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( United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference)
The United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, commonly known as Bretton Woods conference, was a gathering of 730 delegates from all 45 Allied nations at the Mount Washington Hotel, situated in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire to regulate the international monetary and financial order after the conclusion of World War II. The conference was held from 1 July to 22 July 1944, when the agreements were signed to set up the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). As a result of the conference, the Bretton Woods system of exchange rate management was set up, which remained in place until the early 1970s. The Bretton Woods Conference took place in July of 1944, but did not become operative until 1959, when all the European currencies became convertible. Under this system, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) were established. The IMF was developed as a permanent international body. The summary of agreements from July 22, 1944 states, "The nations should consult and agree on international monetary changes which affect each other. They should outlaw practices which are agreed to be harmful to world prosperity, and they should assist each other to overcome short-term exchange difficulties." The IBRD was created to speed up post-war reconstruction, to aid political stability, and to foster peace. This was to be fulfilled through the establishment of programs for reconstruction and development.
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