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High-Level Seminar on Exchange Rate Regimes: Hard Peg or Free Floating? IMF Headquarters, Washington, D.C. |
March 19–20, 2001
By invitation only
In recent years developing and transition countries have tended to move away from adjustable-peg regimes to more flexible regimes or toward hard pegs. The literature has identified this phenomenon as a "hollowing of the middle" in the spectrum of exchange rate regimes.
This seminar addresses the choice of exchange rate regime by developing and transition countries. Country experiences are used to answer a number of crucial questions: What have we learned so far? Are intermediate exchange rate regimes in fact no longer a viable or desirable option? Why do countries opt to move away from the middle? What has been the experience so far in the transition to each of the extremes? What are the specific challenges and obstacles that a country faces when moving away from the middle?
The conference program appears below.
9:00 a.m.–9:15 a.m.Opening Session Presentation by Mr. Horst Köhler, Managing Director, IMF9:15 a.m.–11:00 a.m.Session I. Round Table: Hard Peg or Free Floating? Panelists: Stanley Fischer, First Deputy Managing Director, IMF; Carmen Reinhart, U. of Maryland;
Jeffrey Frankel, Harvard U.;
Robert Flood, Editor, IMF Staff Papers Chair: Mohsin S. Khan, Director, IMF Institute11:30 a.m.–1:00 p.m.Session II. From Fixed to Floating: The Latin-American Experience Chile
Speaker: Felipe Morandé, Chief Economist, Central Bank of Chile
Exchange Rate Policy in Chile: Recent Experience
Mexico
Speaker: Alejandro
Werner, Director, Economic
Studies, Bank of Mexico
Mexico's Experience with a Floating Exchange Rate
Discussion
Chair: Enzo
Croce, Division Chief,
IMF Institute2:30
p.m.–4:00 p.m.Session
III. From Fixed to Floating:
Other Country Experiences Israel
Speaker: Leonardo
Leiderman, Managing Director,
Emerging Markets Research,
Deutsche Bank, New York;
and Gil Bufman, Professor,
Tel Aviv University
Surprises on Israel's Road to Exchange Rate Flexibility
Poland
Speaker: Ryszard
Kokoszczynski, Deputy
President, National Bank
of Poland
From Fixed to Floating: Other Country Experiences: The Case of Poland
Discussion
Chair: Eric
V. Clifton, Division Chief,
IMF Institute4:30
p.m.–5:30 p.m.Session
IV. From Intermediate
to Floating: The Asian
Experience The
Asian Countries Before
and After the Crisis Speaker:
Peter Montiel, Williams
College; and Leonardo
Hernández, Senior
Economist, IMF Institute
Post-Crisis Exchange Rate Policy in Five Asian Countries: Filling in the "Hollow Middle"? Discussion
Chair: Reza
Vaez-Zadeh, Division Chief,
IMF Institute Tuesday,
March 20
9:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m.Session V. From Fixed to Fixed: The Case of Hard Pegs Argentina
Speaker: Guillermo Escudé, Head, Research Department, Central Bank of Argentina Hong Kong SAR
Speaker: Priscilla Chiu, Head, Economic Research Division, Hong Kong Monetary Authority
Hong Kong's Experience in Operating the Currency Board System
Estonia
Speaker: Peter
Lohmus, Former Deputy
Governor, Bank of Estonia
Exchange Rate Regimes: Hard Peg or Free Floating? -- the case of Estonia
Discussion
Chair: Saleh
M. Nsouli, Deputy Director,
IMF Institute11:30
a.m.–12:15 p.m. Session
VI. Wrap-up Session Speaker:
Leonardo Leiderman (Deutsche
Bank, New York)
Chair:
Mohsin S. Khan (IMF)