Postwar monetary policy

Abstract

Monetary policy has played an active role in Dutch postwar economic policy. Essentially, it has sought to contribute to balanced economic growth by controlling the money supplyM2 in relation to national income. Policy measures extend to all sources of money creation-viz. bank credit, public sector finance and the balance of payments - and are predominantly of the quantitative type. This is reflected, among other things, in medium-term targets for the structure and outcome of the balance of payments and the size and coverage of the public sector's borrowing requirement. Internationally, the Netherlands favour and participate in stable exchange rate systems. This has not led to serious conflicts with domestic monetary objectives until the seventies, when excessive easing of monetary conditions had to be accepted temporarily.