Bank Of Korea International Conference 2018 | The Bank of Korea | 4 June 2018 | The Westin Chosun Seoul, 106 Sogong-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Welcome Message

I am delighted to extend to you all a very warm welcome to the 2018 BOK International Conference under the theme of “The Role of Monetary Policy: Present and Future.”

Since the 2008 global financial crisis central banks in major countries have actively implemented a variety of unconventional monetary policies, including zero-interest rate policies and quantitative easing. In line with this central banks have also worked to enhance the effectiveness of their monetary policy, by strengthening their communication with economic agents through initiatives such as forward guidance.

Combined with expansionary fiscal policy, these active responses of central banks are judged to have contributed to financial system stabilization and the recovery of the real economy. And with the global economy showing a sustainable pace of recovery of the real economy since escaping the “Great Recession,” central banks are now normalizing their monetary policies, by gradually raising their policy rates and reducing the sizes of their balance sheets that they had expanded greatly during the crisis.

This process has stimulated considerable discussion about the role of the central bank and of monetary policy, and we have learned important lessons in the ensuing debates. Further discussions are nevertheless still needed, on what constitutes an effective monetary policy framework within an economic structure that is changing due to population aging and falling natural interest rates.

In the light of this I think that this year’s conference is particularly meaningful, in that it brings together eminent scholars and policy makers from around the world to share their ideas on salient issues of monetary policy including targets and instruments, reputation and communication, policy coordination, and the future of central banking.

I would like to express my deep gratitude to our distinguished advisor Professor Thomas J. Sargent, for his thoughtful efforts devoted to making this conference a success.

I hope that this year’s conference will serve as a tremendous opportunity for all participants, to discover answers to questions concerning the desirable future roles of the central bank and monetary policy.

I sincerely welcome you all, and I wish you a most enjoyable stay in Seoul.

Juyeol Lee
Governor
The Bank of Korea

2018 Speakers

Juyeol Lee
Governor, Bank of Korea

Robert E. Hall
Professor, Stanford University

Masaaki Shirakawa
Professor, Aoyama Gakuin University, Former Governor, Bank of Japan

Thomas J. Sargent
Professor, New York University

Martin Uribe
Professor, Columbia University

Juan Pablo Nicolini
Senior Research Economist, FRB of Minneapolis

Giovanni Dell’Ariccia
Deputy Director, IMF

Hwan-Koo Kang
Head, Bank of Korea

Inseok Shin
Member of Monetary Policy Board, Bank of Korea

Michael McMahon
Professor, University of Oxford

Michael Ehrmann
Head of Division, ECB

Jan Marc Berk
Director, De Nederlandsche Bank

Junhan Kim
Deputy Director General, Bank of Korea

Christopher J. Waller
Executive Vice President, FRB of St. Louis

Ellen McGrattan
Professor, University of Minnesota

Marco Bassetto
Senior Economist, FRB of Chicago

Cyn-Young Park
Director, Asian Development Bank

Shigenori Shiratsuka
Director General, Bank of Japan

Dosoung Choi
Professor, Gachon University, Former Member of Monetary Policy Board, BOK

Kyuil Chung
Deputy Governor, Bank of Korea

Ricardo Reis
Professor, LSE

Greg Kaplan
Professor, University of Chicago

Andrew Filardo
Head of Monetary Policy, BIS

Jinill Kim
Professor, Korea University

Robert E. Hall
Professor, Stanford University

Woosik Moon
Professor, Seoul National University, Former Member of Monetary Policy Board, BOK

Martin Uribe
Professor, Columbia University

Michael Ehrmann
Head of Division, ECB

Christopher J. Waller
Executive Vice President, FRB of St. Louis

Ricardo Reis
Professor, LSE