Channels of Monetary Policy in a Transition Country: Hungary

In the last years, Hungary recorded huge current deficits. These results may endanger the capacity of repayment of the outstanding debt and thus its access to international financial markets. We analyze how domestic credit market conditions have affected the current account performance. Implementing Granger-causality tests on time series data over the period 1990-1994, we find that current account performance was negatively affected by credit contraction. Furthermore, using desegregated data on credit, we are able to show that credit to small enterprises is highly significant to explain current account performance as well as the level of unemployment.Transition; monetary policy; crowding-out effect; Hungary

Internal finance and corporate investment: Belgian evidence with panel data

In this paper the corporate investment decision under financial restrictions is investigated with Belgian firm data from 1984 to 1992. An investment Euler equation is derived from a dynamic optimization model with debt ceilings and an elastic credit supply. The model is estimated by GMM for different firm groups. An important aspect is that the sample is split according to a firm’s association with coordination centers. These centers have become the major external funding source of corporate investment in Belgium since 1986. The estimation results show the dependence of corporate investment on financial factors, both for non-coordination center as well as coordination center firms.Investment; corporate; financial; financial restrictions; coordination centers; panel; GMM;

Structural studies of metal ligand complexes by ion mobility-mass spectrometry

Collision cross sections (CCS) have been measured for three salen ligands, and their complexes with copper and zinc using travelling-wave ion mobility-mass spectrometry (TWIMS) and drift tube ion mobility-mass spectrometry (DTIMS), allowing a comparative size evaluation of the ligands and complexes. CCS measurements using TWIMS were determined using peptide and TAAH calibration standards. TWIMS measurements gave significantly larger CCS than DTIMS in helium, by 9 % for TAAH standards and 3 % for peptide standards, indicating that the choice of calibration standards is important in ensuring the accuracy of TWIMS-derived CCS measurements. Repeatability data for TWIMS was obtained for inter- and intra-day studies with mean RSDs of 1. 1 % and 0. 7 %, respectively. The CCS data obtained from IM-MS measurements are compared to CCS values obtained via the projection approximation, the exact hard spheres method and the trajectory method from X-ray coordinates and modelled structures using density functional theory (DFT) based methods. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

Structural studies of metal ligand complexes by ion mobility-mass spectrometry

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12127-013-0122-8Collision cross sections (CCS) have been measured for three salen ligands, and their complexes with copper and zinc using travelling-wave ion mobility-mass spectrometry (TWIMS) and drift tube ion mobility-mass spectrometry (DTIMS), allowing a comparative size evaluation of the ligands and complexes. CCS measurements using TWIMS were determined using peptide and TAAH calibration standards. TWIMS measurements gave significantly larger CCS than DTIMS in helium, by 9 % for TAAH standards and 3 % for peptide standards, indicating that the choice of calibration standards is important in ensuring the accuracy of TWIMS-derived CCS measurements. Repeatability data for TWIMS was obtained for inter- and intra-day studies with mean RSDs of 1. 1 % and 0. 7 %, respectively. The CCS data obtained from IM-MS measurements are compared to CCS values obtained via the projection approximation, the exact hard spheres method and the trajectory method from X-ray coordinates and modelled structures using density functional theory (DFT) based methods. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

Transmission de la politique monétaire et crédit bancaire. Une application à trois pays de l'OCDE

The transmission of monetary policy and bank : the case of three OECD countries The debate on monetary policy transmission channels has recently focused on the « bank credit channel ». We have used VAR models in order to simulate the impact of monetary policy shocks on the economies of United States, Japan and Germany. The estimation of the VAR also permits consideration of the reaction function of monetary policy authorities. The main result is that, at least at the macro level, credit does not react significantly following a shock to interest rates. In contrast, the significant reaction of both monetary aggregates and exchange rates confirms the assumption that monetary policy is transmitted through these variables.Transmission de la politique monétaire et crédit bancaire. Une application à trois pays de l'OCDE Le débat sur les canaux de transmission de la politique monétaire s'est situé récemment sur la question du canal par le crédit bancaire. Nous utilisons ici des modèles VAR pour analyser les effets d'un choc de politique monétaire sur l'économie aux États-Unis, au Japon et en Allemagne. Ces estimations nous permettent aussi de déduire les fonctions de réaction des autorités monétaires. Il en ressort principalement que le canal de transmission de la politique monétaire ne semble pas passer par le crédit bancaire. En effet, au niveau macro-économique, le crédit ne réagit pas de manière significative à une variation du taux d'intérêt. En revanche, les réponses significatives du taux de change et de la masse monétaire confortent plutôt une transmission par ces canaux.Barran Fernando, Coudert Virginie, Mojon Benoît. Transmission de la politique monétaire et crédit bancaire. Une application à trois pays de l'OCDE. In: Revue économique, volume 46, n°2, 1995. pp. 393-413

