This paper clarifies the relationship between Germany's capital exports and the revival of its domestic capital market, by examining how Germany's role as a capital exporter changed as a result of the liberalization of trade and foreign exchange controls. The focus is on Germany as an Article XIV member country of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). When Germany joined the IMF in 1952, the country had surpluses against the OEEC region and bilateral-agreement countries, and deficits against the dollar zone. Therefore, Germany's goal in promoting the liberalization of trade and foreign exchange controls was to eliminate regional gaps in restrictive and discriminatory measures. As of 1956, its import liberalization rates viz. both the OEEC region and the dollar zone exceeded 90%, and bilateral agreements were being eliminated altogether. Germany's trade and foreign exchange liberalization were thus almost complete. What is peculiar in Germany's case is that the country's cumulative current account surpluses were deemed problematic. The latter 1950s saw harsh international criticism of Germany's accumulation of gold and dollar reserves, and the country was pressed to export capital as a "surplus nation's responsibility" (richesse oblige). The United States and the IMF were particularly strong in urging capital exports. Germany itself was reluctant to be regarded as a capital-exporting country like the United States but promoted capital exports nonetheless in the face of the international pressure. The requests for German capital exports gradually shifted from short- and medium-term to long-term. The country assisted developing countries through the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), both making loans and releasing the Deutsche Mark (DM) portion (18%) of Germany's capital contribution to the organization. These actions coincided with the revival of the country's domestic capital market at the end of the 1950s and contributed to the global liquidity supply through the issuance of DM-denominated IBRD bonds and the involvement of export industries and commercial banks in IBRD activities. The gold and dollar reserves that Germany accumulated were put back into circulation through such capital exports and thereby became a source of liquidity.
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