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Interest rate, money demand and seigniorage: The Chinese hyperinflation 1946–1949

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  • Zhao, Liuyan
  • Li, Lianfa

Abstract

The lack of an observable variable measuring inflationary expectation has been a major difficulty in empirical work on hyperinflation. In this paper we propose a direct measure of expectations—the black-market interest rate in Shanghai—and study the behavior of money demand in the Chinese hyperinflation. Although the log–log schedule may provide an accurate description of money demand with relatively low interest rate, the pattern of seigniorage collected in the highest hyperinflation is consistent with the prediction of the semi-log schedule. The comparison of the seigniorage actually collected with the maximum steady state level shows that the economy might be on the increasing side of the Laffer curve except for the concluding stage of the hyperinflation. This suggests that the Chinese hyperinflation has been driven mainly by the government's quest for revenue.

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  • Zhao, Liuyan & Li, Lianfa, 2015. "Interest rate, money demand and seigniorage: The Chinese hyperinflation 1946–1949," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 169-179.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:chieco:v:34:y:2015:i:c:p:169-179
    DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2015.05.002
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Money demand; Seigniorage; Hyperinflation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E31 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Price Level; Inflation; Deflation
    • E41 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Demand for Money
    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy

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