Regional Seminar on Central Bank Communications

January 22–24, 2006
Mumbai, India

This seminar will discuss the communications challenges faced by central banks in today's economic policy environment, and with today's rapid and globalized information flows. In sharing and analyzing experiences among central banks of the Asian region and elsewhere, the seminar will consider such questions as these:

  • What, when, and how should a central bank want to communicate to the media, to the private sector, to parliamentarians, to other non-official groups, and to the general public? How do central banks need to tailor their communications to different audiences?
  • What are the principles and tools of effective central bank communications? How should strategies be designed to be effective in different situations and to meet varying needs?
  • What are the limits to the information that central banks should disclose? What are the limits to transparency?
  • How do central banks' optimal communication strategies vary among different monetary and exchange rate policy regime?
  • How do communication strategies in emerging market and developing economies need to differ from those of their counterparts in more developed countries?
  • How do central banks assess the effectiveness of their communication strategies? What are the general lessons to be learned from central banks' experiences of recent years?
Disclaimer
The views expressed in these papers are those of the authors only, and the presence of them, or of links to them, on the IMF website does not imply that the IMF, its Executive Board, or its management endorses or shares the views expressed in the papers.

Agenda

Sunday, January 22
7:30 pm Opening Reception and Dinner
Hosted by Akira Ariyoshi, Director, Regional IMF Office for Asia and the Pacific
Monday, January 23
9:00 am–9:20 am Registration and Continental Breakfast
9:20 am–9:30 am Welcome and Introduction of Keynote Speaker
Wanda Tseng, Deputy Director, Asia and Pacific Department, IMF
9:30 am–10:00 am Keynote Address: Importance of Communications for Monetary Policy—A Perspective
Y.V. Reddy, Governor, Reserve Bank of India
Session 1: The Communications Challenge
This session will cover why communications has become more important for monetary policy, and the challenges in communicating monetary policy and building confidence in the financial system.
  Chair: Rakesh Mohan, Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India
10:15 am–11:30 am Managing Monetary Policy and Central Bank Communications in an Uncertain Environment
10:15 am–10:35 am Diwa Guinigundo, Deputy Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
10:35 am–10:55 am Miranda Goeltom, Senior Deputy Governor, Bank Indonesia
10:55 am–11:30 am Discussion
11:30 am–11:50 am Managing Expectations on Exchange Rate and Monetary Policy
Edward Robinson, Executive Director, Monetary Authority of Singapore
11:50 am–12:10 pm Central Bank Communications: Best Practices in Advanced Economies
Richard Lambert, Member of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee and Former Editor of the Financial Times, London
12:10 pm–12:45 pm Discussion
12:45 pm–2:15 pm Luncheon
Address: Toshiro Muto, Deputy Governor, Bank of Japan
Session 2: Markets and Media: The Primary Audiences?
A major task of central banking is said to be the management of expectations. This session will examine the considerations that should inform central bank communication strategies. When and to whom should central banks communicate? Do central banks need to communicate to different audiences differently? What are the repercussions of globalized and real-time communications for central bank communications?
  Chair: Paul Barry, Head of Information, Reserve Bank of Australia
2:30 pm–3:00 pm What Markets Want From Central Banks
2:30 pm–2:45 pm Amit Tandon, Managing Director, Fitch Ratings, India
2:45 pm–3:00 pm Clifford C.H.Tan, Director, Citigroup Global Markets, Singapore
3:00 pm–3:30 pm The Role Media Play in Setting Expectations
3:00 pm–3:15 pm Alan Wheatley, China Economics Editor, Reuters
3:15 pm–3:30 pm Mythili Bhusnurmath, Editor, Financial Express, India
3:30 pm–4:15 pm Discussion
Session 3: Transparency: Its Benefits and Limits
The sessions will cover the advantages and risks of greater transparency in the conduct of monetary policy and policies to promote financial sector stability. How and when should the monetary policy decision-making process be made public? What are the limits to central bank transparency? How successful has increased transparency been in promoting the accountability and perceived legitimacy of central banks?
  Chair: Akira Ariyoshi, Director, Regional IMF Office for Asia and the Pacific
4:30 pm–4:50 pm Central Bank Transparency for Monetary and Financial Stability
Charles Enoch, Deputy Director, Monetary and Financial Systems Department, IMF
4:50 pm–5:10pm What Are the Limits to Transparency?
Bandid Nijathaworn, Deputy Governor, Bank of Thailand
5:10 pm–5:25 pm Transparency at the IMF
Graham Hacche, Deputy Director, External Relations Department, IMF
5:25 pm–6:00 pm Discussion
7:30 pm Dinner Hosted by the Reserve Bank of India
Tuesday, January 24
Session 4: Monitoring and Analyzing the Media
This session will consider the following issues: Why is media monitoring important? What media do we need to monitor? How can we monitor and analyze the media? What can we do with this information—for example, can the quality of central bank communications be measured? What are some of the implications for central bank communication strategies and procedures?
9:30 am–9:50 am Media Monitoring: Some Issues
Paul Barry, Head of Information, Reserve Bank of Australia
9:50 am–10:30 am Discussion
Session 5: Key Components of Effective Communications: Lessons from Experience
This will be an interactive session, focusing on some of the key components of external and internal communications, including during periods of crisis, and the lessons that participants have learned.
  Chair: Kanitta Meesook, Assistant Director, External Relations Department, IMF
10:30 am–10:45 am Means and Modes of Communicating with the Press and the General Public
Kwang-June Lee, Director General, Press Office, Bank of Korea
10:45 am–11:00 am Communicating with Legislators, Civil Society Organizations, Academics, and the Wider Public
Takashi Yoshimura, Director, Secretariat of the Policy Board, Bank of Japan
11:00 am–11:15 am Communications in a Rapidly Evolving Economy
Hui Sun, Deputy Director-General, Governor’s Office, People’s Bank of China
11:15 am–11:30 am Dealing with External Pressures—Financial, Economic, and Political
Christopher Munn, Executive Director, Hong Kong Monetary Authority
11:30 am–12:30 pm Discussion
12:30 pm–1:00 pm Concluding Remarks
Graham Hacche, Deputy Director, External Relations Department, IMF