samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Encik Abu Hassan Alshari Yahaya: Towards a more inclusive financial system Speech by Mr Encik Abu Hassan Alshari Yahaya, Assistant Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia (Bank Negara Malaysia), at the OKU Awareness Programm “Towards a More Inclusive Financial System”, Kuala Lumpur, 26 May 2015. *  *  *  Bridging the understanding on the needs of OKUs and preparing for the changing landscape due to higher expectation and enhanced legislation As the Malaysian financial sector matures and with the long term vision for an inclusive financial system, today’s program with the objective of enhancing awareness and understanding of the rights and requirements of the community of the OKU and how the financial industry could serve them better, would mark the beginning of this important journey at industry wide level. As mentioned by Yang Berhormat Senator Puan Bathmavathi earlier, currently there are about 338,000 registered OKU in Malaysia or 1.1% of Malaysia’s total population. While the official data may be small, the actual number of Malaysians with disabilities is deemed to be more than what is reported. In addition, this number will increase as more Malaysians may fall into this category with the ageing process, becoming casualties of accidents and those suffering from chronic diseases.

Such targeting requires co-ordination between donors and must be in response to the real needs of a country. To this end we see it as imperative that there is effective follow up to the IMF’s FSAP missions to channel technical assistance to where it is most needed. It is also important for individual regulators in developed markets to contribute to capacity development elsewhere. The growing interconnectedness of the financial system means it is in our interests to do so. Sometimes bilateral links can be valuable, especially where the legal and regulatory systems are similar, in former colonies or territories perhaps. At the FSA we have a practice of receiving secondments from other regulators, which is valuable for us, and we hope for them. Perhaps more relevant for Singapore is ensuring that Emerging Markets’ concerns and experiences are heard. A thousand different voices can be lost in the clamour so it is important that objections are  6  BIS Review 25/2003  raised in an organised way, for example through regional organisations. Then the international committees themselves must ensure their consultation processes are meaningful and wide-ranging. Though this combination of adjusting committee structures, and membership, enhancing technical assistance and encouraging effective consultation we can ensure that regulatory standards are truly global and fit for purpose in countries at all stages of financial market development. Conclusion So to return, finally, to my introductory question – is the global regulatory system fit for purpose in the 21st century?
In the US, the burden has been much more concentrated on those who have lost, and not regained, work. And in contrast to the UK, American companies have increased their profits significantly as a share of national income. The euro area What makes the UK performance even more remarkable is that we have faced the added challenge of rebuilding competitiveness. In the run-up to the crisis, the UK’s economy had become increasingly imbalanced. When the crisis hit, sterling fell by a quarter. Prices of imported goods rose sharply and that fed through to higher inflation. The squeeze on real incomes was pronounced. And yet there were relatively few calls for higher wages to compensate. As a result of that painful adjustment, the UK is more competitive. And if the world economy returns to a surer footing, there is a real prospect that the UK can properly rebalance its economy. 5  4  Outturns for unemployment have remained some way below what would have been expected given the past relationship between changes in unemployment and growth (Okun’s law). Year-on-year increases in unemployment during 2008-9, for example, remained around 1ppt below a simple Okun relationship based on data since the early 1970s. That is in stark contrast to the experience of the US in that period, where unemployment outturns were some way above past Okun’s law relationships. 5  See Carney, M (2014), Speech at the Mansion House, June; and Broadbent, B (2014), “The balance of growth”, Speech at the London School of Economics, January.

