Sustainability and Long-Term Growth in the Financial Market System

Abstract

The paper discusses the implications of the unequal rate of growth of the international financial market on the one hand and the growth of the real economy on the other. Based on viewing balance sheet equilibrium as a prerequisite for sustainable economic growth, a discussion is presented about the optimal interest rate, which depends on the natural and real economic growth of the economy. In the final section, two propositions are presented. The first proposition is that the average interest rate should vary with the rate of growth of the real economy which is a proxy for organic growth in economic processes. Lower interest rates are not desirable because of their impact on economic opportunities. Higher interest rates should be rejected because of the implicit additional positive time preference that they entail. The second proposition concerns the accumulation of wealth. Under the assumption of the existence of a positive interest rate, the absence of a financial tax and the absence of bankruptcies, financial capital grows exponentially and therefore needs to be managed institutionally, in a positive way. A structural imbalance between the monetary sector on the one hand, and the real economy on the other, leads to the illusion of purchasing power in the hands of the public.