Contents:
INTRODUCTION; MARKET HISTORY, Early beginning of money in Japan; Meiji Restoration and the birth of Yen; Post-war developments; Market liberalisation; In the aftermath of the bubble; GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS, Market participants; Foreign exchange banks and brokers; Customers, Market segments and transactions; Spot and forward markets; The role of foreign exchange swaps, Futures and options; Attitudes towards risks; Covering and Hedging; Position taking and arbitrage, Trading Techniques; Accounting; THE RISKS; Market risks; Measures of variability; Some stylised facts; Limits to forecastibility; Derivatives; Asymmetries and Nonlinearities; Risk management practices; Market linkages and operational risks; Payment system risks, Major payment systems; Private sector initiatives; POLICY ISSUES; Market regulation; Principles of bank regulation; Exchange restrictions; Risk monitoring and risk provision; Exchange rate stabilisation; Central bank interventions; International policy co-operation; CONCLUSION; Bibliogrpahy

This indispensable book provides a comprehensive analysis of monetary and financial integration in East Asia. It assesses the steps already taken toward financial integration and brings forward different proposals for future exchange rate arrangements in what has now become the world's most dynamic region. With contributions from distinguished experts this timely book evaluates the economic and politico-economic arguments and conditions for monetary and financial integration in East Asia. It explores how and to what extent the countries of the region can integrate despite their heterogeneity and their underlying political tensions. Drawing on the European experiences, this book analyzes the economic logic of monetary and financial integration in East Asia and its political feasibility. This invaluable broad analysis will be of interest to academic researchers, students, policy-makers and professional economists working on matters of international economic cooperation, common currency areas, international open economy macroeconomics, and East Asian integration.