2003 News Releases

For immediate release:
October 27, 2003

Media contact:
James Hoard
Phone: (214) 922-5307
e-mail: james.hoard@dal.frb.org

Sovereign Debt Focus of Dallas Fed Conference

A panel of international economic and financial leaders will convene at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Nov. 7 to address solutions to the problem of sovereign debt.

“Sovereign Debt in the 21st Century” will be held from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Dallas Fed. The conference is sponsored by the Institute for the Study of Financial Intermediation and Growth, a joint initiative of the Dallas Fed and University of Texas at Austin. Participants can register to attend at www.dallasfed.org.

“The problem of debt and loan default can cripple an emerging economy, threatening the stability of nations and multinational corporations,” said Bob McTeer, Dallas Fed president and chief executive officer. “In a global economy, consumers around the world are affected by this issue.”

Speakers at the event will include Central Bank of Brazil Governor Henrique de Campos Meirelles, Central Bank of Mexico Governor Guillermo Ortíz Martínez and U.S. Undersecretary of Treasury for International Affairs John Taylor.

Kenneth Rogoff, Harvard University economics professor and former International Monetary Fund economic counsellor and research director, will give the keynote address.

“This meeting’s assembly of innovative thinkers and scholars will discuss the overall problem of sovereign debt, how it developed, the economic hazards it poses and available solutions,” said McTeer.

The Institute for the Study of Financial Intermediation and Growth was organized in 2002 by the Dallas Fed Research Department and University of Texas at Austin Economics Department to facilitate dialogue between policymakers and academics and encourage research on policy-related issues.

Additional information on “Sovereign Debt in the 21st Century” and a list of confirmed speakers can be found on the Dallas Fed web site, www.dallasfed.org.

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