La transmission des politiques monétaires dans les pays européens

[fre] La transmission de la politique monétaire dépend de nombreux facteurs, réels et financiers. Ici, l'incidence des facteurs financiers est étudiée d'un point de vue empirique pour les pays de l'Union européenne. Liaison entre les taux d'intérêt bancaires et le taux du marché monétaire, pratiques d'indexation du crédit, facilité de l'accès au crédit pur les ménages, structure des actifs et des passifs sont analysées de façon à déceler les différences entre les pays européens qui pourraient entraîner des divergences dans la transmission de la politique monétaire. Des estimations sur modèles VAR sont ensuite proposées pour évaluer l'effet de la politique monétaire dans les différents pays. Le premier article est complété par un deuxième texte analysant l'opportunité d'utiliser des modèles VAR. La méthode VAR présente un certain nombre d'avantages mais s'accompagne aussi de nombreuses difficultés, dont il est nécessaire d'avoir conscience avant utilisation. Les hypothèses sous-jacentes aux différentes méthodes d'identification sont explicitées. La troisième contribution reprend la question de la transmission de la politique monétaire en Europe en s'appuyant sur les études menées à la BRI sur cette question. [eng] The effects of monetary policy way vary from one country to another for various reasons. The impact of monetary policy, even when such policy is concentrated on interest rates, may have numerous effects : on credit, on the quality of moneh and on the substitution of other financiel products. Its consequences for real activity and prices are determined by monetary policy transmission channels taken as a whole, and by their respective importance. The regulatory framework of banking, as well as banking practices specific to each country and the structure of assets and liabilities may also play a role in the various reactions by non- financial agents to interest rate changes. This issue is crucial to European Monetary Union. If a common monetary policy is implemented, it will have to be able to produce the same results from one country to another. The second paper highlights the pros and cons of VAR methodology. As a matter of facts, VAR implementation involve assumptions which are not always clearly stated. This paper particularly emphasive the role of identification in VAR models. Finally, the third paper presents the results of research undertaken at the BIS on the transmission channels of monetary policy in Europe.

Taux d'intérêt, spreads, comportement bancaire : les effets sur l'activité réelle.

Interest rates, banking spreads and credit supply : the real effects In a standard ISLM model, the effects of monetary policy work through the demand for money and the (unique) interest rate. In fact, shocks of monetary policy will affect the relative structure of interest rates. In this paper we analyse the information content of the relative structure of interest rates on economic activity. Over and above currently defi­ned spreads, we have defined spreads based on bank interest rates. A major conclusion is that these banking spreads are informative about economic activity, even though the relationship between financial aggregates and real activity has weakened. This seems to confirm the important role that banks play in economic activity.Alors que la relation entre agrégats monétaires et activité économique se dégrade, les estimations empiriques montrent que les spreads de taux d'intérêt sont de bons indicateurs avancés de l'activité. Nous testons ici le pouvoir prédictif des spreads de taux d'intérêt bancaires en les comparant aux agrégats monétai­res, aux taux d'intérêt et aux spreads de marché généralement utilisés dans la lit­térature. Les arguments avancés pour justifier leur utilisation sont fondés sur le comportement bancaire tel qu'il apparaît dans le canal de transmission de la poli­tique monétaire par le crédit. À l'aide de tests de causalité, nous établissons le caractère prédictif de ces spreads bancaires dans les pays du G5.Barran Fernando, Coudert Virginie, Mojon Benoît. Taux d'intérêt, spreads, comportement bancaire : les effets sur l'activité réelle. In: Revue économique, volume 46, n°3, 1995. pp. 625-634

Taux d'intérêt, spreads, comportement bancaire : les effets sur l'activité réelle.

[eng] Interest rates, banking spreads and credit supply : the real effects. In a standard ISLM model, the effects of monetary policy work through the demand for money and the (unique) interest rate. In fact, shocks of monetary policy will affect the relative structure of interest rates. In this paper we analyse the information content of the relative structure of interest rates on economic activity. Over and above currently defi­ned spreads, we have defined spreads based on bank interest rates. A major conclusion is that these banking spreads are informative about economic activity, even though the relationship between financial aggregates and real activity has weakened. This seems to confirm the important role that banks play in economic activity. [fre] Alors que la relation entre agrégats monétaires et activité économique se dégrade, les estimations empiriques montrent que les spreads de taux d'intérêt sont de bons indicateurs avancés de l'activité. Nous testons ici le pouvoir prédictif des spreads de taux d'intérêt bancaires en les comparant aux agrégats monétai­res, aux taux d'intérêt et aux spreads de marché généralement utilisés dans la lit­térature. Les arguments avancés pour justifier leur utilisation sont fondés sur le comportement bancaire tel qu'il apparaît dans le canal de transmission de la poli­tique monétaire par le crédit. À l'aide de tests de causalité, nous établissons le caractère prédictif de ces spreads bancaires dans les pays du G5.

The Transmission of Monetary Policy in the European Countries

Transmission;monetary policy;interest rate;Econometric methods;EMS;Monetary block;Monetary system;International Money and Finance