## Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability

_Policy Papers, April 13, 2010_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability](https://www.imf.org/en/publications/policy-papers/issues/2016/12/31/reserve-accumulation-and-international-monetary-stability-pp4456)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/publications/policy-papers/issues/2016/12/31/reserve-accumulation-and-international-monetary-stability-pp4456/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/publications/policy-papers/issues/2016/12/31/reserve-accumulation-and-international-monetary-stability-pp4456/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/publications/policy-papers/issues/2016/12/31/reserve-accumulation-and-international-monetary-stability-pp4456/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Published: April 13, 2010
- Series: Policy Papers

---

### Summary and purpose
- Reviews the structure of the international monetary system (IMS)—the set of official arrangements that regulate key dimensions of balance of payments: international reserves, exchange rates, current payments, and capital flows.
- Motivated by repeated and costly international financial crises since the last comprehensive IMS reform discussion held "nearly four decades ago."
- Seeks to assess how the IMS can be strengthened and made more resilient given recent and prospective trends.

### Major findings and diagnostics
- Identifies a confluence of forces:
  - An unprecedented build-up in global current account imbalances.
  - Volatile cross border capital flows.
  - A sharp build-up of international reserves.
  - Concentration of those reserves in a few reserve currencies facing new challenges in maintaining fiscal and financial stability.
- Highlights a tension characterized as "high reserve demand and narrow reserve supply."
- Notes that while the paper focuses on reserve demand–supply tension, it also touches on all IMS components: exchange rate arrangements, capital flows, and the global adjustment process.
- Signals that "pre-crisis trends appear set to resume," calling for examination of broader implications for stability and efficiency of the current system.

### Scope and relation to broader Fund work
- Positions this paper in the broader context of the Fund’s recent work on IMS stability:
  - Followed an earlier paper focused on exchange rate arrangements.
  - Anticipates continuation with another paper on capital flows in coming months.

### Subject areas covered
- Balance of payments
- Capital flows
- Exchange rates
- Financial stability
- Fiscal stability
- International monetary reform
- International monetary system
- Reserves
- Reserves accumulation

### Publication and access notes
- Publication date: April 13, 2010.
- The IMF eLibrary offers over 25,000 IMF publications in multiple formats.

*Source: Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability — https://www.imf.org/en/publications/policy-papers/issues/2016/12/31/reserve-accumulation-and-international-monetary-stability-pp4456*

---

## Content in this bundle

- **Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability; IMF Policy Papers; April 13, 2010**
  - [Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability; IMF Policy Papers; April 13, 2010 (Markdown version)](/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/np/pp/eng/2010/_041310.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability; IMF Policy Papers; April 13, 2010 (PDF)](/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/np/pp/eng/2010/_041310.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

---

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/policy-papers/issues/2016/12/31/reserve-accumulation-and-international-monetary-stability-pp4456_