This paper studies the political economy of realignments to fixed exchange rates and suggests that the use of realignments is less likely when there are political benefits from stable exchange rates and when linkages across other issue areas increase the costs of realignment. More specifically...

In contrast to the popular bipolar view on exchange rate choices, this paper argues that intermediate regimes in general and regional exchange rate systems such as the European Monetary System (EMS) in particular should not be ruled out per se when discussing monetary options for East Asian...

Option prices seem to behave in ways inconsistent with the Black-Scholes model. Implied volatility varies with the strike price in a parabolic shape that is often called the volatility 'smile.' My objective in this paper is to identify implied probability distributions that might explain this...

The performance of EMU member economies is shaped by different and structurally entrenched "growth models" whose success depends on specific macro-regimes – restrictive for export-led growth, accommodating for demand-led growth. These two types of models cannot be equally viable under a...

The main target of this paper is to analyze two problems: namely, whether the Polish exchange rate system is adjusted to the rules of ERM II and whether an exchange rate system that has been used in Poland since April 2000 constitutes appropriate foundation for the evaluation of the zloty/euro...

This paper argues that, in contrast to the popular bipolar view on exchange rate choices, intermediate regimes in general and regional exchange rate systems such as the European Monetary System (EMS) in particular should not be ruled out per se even in today's world of highly mobile capital. The...

History shows that governments usually rethink their views on international macroeconomic cooperation after the emergence of a crisis. The response of the Asian countries after the speculative attacks occurred in 1997 may be considered as another example after the European ERM crisis in 1992-93....

The CFA franc devaluation on 11 January 1994 stands out as the most significant reform within the Franc Zone system since political independences of former African French colonies in 1960, yet a topic shrouded into profound taboo. So far, the economic literature has failed to draw any connection...

This paper investigates the issue of monetary interdependence among members of the European Monetary System over the period 1979–91 and the leadership role attributed to the German central bank in the process of monetary integration, and looks for possible changes in central banks’...