Het Internationale Monetaire Fonds en het internationale monetaire stelsel

Summary

Between 1947 and 1966 the I.M.F. has come to play a role of increasing importance. After a favorable start in the early years there followed a period of relative inactivity, but in 1956 the pace quickened again and activity has been quickening since that date. The watershed of 1956 arose because circumstances at that time called for a contribution to the system of international payments that the Fund was uniquely equipped to make. The Fund responded to the challenge and was able to do so partly because of the preparatory work that had been put in hand during the preceding years.

In the author's view, the development of the international reserves position offers a new challenge to the international monetary system and one which the Fund is in a position to try to meet. For years the rate of growth of international reserves has lagged behind the growth of imbalances in international payments, for whose financing these reserves are required. With traditional sources of reserves drying up, new sources need to be found if a lack of reserves is not to threaten the growth of international trade and thus of national economic expansion. Discussions on how the stock of world reserves might be increased have been going on for several years and the rising „temperature” of the discussions in recent months seems to indicate that the time for decision may be coming closer. Although additional conditional reserves would be well suited to perform the greater part of the job to be done, current international opinion places the main emphasis on arrangements for the creation of unconditional liquidity. In complete accordance with Article I of the Fund's Articles of Agreement — where it is said that the purposes of the Fund are the promotion of international monetary co-operation and the facilitation of the expansion of balanced growth of international trade —the Managing Director of the Fund has offered for discussion two variants of a plan to increase international reserves. The plan incorporates new techniques but these would be operated through the Fund and are thus backed by twenty years of experience in such matters.

All aspects of the work of the IMF are in one way or other related to the phenomenon called international liquidity. This paper, however, deliberately omits references to aspects of the FUnd's work whose connection with international liquidity is indirect, for instance, the provision of technical assistance or the regular consultations with member countries.

In Section 1 of the paper the discussion of international liquidity is placed in its proper historical perspective. The nature of international liquidity is then described, followed by an outline of the contributions that the Fund has made to it. This is followed by a description of the Fund's position and policies as they have developed over the years and a quantitative look at the results of the changes.

The position of reserves is then discussed mainly in terms of the argument used in the 1966Annual Report in its discussions of the future demand for reserves and the degree to which this demand will be met from current sources of reserves.

The Fund's contribution to the discussion on the adequacy of international liquidity is dealt with by referring to studies published in 1953 and 1958 and theAnnual Reports of recent years.

Finally, the types of reserves that might be created are discussed, followed by an outline of the proposals put forward by the Managing Director of the IMF. These proposals relate to the creation of new quasiautomatic drawing rights in the Fund and of reserve units. The common aspects of these proposals are discussed together, but the aspects in which they differ are treated separately.