Institution Building for Macroeconomic and Financial Cooperation in East Asia

Abstract

This paper discusses institution building for macroeconomic and financial cooperation in East Asia. The issues covered include the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM); the regional safety net mechanism that evolved from regional cooperation initiatives started after the 1997 financial crisis. A number of proposals are put forward to make the liquidity support role of the CMIM more effective. Other issues covered are regional economic surveillance; the role of the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO), which will support CMIM; how AMRO may evolve to become the Asian Monetary Organization; and how the Finance Ministers’ process can be integrated with the Central Banks’ process to create a more effective institutional structure for the region. JEL codes: E02, E44, F33, F36, F55