Outline       

     This chapter is concerned with all sorts of financial statistics, international balance of payments and insurance data. The domestic financial institutions refer to financial service institutions organized and registered in accordance with the Banking Act or other decrees. The financial statistics at present classify Financial Institutions as Monetary Financial Institutions, Trust and Investment Companies, and Life Insurance Companies. Monetary Financial Institutions are grouped according to whether they are able to create money. The Monetary Financial Institutions include the Central Bank, Domestic Banks (including medium business banks), local branches of foreign and Mainland Chinese banks, credit cooperative associations, credit departments of Farmers' and Fishermen's Associations, Chunghwa Post Co, and money market mutual funds. In compilation of financial statistics, property and casualty insurance companies, bills finance companies, and securities finance companies are not considered a part of the financial institutions sector because the liability instruments they offer are significantly different from those offered by financial institutions. Instead, they are viewed as a part of the private enterprises sector.
     Stock price index, compiled by the Taiwan Stock Exchange, is a weighted annual index using 1966 as the base year. The index is based on the closing prices of selected issues, using amount issued as the weight and calculated by the Peyres formula. The annual average is derived from the number of total trading days in a year.
     Currency held by the public -- This refers to currency held by all sectors/departments except Monetary Financial Institutions. Currency held by the public = Currency issued by the Central Bank －Cash in vaults of Monetary Financial Institutions.
     Quasi-Money -- This refers to the time deposits (including general time deposits and negotiable certificates of deposit (NCDs)), time savings deposits, and foreign currency deposits of enterprises and individuals in other Monetary Financial Institutions. In addition, postal deposits are also included. From Jan. 1994 on, the data also include repurchase agreements and non-resident NT deposits. From Oct. 2004 on, the data also include money market mutual funds. The carrying values of the host contracts of structured products issued by banks are excluded.
     Reserve Money -- The reserve money comprises all reserves held by other Monetary Financial Institutions and currency held by the public, both of which are monetary liabilities of the Central Bank. It is also referred to as “high-powered money” or “base money”. Changes in reserve money affect directly the amount of loanable funds of other Monetary Financial Institution. Through the money-creating process, money supply and liquidity expand or contract by a multiple which is usually measured by the ratio of monetary aggregate to reserve money.
     Monetary Aggregate (M1B) -- It is composed of currency held by the public and deposit money.