In this paper we adopt a Bayesian approach toward the estimation of monetary policy preference parameters in a general equilibrium framework for the euro area. We assume that monetary policy authorities optimize an intertemporal quadratic loss function under commitment and study two alternative...

We examine policy rate recommendations of the Bank of Canada’s Governing Council (GC) and its shadow, the C.D. Howe Institute’s Monetary Policy Council (MPC). Individual recommendations of the MPC are observed but not those of the GC. Differences in the two committees’ recommendations are...

In this paper, we examine the performance and robustness of optimized interest-rate rules in four models of the euro area that differ considerably in terms of size, degree of aggregation, relevance of forward-looking behavioral elements, and adherence to microfoundations. Our findings are...

This paper investigates the stabilization bias that arises in a model of monetary and fiscal policy stabilization of the economy, when monetary authority puts higher weight on inflation stabilization than society. We demonstrate that inflation conservatism unambiguously leads to social welfare...

This paper investigates the conduct of monetary and fiscal policy in the post-ERM period in the United Kingdom. Using a simple DSGE New Keynesian model of non-cooperative monetary and fiscal policy interactions under fiscal intraperiod leadership, we demonstrate that the past policy in the...

Since the early 1980s, the U.S. economy has changed in some important ways: inflation now rises considerably less when unemployment is low, and the volatility of output and inflation have fallen sharply. This paper examines whether changes in monetary policy can account for these changes in the...

When policy forecasts are based on the policymaker's present and past actions, current policy affects expectations of future policy, contrary to what happens when forecasters can replicate policymaking perfectly. We show that when forecasts are generated through any linear combination of present...

We study welfare-based monetary policy in a two-country DSGE model characterized by financial frictions. We compare the cooperative Ramsey monetary policy with standard policy benchmarks as well as with the optimal Ramsey policy in a currency area. Our main results are the following. First,...

The resumption of capital flows to emerging-market economies since mid-2009 has posed two sets of interrelated challenges for policymakers: (i) to prevent capital flows from exacerbating overheating pressures and consequent inflation, and (ii) to minimize the risk that prolonged periods of easy...

A key practical challenge for monetary policy is to gauge the extent to which the private sector perceives the central bank’s nominal anchor as transparent and credible. In light of that challenge, this commentary discusses some evidence on the evolution of longer-term inflation expectations...