The international financial crisis and policy challenges in Asia and the Pacific

Wrap-up conference of the Asian Research Programme, Shanghai, China, 6-8 August 2009.

The event was co-hosted by the People's Bank of China (PBC) and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to mark the formal completion of the BIS Asian Research Programme. Senior officials from all 12 Asian Consultative Council (ACC) central banks, as well as academic scholars and economists from the BIS Representative Office for Asia and the Pacific attended the conference. The formal addresses included speeches by Jaime Caruana, General Manager of the BIS, Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Chair of the ACC and Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia, and Zhou Xiaochuan, Governor of the PBC. The conference provided an opportunity to re-examine the existing approaches to preserving monetary and financial stability in Asia and the Pacific, in the light of the lessons of the international financial crisis. Even though the impact of the crisis was more muted in this region than elsewhere, there are many lessons to be learned.

A collection of the speeches, presentations and papers from this conference was published as BIS Papers No 52 in July 2010. 

Friday 7 August 2009
 
Opening remarks
Zhou Xiaochuan, Governor, People's Bank of China
Jaime Caruana, General Manager, Bank for International Settlements
 
Presentation of the special BIS background paper for the conference
Chair: Már Gudmundsson, Deputy Head of Monetary and Economic Department, Bank for International Settlements
 
The international financial crisis: the timeline, policy responses and impact in Asia and the Pacific
Andrew Filardo (Bank for International Settlements)
 
Session one: Development of Financial Markets in Asia and the Pacific
Chair: Joseph Yam, Chief Executive, Hong Kong Monetary Authority
 
Keynote speech: Development of financial markets in Asia and the Pacific
Suresh Sundaresan, Capula Investment Management and Columbia University
 
Internationalisation of Asia-Pacific bond markets
  Part 1 - Motivations for swap-covered foreign currency borrowing
Anella Munro (Bank for International Settlements), Philip Wooldridge (Bank for International Settlements)
  Part 2 - Why issue bonds offshore?
Susan Black (Reserve Bank of Australia), Anella Munro (Bank for International Settlements)
 
Private information, stock markets and exchange rates
Eric Chan (Bank for International Settlements), Jacob Gyntelberg (Bank for International Settlements), Mico Loretan (Bank for International Settlements), Tientip Subhanij (Bank of Thailand)
 
Discussant: Sukhdave Singh, Assistant Governor, Central Bank of Malaysia
 
High-level policy panel: "The development of financial markets"
Panelists: Joseph Yam, Chief Executive, Hong Kong Monetary Authority
Grant Spencer, Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of New Zealand
Ong Chong Tee, Deputy Managing Director, Monetary Authority of Singapore 
 
Session two: Monetary policy and exchange rate issues in Asia and the Pacific
Chair: Jaime Caruana, General Manager, Bank for International Settlements
 
Keynote speech: Exchange rate policies 
Charles Engel, University of Wisconsin 
 
Targeting inflation in Asia and the Pacific: lessons from the recent past
Andrew Filardo (Bank for International Settlements), Hans Genberg (Bank for International Settlements)
 
Financial deleveraging and the international transmission of shocks
Michael Devereux (University of British Columbia), James Yetman (Bank for International Settlements)
 
Discussant: Kyungsoo Kim, Deputy Governor, Bank of Korea
 
High-level policy panel: "Monetary policy and exchange rates issues"
Panelists: Amando Tetangco, Jr, Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
Ric Battellino, Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of Australia 
 
 
Saturday 8 August 2009
 
Session three: Financial stability issues in Asia and the Pacific
Chair: Zhou Xiaochuan, Governor, People's Bank of China
 
Keynote speech: Banks and the public sector authorities
Charles Goodhart, London School of Economics 
 
Contagion and risk premia in the amplification of crisis: evidence from Asian names in the CDS market
Don Kim (Yonsei University Business School), Mico Loretan (Bank for International Settlements), Eli Remolona (Bank for International Settlements)
 
Determinants of house prices in nine Asia-Pacific economies
Eloisa Glindro (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas), Tientip Subhanij (Bank of Thailand), Jessica Szeto (Hong Kong Monetary Authority), Haibin Zhu (Bank for International Settlements)
 
Discussant: Diwa Guinigundo, Deputy Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
 
High-level policy panel: "Financial stability issues"
Panelists:

Zhou Xiaochuan, Governor, People's Bank of China
Masaaki Shirakawa, Governor, Bank of Japan
Tarisa Watanagase, Governor, Bank of Thailand

 
 
Closing remarks

Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Chair, Asian Consultative Council and Governor, Central Bank of Malaysia

Jaime Caruana, General Manager, Bank for International Settlements