TY - BOOK ID - 84542011 TI - What is An Emerging Market? PY - 2004 SN - 1462362974 145273707X 128211025X 1451904266 9786613803146 PB - Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, DB - UniCat KW - Debts, Public KW - Foreign exchange administration KW - Government securities KW - Government agency securities KW - Government bonds KW - Public securities KW - Treasuries (Securities) KW - Treasury bonds KW - Bonds KW - Securities KW - Foreign exchange KW - Banks and Banking KW - Finance: General KW - Foreign Exchange KW - Investments: Bonds KW - Policy Objectives KW - Policy Designs and Consistency KW - Policy Coordination KW - International Financial Markets KW - General Financial Markets: General (includes Measurement and Data) KW - Banks KW - Depository Institutions KW - Micro Finance Institutions KW - Mortgages KW - Finance KW - Currency KW - Investment & securities KW - Banking KW - Emerging and frontier financial markets KW - Exchange rate arrangements KW - International capital markets KW - Financial markets KW - Financial institutions KW - Collective action clauses KW - Financial services industry KW - Banks and banking KW - Capital market KW - United States UR - https://www.unicat.be/uniCat?func=search&query=sysid:84542011 AB - As developing economies become richer, they seek to contract with the global economy in increasingly complex ways. Dealing with that complexity often implies the need to renegotiate contracts. However, such recontracting is viewed with concern, particularly by market participants. At the same time, iron-clad commitments to abstain from recontracting are untenable. Sovereign debt experts have long dealt with this dilemma. This paper argues that the acute trade-off between commitment and flexibility is not unique to sovereign debt. Instead, it is the defining characteristic of an emerging market. Examples of World Bank guarantees on behalf of sovereign governments to private lenders, exchange rate regimes, and international bond contracts, highlight the evolution from commitment to flexibility. Early interaction with international markets typically benefits from strong transaction-specific commitment. However, the goal is to grow out of transactional commitments to achieve commitment through credible institutions. Institutional commitment allows the benefits of flexibility, with the country's "word" acting as the necessary assurance to behave responsibly. ER -