Sovereign Debt in the 21st Century
November 7, 2003
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

Organizers: Mark Wynne and Carlos Zarazaga, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Dean Corbae, University of Texas at Austin

Emerging market economies face a number of challenges, but better management of sovereign debt and lower default rates are particularly important to ensuring economic growth. In recent years, increased access to diversified capital markets and institutions has allowed countries to experiment with financing options, including large issuances of sovereign debt bonds.

This conference, sponsored by the Institute for the Study of Financial Intermediation and Growth (ISFIG), will bring together leading scholars and policymakers to discuss recent ideas and developments surrounding sovereign debt and the occurrence of defaults.

A joint initiative of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and the University of Texas at Austin, ISFIG was established in 2002 to promote research and dialog between policymakers and scholars on topics of importance to emerging market and transition economies. “Sovereign Debt in the 21st Century” is the first in a series of conferences, seminars and other events ISFIG will host to further the understanding of these issues.

Agenda

Friday, November 7

8:00 a.m.	Registration and Continental Breakfast
8:45	Welcoming Remarks
	Robert D. McTeer, Jr. President and Chief Executive Officer Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
9:00	Session 1 Managing Sovereign Debt: Issues and Policies
	Kenneth M. Kletzer University of California, Santa Cruz Crisis Resolution: Next Steps by Barry Eichengreen, University of California, Berkeley; Kenneth Kletzer; and Ashoka Mody, International Monetary Fund
	Commentary by: Richard Portes London Business School
	Harold L. Cole University of California, Los Angeles
	Moderator: David Backus New York University
10:30	Break
11:00	Session 2 Policymakers Panel
	Henrique de Campos Meirelles Governor, Central Bank of Brazil Remarks [PDF]
	Guillermo Ortiz Governor, Bank of Mexico Remarks [PDF]
	John B. Taylor Undersecretary for International Affairs, U.S. Treasury
	Moderator: Robert D. McTeer, Jr. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
12:30 p.m.	Lunch
	Speaker: Kenneth Rogoff Harvard University
2:00	Session 3 Catalytic Finance
	Hyun Song Shin London School of Economics Catalytic Finance: When Does It Work? by Stephen Morris, Yale University, and Hyun Song Shin
	Nouriel Roubini New York University International Lending of Last Resort and Moral Hazard: A Model of IMF’s Catalytic Finance by Giancarlo Corsetti, University of Rome III, Yale University and CEPR; Bernardo Guimaraes, Yale University; and Nouriel Roubini
	Moderator: Timothy J. Kehoe University of Minnesota
3:30	Break
4:00	Session 4 Dealing with Debt
	Carmen M. Reinhart University of Maryland Debt Intolerance [off-site PDF] by Carmen M. Reinhart; Kenneth Rogoff, International Monetary Fund; and Miguel A. Savastano, International Monetary Fund
	Jonathan Eaton New York University Standstills and an International Bankruptcy Court [PDF]
	Moderator: William C. Gruben Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
5:30	Closing Remarks
	Robert D. McTeer, Jr. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
5:30–7:00	Reception and Informal Discussion