Opening the capital account means not restricting cross-border capital transactions or taking relevant measures that may affect their transaction costs. There are several points worth emphasizing here. First, the opening of capital account should not only remove the restrictions on "exchange and payment", but also include the removal of the restrictions on "transaction" itself; Second, the opening of capital account should not only remove the restrictions on capital flow, but also include removing any relevant measures that may affect the transaction cost of capital, such as "transaction taxes and subsidies"; Third, capital account liberalization includes the requirement of single exchange rate or non-discriminatory exchange rate arrangement, but it does not necessarily require the implementation of free market exchange rate, because "hard peg arrangement" or currency board arrangement can not be ruled out, such as Argentina and Hong Kong.

The significance of capital account opening

Since 198s and 199s, capital account opening has gradually become a new bright spot in the world economic development. Of course, the opening of capital account is a brand-new subject for our country and a new thing for the whole developing country, so the understanding of the opening of capital account also has a development process.

In p>1995, at a round table organized by the International Monetary Fund, some Latin American countries, represented by Chile, reaffirmed the positive role of capital controls under certain conditions based on their experience of effectively containing the external shocks brought about by the Mexican financial crisis in 1994. The International Monetary Fund holds a different view. In recent years, the IMF has stressed the need to extend the free convertibility required by Article VIII of the International Monetary Fund Agreement from the original current account to the capital account. They emphasize that it is difficult to distinguish between current account and capital account, and it is also difficult to distinguish between capital types, and they doubt the lasting effect of capital control. Therefore, it is not a question of whether to realize capital account liberalization, but a question of how to realize it and the speed and steps of realization.

in p>1997, in order to cope with the Asian financial crisis and the impact of international financial predators, Malaysia was forced to implement foreign exchange control under capital account. To this end, it has been criticized by international public opinion. The prevailing orthodoxy at that time was that even limited capital controls were unacceptable; The market is sacred and should abide by the principle of market self-regulation. However, the lessons of the Russian financial crisis a year later seem to have changed people's views on the role of capital control. In a recent report of the International Monetary Fund, "Experiences of Relevant Countries and Liberalization of Capital Control", it paid attention to the role of capital control in coping with the violent fluctuation of capital flows, and realized the complexity of the issue of opening capital account. The report pointed out: "The stability of macro and financial policies within a certain range is the most universal goal, and all prudent measures may play a role in achieving this goal." However, the report also pointed out that capital control needs to pay a certain price: "First, restricting capital flow (especially when the control measures are comprehensive and involve a wide range) will affect normal current transactions and reduce normal capital flow; Secondly, capital control has to pay a very high management cost, especially when the control measures have to be broadened to plug potential loopholes; Thirdly, there is also the risk of sheltering the domestic financial market through regulation, which will also delay the adjustment of policies and hinder the private sector from adapting to the changes in the international environment; Finally, capital controls distort market signals, making it more difficult for countries that implement capital controls to attract foreign investment or make their financing costs higher. "

According to a report of the World Bank, the effectiveness of capital control is declining, while the cost of capital control is increasing. The research results of capital account opening and management in Southeast Asian countries show that the government has begun to realize that the management of capital account is inefficient. If we underreport exports and overstate imports, or transfer prices and profits, or change the arrangement of trading time and conditions, or even bribe, we can achieve the purpose of evading control. Especially after the current account convertibility has been realized, capital can be exported and imported through the current account channel.

Therefore, it is of far-reaching significance to realize the opening of capital account or the convertibility of capital account, that is, to realize the free flow of capital in the world, which is mainly manifested in the following aspects:

(1) It is an inevitable trend for all countries in the world to realize the opening of capital account and the convertibility of currency. In today's world, all developed countries have realized currency convertibility, and some most developed countries have also realized capital account opening and currency convertibility. Relatively speaking, the more developed the country is, the higher the degree of opening to the outside world, and the higher the degree of capital account opening and currency convertibility.

(2) The internationalization of world economic development will accelerate the process of currency convertibility and capital account opening. The inevitable result of the internationalization of world economic development is that the degree of mutual connection and integration among countries' economies is deepening, and the currency as its communication medium is bound to be internationalized gradually. The most prominent embodiment of this internationalization trend is the emergence of the regional international currency euro. At the same time, the free flow of capital will promote the specialization of financial services and make the international economy more efficient. The abolition of capital controls will improve the intermediary efficiency of resource transfer from savers to investors. Global savings will be allocated to areas and regions with the highest productivity. In addition, liberalization can also give domestic residents the opportunity to diversify their securities assets internationally, and have more opportunities to use new foreign production technologies and management skills.

(3) Opening the capital account is conducive to the integration of China's economy with the international economy and the promotion of opening to the outside world. At present, the international community advocates the opening of capital account, which can make China's foreign capital utilization and foreign exchange management system conform to international practice and meet the basic requirements of the International Monetary Fund for its member countries, thus reducing the obstacles to joining the world economic organizations and attracting foreign investment. In addition, the opening of the capital account will help China to implement the grand economic and trade strategy and establish an open economy. Opening to the outside world is not only an international exchange of materials, but also an all-round exchange of production factors. The opening of capital account will not only contribute to the extensive international exchange of goods and services, but also benefit the continuous expansion of international technical and economic cooperation.

(4) Opening the capital account can accelerate the establishment of a market economic system. It is mainly manifested in the following aspects: (1) it will close the relationship between RMB and foreign currency and promote the rationalization of RMB exchange rate formation mechanism; It will promote the construction of money market, accelerate the operation of open market business and the marketization of interest rates, and improve the macro-control ability of the central bank; It will promote the further expansion of foreign trade and economic cooperation and be conducive to the positive balance of international payments; It will further promote the opening up of the domestic capital market and greatly improve the standardized operation and effectiveness of China's capital market.

(5) The opening of capital account will bring dynamic economic benefits to China's financial and other industrial sectors. Because the competitive pressure from foreign peers will force domestic financial institutions to continuously improve their service quality and strive to reduce operating costs in order to improve their operating efficiency. At the same time, it is of inestimable value to reform and improve the domestic financing environment, improve the awareness and skills of domestic enterprises' capital operation and risk management, and change the mode of operation to adapt to the changes in the international financial market.