株式会社を経由する資金の循環
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概要
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The circulation of money, in its substantial sense, is discussed as the circulation of purchasing power. Circulation is a movement. Any movement has its own motive power. In the circulation of money the motive power is, in the presnt capitalistic economy, to be found mainly in the enterprising spirit, or the enterprise itself. It may be more practical to say, if somewhat inaccurately the company, or, in the American legal term, the stock corporation. There is, however, another central motive power of circulation. That is government. The circulation of money is, therefore, to be illustrated as an ellipse, one of its centers being the company in general, the other government. There is no need to say that there are a great many companies, with each of them acting as a motive power of circulation. However, in contrasting government, as one of two central motive powers, with the role as played by the company, we can consider all companies in general as the other pole of the ellipse. The quantity of money in circulation not only increases or decreases, but also swells or shrinks during circulation. In these changes of quantity of money, the increase or decrease is caused mainly by the government or the central bank, and the swell and shrink wholly by the company, or the commercial bank according to the demand of the company. Stock corporations raise money as it is needed by issuing stocks or bonds, besides the usual, borrowing from banks or other monetary organizations, and use it for various expenditures. The amount of money in such a case is usually so large that it produces not a little effect upon the economy, by increasing or swelling the quantity of money in circulation, which is afterwards decreased or skrunk when the company pays it back to the bank. This is the reason that the company is considered a motive power of circulation. There is one other side of the company, in regard to its effect on the economy, as ^a motive power. The circulation of money is carried on through commercial transactions, principally by the buying and selling of goods. People buy goods with their incomes. Their incomes may be, at the present day, mainly salaries, wages, interests or dividends; these are paid by companies. The incomes of the officers, lawyers, doctors, teachers, actors and other professional people are considered to be derived from those of the former. Their incomes may be said to be paid indirectly by the various companies. Also, the incomes of the owners of retail stores, restaurants, hotels and any amusement facilities may be counted as derivatives from the companies. On the other hand the goods which people buy with their incomes are directly or indirectly produced or supplied by companies, except that supplied by agriculture or some other primitive industries. The prices which the customers pay for those goods come into the companies to meet the various items of the cost of production; the cost of production will include, salaries, wages, interest, managing expenses, materials, tools, machines, factories, warehouses, transportation, advertising, etc. The capital invested in any manufacturing industry is paid out for these items of cost, and is withdrawn by receiving the prices of the goods supplied, in the accounts of the companies. In a going concern the capital turns over again and again in this way. From the point of view of monetary circulation, companies provide the society with purchasing power-its notable forms being salaries, wages, interests and dividends-by investing capital, getting it back by supplying goods. The enterprise, e.g., the stock corporation in general, is thus looked upon as one of the centers of the monetary elliptical circle and its motive power of circulation. As to the other center of the monetary circle, the government plays the role. It absorbs the money with its fiscal revenue from the community and discharges it with its fiscal expenditure. But the government, so far, stands at the same footing as the companies, and is not so different as it is in the same economic circle as the enterprise. What differentiates it from the enterprise is the fact that the government gets its revenue from the community with its taxation authority. The government has, moreover, the mint prerogative. It can create coins, notes and credits. The central bank exercises this prerogative derived by law. With these financial functions the government operates the monetary policy, and can control the economic activities. It accelerates the economic activity by investing money in public utilities, or by supplying capital to industries, when business is dull ; and regulates the monetary transactions by raising the official interest rate of the central bank, thereby tightening money, if business is threatening to expand too much. The money circulates in such ways as mentioned, being pushed by the two different central motive powers in the economic circle, sometimes being increased by a new supply of money or swelling with bank credits, and at other times being absorbed and shrunk by official regulations or being effected by economic inactivity. The stock corporation always plays a role in these economic movements.
- 桃山学院大学の論文