The article deals with inflation dynamics in Belgium, and in particular the degree of inflation persistence. It also presents a historical perspective in order to determine whether the statistical properties of the inflation process have changed over time. The analysis revealed significant...

The major overhaul of the national consumer prices index (NCPI), upon which the health index is based, is an opportunity to adjust the methodology to make inflation measurement more accurate and ensure that the index is representative. The new index will enter into force in January 2014. In...

The new national consumer price index (NCPI) on which the health index is based came into effect in January 2014. It underwent full revision, as it does every eight years. This brings to an end the significant obsolescence of the index, in which the weighting scheme increasingly failed to...

While both the creation of the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999 and the introduction of the euro banknotes and coins in January 2002 actually went remarkably smooth, the introduction of the euro gave rise to a very lively debate regarding its impact on inflation. Indeed, the vast majority of...

In a monetary union, divergences of inflation rates between the participating countries have direct repercussions on their price and cost competitiveness. Bearing this in mind, the article examines the implications of inflation differentials within the euro area and shows that participation in...

The particularly rapid acceleration in inflation in Belgium and the fact that it is currently outpacing inflation in the euro area has, in some circles, raised questions as to the role of the indexation mechanism. A first question which might arise concerns the extent to which that mechanism...

The article looks at the energy markets from a macroeconomic perspective. It first describes the main trends in the production and consumption of energy. Belgium is characterised by a high degree of energy dependency, since it no longer has any fossil fuel resources and renewable energy is not...

After two decades of successfully restoring price stability in much of the world economy, central banks begin the next millennium facing a new set of challenges. One key task is how to conduct monetary policy in an era of price stability. Clearly, policymakers would like inflation to remain...

Despite the low inflation of recent years, some observers have wondered whether rapid gains in U.S. asset prices foreshadow rising inflationary pressures. Would U.S. monetary policy be improved if Federal Reserve policymakers reacted systematically to changes in the prices of widely held assets...