Financial development and economic growth in the developing countries

Shenglin Ben, Purdue University

Abstract

By incorporating curb market savings into a growth model, this study developed a unified view about financial development and economic growth, where McKinnon-Shaw school and neo-structuralists part each other. We demonstrate the ambiguous nature of the relationship between financial development and economic growth. The disaggregation of financial sector into consumer finance and business finance enables us to see that the development of different aspects of the financial sector has different impacts on economic growth. While the development of business finance clearly promotes growth, the impact of development of consumer finance on growth is ambiguous, depending on how the households react to the development of consumer finance in their saving-consumption decision and asset portfolio choice. This has important policy implications: financial liberalization should be carried out according to an optimal order when the liberalization of all aspects cannot be implemented simultaneously. The analysis of credit market equilibrium in the presence of dual financial markets has provided insightful perspectives on the relationships between the formal and informal sectors of credit market. How curb market interest rate reacts to a change in bank deposit rate depends on many factors including the linkage between the dual financial markets, the efficiency of bank loan allocations, and comparative efficiencies of bank and curb market intermediation (the institutional aspects of the financial system). This ambiguous nature in the relationship suggests that the standard policy recommendation of raising bank deposit rate may be counterproductive. The analyses of Korean and Taiwanese experiences with financial development support the theoretical finding that liberalizing the institutional aspects of the financial system should proceed before interest rate decontrol. While acknowledging that Taiwan and Korea's success experiences may be helpful for other countries, this dissertation warns that China should not copy their reform policies. Rather, China should design its own financial reform paths that the different circumstances dictate.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Carlson, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Finance|Economics

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