It is a real pleasure to be here as a co-sponsor, along with Murray Weidenbaum and the Center for the Study of American Business, of this important meeting on capital formation. I must admit to a certain feeling of apprehension in attempting to deal with a subject of this complexity in the company of so many distinguished members of the academic community. As president of a Federal Reserve Bank, I think it appropriate that I direct my remarks to the role of the Federal Reserve System in the process of capital accumulation. Although the Fed is usually viewed as playing a relatively minimal part in that process, some of our actions in monetary policymaking do have significant long-term effects on capital accumulation.