Since the typical economist asks whether what they have observed can work in theory, the annex shows how a “labour supply shock” results in a lower path for real wages and productivity, higher employment, and greater downward pressure on wage growth at any particular rate of unemployment. Although the adjustment has been painful, trading off lower productivity and wages for much higher employment, on balance it provides a solid foundation for a durable expansion. That is because keeping people in work through a recession maximises the prospects for individuals and the economy. By staying in work, individuals retain and learn new skills. And they are better placed to participate in the expansion when it gathers force. This can make a material difference to an individual’s lifetime earnings. 17 For the economy, maintaining workforce attachment is the best way to ensure that cyclical downturns in aggregate demand for goods and services do not translate into permanent reductions in our economy’s potential to supply them. As a result, Britain has an opportunity, not often seen after a deep recession, to reach and sustain a higher level of employment than in the past. And workers can maximise their pay prospects. But, you rightly ask, when will this start? When will Britain get a pay rise? The expansion of labour supply does not mean permanently weak growth of real incomes. As employment approaches its new higher level, wage pressures should increase and capital investment should continue to recover.
In the absence of a credible nominal anchor in the economy, e.g. in the form of an inflation target, demand increases further. This in turn leads to a tendency on the part of firms to raise their prices, particularly in a situation where production is constrained by bottlenecks. In addition, employees will demand higher wages, and the combined effect will be to create a spiral with rising inflationary pressure, such as we experienced, for example, in the 1980s. Adjustments towards a higher price level can occur over an extended period but will gradually set in motion processes that put a brake on growth. This is a manifestation of the established theory that it is not possible to raise the long-run productive capacity of the economy with short-term stimulation policies. What happens in this scenario if the central bank has an inflation target? When inflationary pressure in the economy increases, the central bank will tighten monetary policy so as to prevent the inflation target from being exceeded. Such a course of events would result in an unfavourable policy mix. The stimulation provided by fiscal policy would be counteracted by the monetary policy, which would mean that even the positive short-term effects of the stimulation would decrease or even become negative. Moreover, if the stimulation provided by fiscal policy is very powerful, this could lead to expectations of an increased risk that the inflation target cannot be upheld, which would then lead to rising inflation expectations and higher risk premiums on Swedish interest-bearing papers.

As this task is formulated in the Riksbank Act, the objective of the Riksbank’s operations shall be to pursue price stability and to promote a secure and efficient system of payments. The role of fiscal policy should include shaping the tax system so as to create the best conditions for the highest possible potential output. Changes in the Government’s financial savings and the requirement that there should be a surplus in the public finances over the course of a business cycle both work to create greater confidence in economic policy. The orientation of the budget policy, like that of monetary policy, is of great significance for the way the economy develops. If the fundamental rules of the game are stable, the actors in an economy will dare to make long-term decisions. 1  BIS Review 132/1999  Of course, it would also be desirable for monetary policy and fiscal policy to work together in such a way as to moderate major variations in employment and growth, i.e. so as to reduce cyclical fluctuations around potential growth. Since this may be difficult to achieve in practice, one question that arises is what is the optimal mode of interaction for fiscal policy and monetary policy within the framework of the inflation target regime. What happens in an inflation target economy if fiscal policy completely disregards the state of the economy? What happens, e.g. when the economy is in a boom if fiscal policy is conducted along excessively expansive lines?
The Financial Sector Master Plan (FSMP) will move into its second phase, with an emphasis on increased competition and consideration on potential entry of new players to further enhance financial efficiency and resiliency. Our accession to the Basel II accord, an international framework for the risk management of banks, will further raise financial sector stability. Monetary policy, a key responsibility of the Bank of Thailand, will continue to ensure low inflation environment crucial to well-functioning market economy. But there are limits to monetary policy in raising the standard of living over time. As such, a stable macroeconomic environment, no matter how crucial, is not enough to ensure long-run prosperity in the face of globalization. For that, we must turn to the private sector. The private sector must also work continuously to improve its competitiveness by strengthening productivity. A sustained rise in wages and living standards cannot take place without productivity growth. And adaptability to the shifting winds of global competition cannot happen without the ability to adopt the best technology and the ability to use that technology efficiently. To this end, the best competition policy for Thailand is policy to encourage competition. Encouraging competition means open markets. Open markets give firms the wherewithal and the incentive to invest, innovate and learn to be the best. The pacing and sequencing of market reform will also be crucial to its success. While the goal is to have sustained productivity increase, we may not see the effects of these reforms right away.

