Informality and Monetary Policy in Japan: The Political Economy of Bank Performance

by Adrian van Rixtel

Overview

The success as well as the recent misfortunes of the post-war Japanese economy has been one of the most debated points in economics. Many explanations focus on cultural and institutional factors, and in particular the role of "Informality" in networks organizing business activity and government policy. This book provides the first quantitative and qualitative assessment of Informality in the formation of Japanese monetary policy. The author spent two years at the Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies at the Bank of Japan and the Japanese Ministry of Finance and offers a unique "insider-outsider" perspective.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521039444
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	08/16/2007
Pages:	420
Product dimensions:	6.02(w) x 8.98(h) x 0.94(d)

Table of Contents

List of figures; List of tables; Acknowledgements; 1. Introduction; Part I. Theory: 2. The political economy and economic system of Japan: a survey of literature, conflict and confusion; 3. Informal aspects of Japanese economic policy; 4. Informality and monetary policy: an operational framework; Part II. The Institutions and their Policies: 5. Informality, monetary authorities and monetary policy: the pre-1998 reform regime; 6. Informality, banking crisis and financial reform: 1998 and beyond; Part III. Empirical Evidence: 7. Amakudari in the private banking industry: an empirical investigation; 8. Amakudari and the performance of Japanese banks; 9. Conclusion: informality, monetary policy and bank performance - lessons from the Japanese experience; Bibliography; Index.