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Bank of Japan's Balance Sheet in 1882-1955: Reassembled Data and Their Developments

Author

Listed:
  • Ryoji Koike

    (Director and Senior Economist, Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies, Bank of Japan (E-mail: ryouji.koike@boj.or.jp))

Abstract

This paper overviews the developments of the Bank of Japan's balance sheet from the Meiji era to postwar reconstruction. The paper assesses balance sheet items in terms of both nominal values and ratios to nominal GNP, using semiannual and monthly data reassembled from historical materials. In the semiannual data, the ratio of total assets to GNP remained at 10-15 percent in peacetime but increased to 19-48 percent in wartime, whereas it was 16 percent at most during financial crises. Meanwhile, banknotes remained stable, at 8-11 percent, except in the Bank's early years and at end of the Pacific War in 1941-45. The monthly data capture short-term changes during financial crises and rapid changes in economic and financial institutions, such as the 1923 earthquake, the return to the gold standard in 1930, and the emergency measures in 1946 that voided old banknotes to reduce money in circulation. These data provide useful information for research in history fields such as the identification of exogenous shocks.

Suggested Citation

  • Ryoji Koike, 2024. "Bank of Japan's Balance Sheet in 1882-1955: Reassembled Data and Their Developments," IMES Discussion Paper Series 24-E-07, Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies, Bank of Japan.
    • Handle: RePEc:ime:imedps:24-e-07
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    File URL: https://www.imes.boj.or.jp/research/papers/english/24-E-07.pdf
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    from the Meiji era to postwar reconstruction; the Bank of Japan's balance sheet; historical records; semiannual data; monthly data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N25 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions - - - Asia including Middle East
    • Y10 - Miscellaneous Categories - - Data: Tables and Charts - - - Data: Tables and Charts
    • E58 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Central Banks and Their Policies

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