At the inception of the single market in 1986, the genius of Jacques Delors and the Commission was to hoist over a collection of 300 technical texts the banner of the four freedoms of movement – goods, services, persons and capital. This banner gave a meaning and a purpose to the single market. I am convinced that the success of CMU, in particular, will not depend on an ever-improving technical agenda, but on a much stronger political ownership and impetus, from all European authorities. We need an enhanced “private float” to stabilise the Economic and Monetary Union. Fiscal and monetary policies have done a lot to support the economy since 2020, and can no longer be the only tools used to tackle these challenges. Recent openings in the position of several countries – especially along the Rhine, but also across the Alps – could hopefully offer the possibility to reach agreements. II. Finalising the Banking Union to strengthen our banks The following figures will illustrate our failure so far to offer the right conditions for pan-European banking groups to emerge. In 2020, the domestic market share of the top five US banks stood slightly below 50%, compared with around 25% for the top five in Europe. In 2021, amid a dynamic volume of mergers and acquisitions in Europe, domestic transactions accounted for circa 80% of completed deals from January to November; symmetrically, the share of crossborder deals remains almost negligible.
The Executive Board lays down principles for responsible investment management and is responsible for decisions on the observation and exclusion of companies. Norges Bank has recently issued a consultation response to the report by the Mestad Commission assessing the guidelines for the observation and exclusion of companies. The Bank views the report as a good starting-point for further development of the GPFG as a responsible investor. Norges Bank addresses companies, not political conditions in countries. We remark in our consultation response that the GPFG enjoys the advantages of free and open markets, with no particular restrictions on our investments. The GPFG has today a clear financial objective. A change that blurs the distinction between company and state could raise doubts about the role of the GPFG. A new Central Bank Act entered into force on 1 January 2020. The Act has brought changes in the Bank's governance structure and organisation. A Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Committee was established at the beginning of the year. This has given the Executive Board greater capacity to work on the management of the GPFG. Over the past year, the Executive Board has completed a reorganisation of the administrative support functions at the Bank with the aim of pooling expertise, promoting cost-effective solutions and underpinning the identity of the Bank as a single institution. Another important change is the Executive Board's appointment of a new CEO for the Bank's management of the GPFG.

Under the strategy plan for 2020-2022, the Executive Board will continue to use external managers in markets and market segments where local knowledge is particularly relevant. After the Storting had discussed the white paper on the GPFG in 2019, the Ministry gave Norges Bank permission to invest in unlisted infrastructure for renewable energy. This is reflected in the strategy for the next three years adopted by the Executive Board. The Bank will assess each investment in relation to risk and return. The management of the GPFG is required to be cost-effective. Norges Bank aims to keep total 1/2  BIS central bankers' speeches  internal management costs in the period 2020-2022 below 0.05 percent of assets under management. In recent years, the number of Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) employees has been reduced and administrative support functions across the Bank are being streamlined. The Executive Board will continue to monitor costs closely. In the course of 2020, the Executive Board has strengthened the Bank's work as advisor to the Ministry, in accordance with our new mandate. In this year's white paper, the Ministry proposes changes in the composition of the equity benchmark index. The equity allocation to Europe will be reduced somewhat over time, and the allocation to North America will be correspondingly increased. This is in line with Norges Bank's advice. Norges Bank works systematically to set principles, exercise ownership rights and invest responsibly. Our work on responsible investment underpins the objective of the highest possible return.
Let me now move on to the second point of my intervention: how inflation targeting has evolved in response to the post-crisis global economic and financial environment. The NBR, the same as the central banks of Poland, Czech Republic and Hungary, is an inflation targeter. In Romania, we have remained loyal to inflation targeting since 2005, but inflation targeting itself is quite different now from 15 years ago. Indeed, it is rather difficult to say at present what is left of its underlying principles. The outbreak of the global crisis and the post-crisis developments have naturally led to the tailoring of the strategy to the new realities. Some departures from the old orthodoxy are almost unavoidable in 1/3  BIS central bankers' speeches  the present context, marked by a changing global financial and economic landscape. For instance, after the crisis, forex interventions re-entered the arsenal of many central banks, including some of the previously more purist floaters. A case in point is the Czech National Bank, which resorted to the so-called “exchange rate commitment” from November 2013 to April 2017, intervening whenever necessary without time or volume limits to prevent the appreciation of the koruna below a publicly announced floor.

