. In terms of overall performance and in credit risk management, joint-stock banks perform significantly better than both the state banks and the city commercial banks. In China, unlike in other developing countries, the size of the bank is not correlated with their performance. Mid-size national joint-stock banks perform considerably better than the Big Four banks and smaller city commercial banks (CCBs). We further conduct regional and jurisdictional analysis of the CCBs, which indicates that a mix of geographical and historical legacies drives the substantial variation in CCB performance.     

Net foreign assets of Dutch commercial banks: A comment

Conclusion The article provides a contribution to the discussion on the net foreign assets of the commerical banks, by drawing renewed attention to the possible passivity of the banking sector, which has gained topicality with the striking developments of 1989. Indeed, the banking sector may be considerably more reactive in regards to net foreign assets formation than has been assumed by various authors and in macroeconometric models on the basis of portfolio optimizing behaviour. However, due to the above-mentioned methodological and empirical shortcomings, Bakkers's study certainly does not provide the final answer to this question.     

Black-owned banks: Issues and recommendations

Conclusion A number of suggestions have been made here which could be used to advantage by black banks. Several are already being used on a limited scale. In addition to instances cited previously, there are several other black or “interracial” banks which have located in white areas. Among these are the Universal Bank located in the Wall Street area of New York City; the interracial Vanguard National Bank in Hempstead, New York, a Long Island suburban area; and the American State Bank of Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a reported 30 percent white customers. Similarly, the black United Mortgage Bankers Association (UMBA) is in the process of using the device of pooling of mortgages. This article first appeared in theCalifornia Management Review no.1 (Fall 1974), and is reprinted with their permission.     

Getting South African banks to serve micro-entrepreneurs: An analysis of policy options

The lack of access to formal bank credit is one of the important problems faced by South African micro-entrepreneurs in the informal sector. Although the government has addressed this issue, private banks are still not interested in serving micro-enterprises. This article presents an analysis of the policies implemented by the government, as well as policies followed in other countries, to reach a conclusion with regard to the path to follow for solving this problem.     

Economic costs of tariffs and quotas on textile and apparel products imported into the united states : A survey of the literature and implications for policies

Zusammenfassung Die ?konomischen Kosten von Z?llen und Kontingenten der Einfuhr von Textilien und Bekleidung in die USA — Ein überblick über die Literatur und Folgerungen für die Wirtschaftspolitik. — Unter den gegenw?rtigen protektionistischen Bestrebungen repr?sentiert das Abkommen über den Handel mit Textilien, das sog. Multifaserabkommen (MFA), das Hauptbeispiel für den langfristigen Protektionismus und für die Verletzung der GATT-Prinzipien der Nichtdiskriminierung und der Kompensation. Das MFA sollte als eine Fortsetzung des langfristigen Baumwolltextilabkommens angesehen werden, welches seinerseits auf dem kurzfristigen Baumwolltextilabkommen basiert. In den vergangenen 25 Jahren erstreckten die USA die Beschr?nkungen, die ursprünglich nur für Baumwollprodukte aus Japan galten, zuerst auf alle wichtigen Lieferl?nder und dann auf alle Fasern, die uns Entwicklungsl?ndern stammen. Tats?chlich entfaltete das MFA ein Eigenleben und ist zu einem Muster protektionistischer Instrumente geworden. In Anbetracht dieser langen Geschichte der Protektion der Textilindustrie und des beachtlichen Gewichts, das dem MFA als Beispiel für eine “effektive” Handelsbeschr?nkung zukommt, hat dieser Aufsatz den Zweck, einen knappen überblick über die verschiedenen empirischen Sch?tzungen der Wohlfahrtskosten zu geben, die sich aus den Restriktionen des Handels mit Textilien und Bekleidung für die USA ergeben.

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Résumé Les co?ts économiques des tarifs douaniers et des quotas sur les produits de textiles et de l’habillement importés par les états-Unis: Un survol de la littérature. — Parmi les mesures actuelles protectionnistes, l’accord regardant le commerce international des textiles, ou plus communément, l’accord multifibres (AM), représente l’exemple essentiel d’une protection à long terme et d’une violation des principes de la non-discrimination et de la compensation du G.A.T.T. L’AM devrait être regardé comme l’extension de l’accord à long terme sur les textiles cotonniers (ALTTC) qui lui-même était l’extension de l’accord à court terme sur les textiles cotonniers. Pendant les 25 années passées les états-Unis étendaient ces restrictions sur le coton, premièrement appliquées seulement au produits japonais, à tous les exportateurs importants, finalement à tous les fibres exportés par les pays en voie de développement. En effet, l’AM menait sa vie propre et devenait le standard des instruments protectionnistes. En vue de cette longue histoire de protection dans l’industrie textile et de l’importance relative de l’AM comme exemple d’un mécanisme effectif des restrictions commerciales, le but de cet article est de donner d’une manière compacte un survol des différentes estimations empiriques des co?ts de bien-être pour les E.U. résultants des restrictions du commerce des textiles et de l’habillement.

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Resumen Costos económicos de tarifas y cuotas sobre productos textiles y del vestuario importados hacia los EEUU: un exámen de la literatura e inferencias para políticas. — En el entorno proteccionista actual, el acuerdo referente al comercio internacional de textiles, conocido comúnmente como Acuerdo Multifibra (MFA), représenta el principal ejemplo de protección de largo plazo y violación de los principios del GATT de no discriminación y compensación. El MFA deberia contemplarse como una extensión del Acuerdo de Largo Plazo sobre Textiles de Algodón (LTA), el que era una extensión del Acuerdo de Corto Plazo sobre Textiles de Algodón (STA). A través de los últimos 25 a?os los EEUU han expandido estas restricciones desde el algodón aplicadas sólo a Japón, a algodón aplicadas a los principales preveedores y fmalmente a todas las fibras aplicadas a todos los países en desarrollo exportadores. En efecto, el MFA adquirió vida propia y se ha constituido en el sello de calidad para todos los instrumentos proteccionistas. Dada esta larga historia de protectión en la industria textil y el peso relativo dado al MFA como un ejemplo de mecanismo ?efectivo? de restricción del comercio, el propósito de este estudio es proporcionar de una manera compacta un exámen de las distintas estimaciones empíricas del costo de bienestar de restricciones al comercio de textiles y vestuario sobre la economía de los EEUU.

     

Black-owned commercial banks: A new look at their performance and management

Summary This research has explored management and financial characteristics within mature black banks over the period of 1978–81. In general, although loan loss management remains a key variable in successful financial performance, other variables often argued to explain profitability differences between black and nonminority banks were not so helpful in explaining profit variation among black banks. It appears that a new model of successful black banking must be developed.     

Structural adjustment: A survey of the issues and options

The article raises and attempts to answer questions such as: adjustment for what purpose? to what shocks? of what factors or forces? by whom? who loses and who benefits from adjustment? and adjustment how? It also discusses the question of adjustment when? The distinction between external and internal shocks is rejected as neither helpful for the allocation of blame nor for the justification of raising finance. An analysis of the impact on the poor is sketched out. After a brief discussion of the role of the market and government intervention in adjustment policy and the fallacy of aggregating country policies, there follows a discussion of the double paradox of conditionality: why should a donor impose conditions that are in the best interest of the recipient, and why, instead of paying for getting good advice, is the recipient rewarded with extra money? Ten possible reasons are given. The paper ends with proposals as to how to overcome the conflict between national sovereignty and assuring that donor money is well spent.