Tables of Modern Monetary Systems by Kurt Schuler ( Return to home page )

Northern Mariana Islands

Political sketch

A commonwealth of the United States.

The Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan, working under Spanish patronage, was the first European to see the Mariana Islands, in March 1521. Spain colonized the islands in 1668; their name was changed from the unflattering Islas Ladrones (Thieves' Islands) to honor Mariana of Austria, who at the time was the regent of Spain. Germany bought the Palau group, the Caroline Islands, and the Mariana Islands from Spain on 12 February 1899, shortly after the Spanish-American War had given the United States control of the Philippines, Spain's major Pacific colony. They became part of German New Guinea. Japanese forces occupied them on 14 October 1914, after the First World War broke out in Europe, and in on 17 December 1920 the islands became a Japanese mandate from the League of Nations. During the Second World War the Marianas were the scene of fierce fighting. U.S. forces took the important islands of Saipan and Tinian in June and July 1944.

On 18 July 1947, the islands became part of the United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, administered by the United States. Given a choice, the Northen Mariana islanders decided to retain their association with the United States. The islands became a U.S. commonwealth on 9 January 1978, with a locally elected governor and legislature. Their trust territory status was dissolved on 4 November 1986 and the United Nations Security Council ratified the end of trusteeship on 22 October 1990. Besides farming and fishing, the islands have a garment industry on Saipan.

Wars since 1500

First World War in the Pacific, 1914 (United Kingdom, British Empire, France, United States, Japan, and their allies against Germany and its allies ); Second World War in the Pacific, 1942-1945 (Japan against United Kingdom, United States, China, Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands, and allies).

Convertibility

German colonies in the Pacific:

The First World War began in Europe on 1 August 1914. By November 1914, all German colonies in the Pacific had been captured by opposing forces. In the meantime, communications with Germany, including financial transactions, were blocked.

Japanese territories:

During the First World War, Japan forbade exports of silver starting on 6 September 1917. It forbade exports of gold from 12 September 1917 (five days after the United States prohibited exports of gold and silver) until Japan resumed the gold standard on 11 January 1930. The embargo by the United States closed Japan's major remaining outlet for buying and selling gold, since European countries had imposed gold embargos much earlier in the war. Exchange controls were again imposed by Japan, Capital Flight Prevention Act, 1 July 1932, and strengthened by Japan, Foreign Exchange Control Act of 1933, effective 1 May 1933.

[Material on the US dollar will be inserted here when the country table for the United States is ready.]

Other

Defaults on or restructurings of debt to the private sector (mainly from Purcell and Kaufman 1993 and Standard & Poor's 2004): None.

Banking crises (data since 1970s mainly from Caprio and Klingebiel 1999 and Frydl 1999): None.

Frankel and Rose (1996) list of currency crashes: Country not listed.

No exchange rate data in Reinhart and Rogoff (2003).

References

Primary sources:

--Laws and decrees:

German New Guinea. 1909-1914. Amtsblatt für das Schutzgebiet Deutsch-Neuguinea. Rabaul: Kaiserlichen Gouvernement in Rabaul. (Successor to Neu Guinea Compagnie gazette.)

Germany. Overseas gazette. 1890-1921. Deutsches Kolonialblatt. Issued by Kolonial-Abtheilung des Auswärtigen Amts (1890-1907); Reichs-Kolonialamt (1907-1919); Reichskolonialministerium (1919-1920); Kolonialzentralverwaltung, Reichsministerium für Wiederaufbau (1920-1921). Berlin: Ernst Siegfried Mittler und Sohn.

Germany. 1892-1910. Die deutsche Kolonialgesetzgebung. Sammlung der auf die deutschen Schutzgebiete bezüüglichen Gesetze, Verordnungen, Erlasse, und internationale Vereinbarungen mit Anmerkungen und Sachregister. Edited by various persons. Berlin: D. Reimer, later Ernst Siegfried Mittler und Sohn, later Alfred Zimmermann. (The first volume was published in 1898 but covers the period starting in 1892.)