In this context it is not the present exchange rate that is decisive, but how we see it developing in a slightly longer-term perspective. There is no reason to depart from the basic assessment we made earlier; there are still strong reasons in favour of a stronger krona. It is not merely that Swedish macro data in general has developed well over a number of years compared with, for instance, the euro area; most forecasts indicate that this development will continue. Sweden is also one of the countries that has had the highest trade surplus as a percentage of GDP over a number of years, which is one indication among many that the value of the krona has been relatively low. However, even if we should not – as I see it – change our basic assessment that the krona will strengthen, its value at present is rather different. There is therefore reason to take into consideration a risk scenario for inflation linked to a weaker exchange rate. Just as the Riksbank emphasised during 2003 and 2004 that the strong krona was one reason behind the low inflation rate, there is reason to point out that the weakening of the krona this year, particularly if it persists, could result in higher inflation,” said Mr Heikensten. ”All in all, I do not at present see any reason to change my view of inflation now to any great extent, compared with the October assessment.
I am sure that this is no surprise to you when you have to deal with the agencies; you go here for one thing, then go to another place, face another regulation, and the two are not consistent. There is a very clear priority for the government to resolve this issue by, despite being almost a cliché, providing the one-stop facilitation service. So that businesses and investors, both foreign and Thai, do not have to go through all numerous government agencies each with their own cumbersome and often conflicting laws and regulations. Currently, the government’s efforts in regulatory guillotine are underway, however, the speed obviously needs to be accelerated, otherwise, it is really hard to improve the business climate in our real ease of doing business. The final reason why Thailand remains a great place to do business is that there are some new trends that will help mitigate some of the long-term structural weaknesses in the Thai economy which are holding us back. What are some of these? First, automation and our demographics; automation is coming very strongly in Thailand, maybe to some lesser degree in other countries in the region. However, looking forward, the costs of automation would come down and the benefits are clear. With the COVID19 that has brought lockdowns, everybody sees the need for automation to avoid the work interruptions and relying less on human workers. This will help mitigate one of the long-term structural weaknesses in Thailand of poor demographics.

I began by saying that the State Bank of Vietnam is currently in a situation similar to that of the Swedish Riksbank just over a decade ago. However, it is also the case that the conditions are different in certain respects. One difference is that the Swedish credit and money markets had been deregulated completely during the 1980s and early 1990s. This meant, for instance, that the central government issued bonds, through public auctions and at predetermined times, and actively attempted to promote the development of a secondary market. Thus, there was already a clear channel through which monetary policy could have an effect. Another difference was that we in Sweden had the support of a long tradition of comprehensive production of public statistics that made our work easier. These are factors that, as I understand it, do not apply to the same extent here in Vietnam, at least not yet. Vietnam has thus – like all countries – its own special conditions that may need to be taken into account and may make it difficult to formulate monetary policy as an exact blueprint of the system in  7  For a detailed discussion of “central bank transparency”, see, for instance, Chapter 1 of Blinder, A.S., (2004), The Quiet Revolution – Central Banking Goes Modern, Yale University Press. 6  BIS Review 21/2006  another country 8 .
For instance, the number of unemployed trade union members in the construction sector amounted to 7.2 per cent in April, which can be compared with a figure of 2.1 per cent for the white-collar trade unions. With regard to construction workers, it is striking that the percentage of unemployed trade union members in April amounted to 2.0 per cent in the county of Stockholm and to a huge 16.4 per cent in the county of Norrbotten, and this was in a situation with a relatively good level of economic activity in the construction sector. Today’s Swedish economy is characterised by a rapid rate of change, there is at present both a surplus and a shortage of labour in all regions. This makes increased demands on education, labour market measures and mobility. At the same time as a greater degree of mobility increases efficiency, there may be a conflict between geographical mobility and regional interests. Certain regions that already suffer from the problems of a diminishing population will experience even greater problems for growth when parts of the labour force move away. In addition, it is often difficult to achieve the desired geographical mobility for social reasons. The fact that two persons in a household are in gainful employment is one reason and differences in the cost of living is another. The housing situation in, for instance, the Stockholm area also makes it difficult for people to move to this region. As you already know, mobility between the EU member states is low.

We are also monitoring consumers' needs regarding access to funds, including stimulus payments, through traditional deposit accounts, as well as for individuals without a traditional banking relationship who utilize pre-paid cards. Conclusions Taken together, these steps demonstrate the Fed's strong commitment to help the U.S. banking system support the U.S. economy and protect consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are aware, however, that many low- and moderate-income and minority communities remain severely impacted. The regional partnership between the New York Fed and socially responsible providers of capital continues to inform our understanding of the needs for access to credit for these critical small businesses. We will continue to work with you to ensure that the financial system acts as a source of strength to support all segments of the U.S. economy. Thank you. 1Agencies issue revised interagency statement on loan modifications by financial institutions working with customers affected by the coronavirus 2Federal Reserve provides additional information to financial institutions on how its supervisory approach is adjusting in light of the coronavirus 3Agencies announce changes to the community bank leverage ratio 4The Fed has also taken action to support the provision of credit by larger institutions.