Making the European monetary union : the role of the Committee of Central Bank Governors and the origins of the European Central Bank

Europe's Financial Crisis Cannot Be Blamed On The Euro, Harold James Contends In This Probing Exploration Of The Whys, Whens, Whos, And What-ifs Of European Monetary Union. The Current Crisis Goes Deeper, To A Series Of Problems That Were Debated But Not Resolved At The Time Of The Euro's Invention. Since The 1960s, Europeans Had Been Looking For A Way To Address Two Conundrums Simultaneously: The Dollar{8217}s Privileged Position In The International Monetary System, And Germany's Persistent Current Account Surpluses In Europe. The Euro Was Created Under A Politically Independent Central Bank To Meet The Primary Goal Of Price Stability. But While The Monetary Side Of Union Was Clearly Conceived, Other Prerequisites Of Stability Were Beyond The Reach Of Technocratic Central Bankers. Issues Such As Fiscal Rules And Europe-wide Banking Supervision And Regulation Were Thoroughly Discussed During Planning In The Late 1980s And 1990s, But Remained In The Hands Of Member States. That Omission Proved To Be A Cause Of Crisis Decades Later. Here Is An Account That Helps Readers Understand The European Monetary Crisis In Depth, By Tracing Behind-the-scenes Negotiations Using An Array Of Sources Unavailable Until Now, Notably From The European Community's Committee Of Central Bank Governors And The Delors Committee Of 1988{8211}89, Which Set Out The Plan For How Europe Could Reach Its Goal Of Monetary Union. As This Foundational Study Makes Clear, It Was The Constant Friction Between Politicians And Technocrats That Shaped The Euro. And, Euro Or No Euro, This Clash Will Continue Into The Future.--from The Dust-jacket Front Flap. Introduction: The Making Of A Non-national Currency -- A Napoleonic Prelude -- The Origins Of The Committee Of Governors -- The Response To Global Monetary Turbulence -- The Snake And Other Animals -- Negotiating The European Monetary System -- The Malaise Of The 1980s -- The Delors Committee And The Relaunching Of Europe -- Designing A Central Bank -- The Ems Crises -- Conclusion: The Euro And The Legacy Of The Committee Of Governors. Harold James ; With A Foreword By Mario Draghi And Jaime Caruana. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. List of Figures* Foreword [Mario Draghi and Jaime Caruana] Abbreviations Used in Text Introduction: The Making of a Non-National Currency 1. A Napoleonic Prelude 2. The Origins of the Committee of Governors 3. The Response to Global Monetary Turbulence 4. The Snake and Other Animals 5. Negotiating the European Monetary System 6. The Malaise of the 1980s 7. The Delors Committee and the Relaunching of Europe 8. Designing a Central Bank 9. The EMS Crises Conclusion: The Euro and the Legacy of the Committee of Governors Appendix A: Maastricht Treaty Text and Committee of Governors’ Draft of the Statute of the European Monetary Institute Appendix B: Maastricht Treaty Text and Committee of Governors’ Draft of the Statute of the European Central Bank Appendix C: Dramatis Personae Appendix D: Members of the Committee of Governors Appendix E: Committee for the Study of Economic and Monetary Union (Delors Committee), 1988–1989 Appendix F: Chairmen of the Monetary Committee of the European Community, 1958–1998 Appendix G: European Commission Presidents and Commissioners for Economics and Finance, 1958– Appendix H: Chronology Appendix I: Interest Rates and Fiscal Balance Notes Acknowledgments Index * Figures: I.1. Sum of current account imbalances in deficit and surplus countries, 1960–2010 I.2. Committees and comitology 4.1. Exchange rates, 1971–1979 4.2. Real effective exchange rate for Deutsche Mark, 1963–1993 6.1. Net positions in EMCF, 1979–1995 6.2. Exchange rates, 1979–1983 7.1. Deutsche Mark interventions in dollars, 1979–1993 7.2. Exchange rates, 1982–1989 7.3. Marginal and intramarginal interventions, 1986–1993 9.1. Exchange rates, 1989–1993 9.2. Operations to defend the British pound, July–September 1992 9.3. Competitiveness and overall trade balance, 1990–1992 9.4. Interventions in French franc crisis, June 25–July 31, 1993 AI.1. Inflation, 1965–2000 AI.2. Nominal policy interest rates, 1960–2012 AI.3. Real policy interest rates, 1960–2012 AI.4. General government budget balances, 1960–2010 AI.5. Current account balances, 1965–2000 List of figures Foreword / by Mario Draghi A Napoleonic prelude The origins of the committee The response to global monetary turbulence : Barre and Werner The snake and other animals Negotiating the European monetary system The malaise of the 1980s The Delors committee and the relaunching of the central bank governors Designing a central bank The EMS crises Conclusion: the euro and the legacy of the Committee of Governors Appendix A: The governors' drafts and the treaty text of the statutes of the ECB and EMI Appendix B: Members of the committee of governors Appendix C: Dramatis personae Appendix D: Chronology Appendix E: Figures Abbreviations used in the text Notes Acknowledgments Index. List of figures Foreword / by Mario Draghi and Jaime Caruana A Napoleonic prelude The origins of the committee of governors The response to global monetary turbulence The snake and other animals Negotiating the European monetary system The malaise of the 1980s The Delors committee and the relaunching of Europe Designing a central bank The EMS crises Conclusion: the euro and the legacy of the Committee of Governors Appendix A: The governors' drafts and the treaty text of the statutes of the ECB and EMI Appendix B: Members of the committee of governors Appendix C: Dramatis personae Appendix D: Chronology Appendix E: Figures Abbreviations used in the text Notes Acknowledgments Index. Europe’s Financial Crisis Cannot Be Blamed On The Euro, James Contends In This Probing Exploration Of The Whys, Whens, Whos, And What-ifs Of European Monetary Union. The Current Crisis Goes Deeper, To Conundrums That Were Debated But Not Resolved At The Time Of The Euro’s Invention. And, Euro Or No Euro, These Clashes Will Continue Into The Future.