Inflation in advanced economies is low by historical standards but there is no threat of deflation. Slower economic growth is caused by supply-side constraints rather than low inflation. Below-the-target inflation does not damage the reputation of central banks. Thus, central banks should not...

Debates about the conduct of monetary policy have evolved over time from “rules versus discretion” to “policy rules versus constrained discretion.” We propose a metric to evaluate monetary policy rules that are consistent with constrained discretion by calculating quadratic loss ratios,...

This paper examines the extent to which the evolution of monetary policy frameworks and actual policy decisions in the United States and Japan contributed to the differences in macroeconomic performance of the two countries in the 1980s and 1990s. It considers the extent to which monetary policy...

The world has been struck by a mutating systemic financial crisis that is unprecedented in terms of financial losses and fiscal costs, geographic reach, and speed and synchronisation. The crisis from August 2007 to date can be divided into three main phases: the financial turmoil from August...

Several empirical studies have suggested that the Bundesbank has pursued inflation targets rather than monetary targets. These studies have been criticized because they do not adequately measure the deviation from target and because they use some short term interest rate as a measure of the...

The debate about Canadian-U.S. monetary integration is surveyed. The choice is among overall monetary orders, rather than exchange rate regimes, and questions of policy credibility and political accountability are crucial. Canada's recent economic performance under inflation targets, and...

This paper provides evidence of de-anchoring of long-term inflation expectations in the euro area based on both time series and panel methods and data from the ECB Survey of Professional Forecasters. Long-term inflation expectations recorded two sharp and permanent declines: the first after the...

This paper analyses the effects of two alternative monetary strategies (exchange rate targeting and inflation targeting) on economic growth and employment. On the panel of 18 countries for the period from 1996 to 2013, I tested the hypothesis that countries in exchange rate targeting have a...

This paper compares the role of monetary and fiscal policy shocks in advanced and emerging economies. Using a model with a hierarchical structure we capture the variability of GDP response to policy shocks both between and within the groups of advanced and emerging countries. Our results provide...