Neu Guinea Compagnie. 1886-1897. Verordnungsblatt für das Schutzgebiet der Neu Guinea Compagnie. Berlin: Neu Guinea Compagnie. (Succeeded by German New Guinea gazette.)

United States. Gazette. 1936-present. Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration. Federal Register. Washington: Superintendent of Documents, United States Government Printing Office, distributor. More recent issues are also at <http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html>.

--Publications of monetary authorities:

Bank of Japan (Nihon Gink). Annual report. 1931-1940, 1949-. Annual Report for the Year (Abridged) Presented to the General Meeting of Shareholders (1931-1940); Annual Report Submitted to the Diet ... [by the] Policy Board, the Bank of Japan (1949-1989); Annual Review (1990-present). Tokyo: Bank of Japan. (The Japanese version, Seisaku Iinkai, goes back to 1872 without gaps).

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (United States). Annual report. 1915-present. Annual Report for the Federal Reserve System Covering Operations for the Year... (1915-1965); Annual Report (1966-present). Washington: Government Printing Office.

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (United States). Bulletin. 1915-present. Federal Reserve Bulletin. Washington: Government Printing Office.

Neu Guinea Compagnie. 1979. German New Guinea: The Annual Reports. Edited and translated by Peter Sack and Dymphna Clark. Canberra: Australian National University Press. (The name of this company was sometimes spelled with hyphens between the first two words or between all three words, and the last word was sometimes spelled as beginning with a K.)

--Web site of the current monetary authority (viewed January 2005):

<http://www.federalreserve.gov>

--Other publications or Web sites:

Japan. Gaimush. 1999. Nihon Teikoku inin tchi chiiki gysei nenp, 5 v. Tky-to: Kuresu Shuppan. (Reprint of 1920-1938 reports.)

Japan. South Seas Bureau. 1920-1938? Annual Report to the League of Nations on the Administration of the South Sea Islands under Japanese Mandate for the Year. Paris: Imprimerie Labor, 1919-1938?

Pacific Islands (Trust Territory). High Commissioner. Annual report. 1951/1952-1992? The High Commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands to the Secretary of the Interior, Annual Report (1951/1952-1965), Annual Report of the High Commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands to the Secretary of the Interior, Fiscal Year Ended ... (1966-1992?). Washington: Government Printing Office.

United Nations. Trusteeship Council. Visiting Mission to Trust Territories in the Pacific (name may vary) 1950-1990? (irregular). Report on the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, together with the Relevant Resolution of the Trusteeship Council (1950-1956); Report on the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. (later). New York: United Nations.

United States. Department of State. Report on the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. 1947/1948?-1986? Information on the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands Transmitted by the United States to the Secretary-General of the United Nations Pursuant to Article 88 of the Charter (1947/1948-1948/1949); Report on the Administration of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands for the Period ... : Transmitted by the United States to the United Nations Pursuant to Article 88 of the Charter of the United Nations (1949/1950-1951/1952); Annual Report on the Administration of the Territory of the Pacific Islands (1952/1953-1955/1956); Annual Report to the United Nations on the Administration of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (1956/1957-1963/1964); Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (1964/1965-1986?). Washington: Government Printing Office.

Main secondary sources:

Deeken, Matthias. 1913. Das Geldwesen der deutschen Kolonien. Münster in Westfalen, Germany: Druck der Westfälischen Vereinsdruckerei.

IMF ARER. 1950-present. International Monetary Fund. Annual Report on Exchange Restrictions (1950-1978), Annual Report on Exchange Arrangements and Exchange Restrictions (1979-1988), Exchange Arrangements and Exchange Restrictions: Annual Report (1989-present). Washington: International Monetary Fund. (Contains information on IMF member countries and some of their dependencies.) (No direct information on the Northern Mariana Islands, but some information can be inferred from data on the United States.)

United States. Office of Naval Operations. 1957-1963. United States Naval Administration of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, 3 v. By Dorothy E[lizabeth] Richard. Washington: Naval Historical Center.

Monetary authorities: Northern Mariana Islands

Exchange rate arrangements: Northern Mariana Islands