Matsukata Financial Reform

After the Meiji Restoration in 1868,Japan got into the important historical period during which the new society successfully changed from the feudal system to the modern capitalist system.A series of political, economic and social reforms which were chaired and carried out by the Meiji government promoted the rapid development of the Japan and also made it possible that Japan successfully achieved the changes into modern capitalist society in a relatively short time.In the transition process including both creation and destruction,however,the financial problem had always been plaguing the new-born Meiji regime.Meanwhile,it became a serious impediment to the development of modern capitalism.After the South-west war,the Japanese government seriously suffered financial difficulties,and also the economy plunged into an unprecedented crisis. In October 1881,the Meiji government began the Matsukata fiscal reform which treated the mission of organizing notes as the core.The establishment of the exchange system and the modern monetary system and the achievement of a unified currency showed a complete end of the disordered notes system since the early times of Meiji regime.Due to the limited information available,the author firstly seeks to card the song's key policies and initiatives in detail,then deeply analyses the important role played by the financial reform on the Japanese economy.In the end,the author further explores the factors that lead to the success of the reform,in order to make an Objective evaluation.The article is divided into three parts of introduction,body and conclusion.There are three chapters in the body part which include the implementation of the song' s policy,the huge impact on the economy and its reasons to the success.In the first chapter,it mainly analyses the financial situation before the Matsukat reform and the heated discussions in the Meiji government to resolve serious financial difficulties after the South-west war.At the same time it highlights the major policies and measures,including organizing notes,dealing with the government-run enterprises and establishing the modern banking system,etc.In the second chapter,it focuses on the important roles played by the song' s reform on the economic development.That is to speed up the evolution of the industrial policy,to promote the emergence of the Industrial Revolution and to accelerate the differentiation and decline of the peasant class. In the chapterⅢ,the author highlights several reasons for the success of the reform,including the clear objective,the determination of "non-returned system",the unity of government and practical measures. In the concluding remarks,the author focuses on the characteristics reflected by the implementation of the Matsukata reform,which is different from the general deflationary policy.As a result,the Matsukata reform is defined as a "special fiscal restraint",which is actually the most objective evaluation to the reform.