Regulations on capital are ‘critical’ Bahk says

Asian nations need to maintain their regulations on capital movements in and out of the region as many remain vulnerable to external shocks, Korea’s top economic policy maker said yesterday.

Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan also called for global cooperation to produce “tangible” results in regulating financial, raw materials and grain markets to stave off any future market turbulence.

“For Asian economies, which remain vulnerable to a crisis, it is critical to have capital regulations in place to ease volatility in the face of speculative money,” Bahk told a forum in Seoul.

“We have to produce tangible results in our ongoing negotiations among the Group of 20 countries in appropriately regulating financial, raw materials and grain markets to keep chaos at bay.”

Bahk emphasized the importance of opening up global markets and cautioned against exaggerating the downside of globalization.

“It is not right to exaggerate only the dark sides of globalization,” he noted. “We need to respect the values of markets at least until a better system emerges to replace the current market-based one.”

Touching on the overall economic situation in Asia, Bahk said that the region has been sustaining the global economy at a time when other advanced nations are going through fiscal debt problems. He cited sufficient foreign reserves, marked growth, robust employment and sound fiscal status as factors behind Asia’s emergence as a key supporting force.

Yonhap