Jelle Zijlstra, A Central Banker's View: Selected Speeches And Articles (financial And Monetary Policy Studies)

## PREFACE system of free enterprise and free international exchange. He never gave in to the fashion of the day. As a central banker he fully endorsed the view that money matters. He did not hesitate to use direct monetary controls to further monetary stability. However, he remained convinced that other conditions also had to be fulfilled and that other instruments also had to play an indispensable role. He was amongst the first to recognize that the process of profit erosion and upsurge of public expenditure posed a mortal threat to the functioning of the economic system. Dr. Zijlstra constantly stressed the importance of international adjustment and exchange rate stability. When monetarism came in vogue he called himself a moderate monetarist, but in fact he very much remained himself. Adhering to basically simple rules and principles on monetary growth, the size and financing of the public sector deficit and wage increases, he was always able to explain clearly what the primary objectives of macro-economic policy should be in order to restore well-balanced economic conditions and economic growth. This book contains a collection of speeches and articles delivered and published by Dr. Zijlstra in his capacity as President of the Netherlands central bank. They can be seen as catalysts in the monetary debate both at home and abroad. Professor Goedhart has compiled a summary of all of the fourteen President's reports written by Dr. Zijlstra. This summary precedes the collection. This book is published by the Netherlands Institute for Banking and Stockbroking (Nederlands Instituut voor het Bank-en Eifectenbedrijf) in honour of Dr. Zijlstra' s outstanding contributions to both economic thinking and policy making. The Institute hopes that his views will continue to stimulate all those interested in the subject. Front Matter....Pages I-X Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Zijlstra’s concerto grosso....Pages 3-31 Front Matter....Pages 33-33 Statement at IMF Annual Meeting, 1967....Pages 35-38 Statement at IMF Annual Meeting, 1968....Pages 39-42 Statement at IMF Annual Meeting, 1969....Pages 43-45 Some aspects of international monetary reform....Pages 47-55 International Monetary Reform....Pages 57-64 The banking system and the EEC....Pages 65-74 Reflections on international economic and monetary problems....Pages 75-87 Speech at BIS Annual Meeting, 1974....Pages 89-97 Statement at Joint Annual Session of the IMF and World Bank, 1975....Pages 99-103 The world economy and the monetary system....Pages 105-112 Speech at BIS Annual Meeting, 1981....Pages 113-121 Front Matter....Pages 123-123 The Netherlands economy in 1976 — a stock taking....Pages 125-135 The Netherlands economy in 1977....Pages 137-151 The Netherlands economy after the presentation of the budget....Pages 153-161 The construction industry in a macro-economic fix....Pages 163-169 Front Matter....Pages 171-171 Inflation and its impact on society....Pages 173-183 Monetary theory and monetary policy, A central banker’s view....Pages 185-202 Introduction to ‘Schumpeter’s Vision’....Pages 203-206 Central banking with the benefit of hindsight....Pages 207-221 Back Matter....Pages 223-237 On 1 May 1967 Dr. J elle Zijlstra was appointed President of De Nederlandsche Bank, after an already eventful career. Following a brief spell as Professor of Economics at the Free University of Amsterdam, he began a lengthy period of ministerial service in 1952. During his cabinet years, he devised a concept which became known in the Netherlands as the' Zijl stra norm', and which was aImed at keeping the Government's financial deficit in check. He concluded his active political career .as prime minister in 1966-1967. Dr. Zijlstra's career as a politician and central banker covered a period of nearly 30 years during which the economic scene in the N ether lands and in the world underwent wide cyclical ups and downs and impor tant changes of a more long-lasting nature. Successful economic recovery after the Second World War was followed by a period of rapid and rela tively stable economic growth. However, as early as the 1960s the condi tions for the maintenance of equilibrated expansion became less secure. These conditions were further impaired in the 1970s partly as a result of important shocks, such as the oil crises