Ben Bernanke
James Bullard on the Fed’s policy review, FSOC and forecasting jobs data
St Louis Fed president discusses his support for average inflation targeting, his concerns about US Treasuries market function, non-bank regulatory weakness and negative rates, as well as the unexpected success in using Homebase data to predict highly…
Book notes: The menace of fiscal QE, by George Selgin
Much of this book is even more relevant, thought-provoking and important following Covid-19
Bernanke and Yellen join call for new fiscal stimulus in US
Former Fed chairs among 148 economists warning of “disastrous” effects if Congress fails to act
Central banking enters a new era
Central banks face a delicate balancing act to preserve their reputations as they evolve into ‘buyers of last resort’ and some of their actions appear functionally equivalent to ‘monetary financing’
Fed set to adopt ‘elements’ of price-level targeting
Covid-19 could act as a catalyst for a Janet Yellen-supported Fed move to adopt elements of price-level targeting. But questions remain about the timing of such a move
El-Erian on Covid-19 policy risks, ‘zombie’ markets and central bank capture
Former Pimco chief says Fed move into high yield is a step too far, new rules needed on leverage and false liquidity, and narrow window emerges for central banks to shed some of their policy load
Should the Fed be next to implement yield curve control?
The Reserve Bank of Australia is now the second G20 central bank trying to control longer-term interest rates. Could the Fed be next?
US banks increase discount window borrowing
Federal Reserve “encouraged by the notable increase” in use of the backstop facility
Macroeconomics is not broken
The discipline has moved beyond the neoclassical synthesis. Critics should too
Paul Volcker, 1927–2019
The Fed chair made his name battling inflation, and left his mark on independence and post-crisis financial regulations
The challenges facing Christine Lagarde
The new ECB president will need to focus on a successful review of the ECB’s monetary and communications policy, while encouraging fiscal stimulus and structural reform
Fischer and Hildebrand call for emergency policy tools
Former central bank chiefs say existing monetary tools are “almost exhausted”
Mark Carney on joined-up policy-making, forward guidance and Brexit
BoE governor rules out negative rates and change to inflation targets, offers update on too-big-to-fail and use of CCyBs, highlights challenges of an asymmetric monetary system, hits out at cumbersome payments and warns Facebook’s libra cannot ‘learn as…
Former Fed chairs stress importance of central bank independence
President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised chair Jerome Powell for keeping interest rates too high
Powell plays down fears about record levels of corporate debt
Fed chair’s remarks strike similar chord to those of Ben Bernanke in 2007, but Powell says this time is different
Weakened international co-operation could hinder crisis response – Bernanke
Christina Romer ‘loses sleep at night’ about internationals' readiness to fight a future crisis
Interview: Sheila Bair on US regulatory reform and rollback since 2008
Crisis-era FDIC chair “saddened” by former Fed chairs’ focus on bailout powers
Former Fed chairs join over 3,000 economists in call for carbon tax
Economists including central bankers and Nobel laureates demand action on climate change
Bank of Canada to weigh up alternatives to inflation targeting
Central bank will hold “full horse race” between nominal GDP targeting and other alternatives, Wilkins says
Book notes: The Fed and Lehman Brothers, by Laurence Ball
Ball claims the Fed could have lent to Lehmans, lawfully and prudently, had it chosen to do so, writes Reddell. But agreeing the Fed could have provided liquidity support does not automatically imply it should have
Yellen says Fed should begin forward guidance now
Action now could have equivalent impact to negative rates, says former Fed chair
A decade on: Lehman Brothers at the brink
On September 14, 2008, there remained hope that Lehman could be saved and a crisis averted. Events moved rapidly thereafter
Bernanke: household borrowing not the main factor in 2008 crash
Panic in financial markets and not household borrowing created deep crisis, former Fed chair says; economists should emphasise credit when modelling
Lender of last resort is not enough, says Geithner
There is a lot of “magical thinking” about what central banks can do, says former US Treasury secretary