In some countries, the central bank is also formally charged with other objectives.
This is most clearly the case for Viet Nam, whose central bank is also formally charged
with contributing to economic development and which in practice has tended to pursue
multiple goals of inflation, economic growth, exchange rate stabilisation, and financial
stability with somewhat opaque priorities among them (Bhattacharya, 2013; Camen,
2006). Malaysia’s central bank is charged with ensuring an adequate supply of credit
to the economy. Such additional “side” obligations are far from unique – for example,
the United States Federal Reserve has a legally mandated obligation to foster full
employment – and need not necessarily prevent the central bank from pursuing price
stability as the main longer-term objective. However they can create confusion about
central bank priorities, particularly where central bank autonomy is circumscribed