Inflation
Reserve Bank of Malawi to improve monetary policy architecture
Bank moves towards fully fledged inflation targeting, embracing interest rate-based framework; IMF staff note importance of maintaining tight monetary policy
BoE seen shifting into easing mode
Many economists view Bank of England as likely to shift towards an easing bias, but the central bank may find itself with limited room for manoeuvre
Sarb sets out five-year strategy in annual report
Central bank outlines objectives to be achieved by 2020, including around reserves, inflation and counterfeiting; while governor praises progress of financial stability bill
National Reserve Bank of Tonga considering short-term policy rate, IMF says
Fund staff encourage Tonga to reform its monetary policy framework; suggest introducing new policy rate and inflation target range more appropriate to historic and current levels
Governor: Philippines central bank to keep ‘steady hand’ on monetary policy
Philippines central bank to keep watchful eye on uncertainty surrounding advanced economies’ policy prospects; inflation environment remains ‘manageable’
Fed should prepare to communicate inflation overshoot – IMF
IMF urges Fed to continue on “very gradual” path in raising benchmark rate; central bank should tolerate inflation overshoot to stop expectations drifting down
BoJ research turns to new data set to study wage-price links
Research sheds light on factors that may push up wage expectations, drawing on a unique survey of Japanese expectations
Rajan says India should not change course, as he steps back from RBI
Governor announces his intention to return to academia after three eventful years at the helm of India's central bank, and urges policy-makers to stay strict on inflation
IMF staff warn BoJ against unconventional monetary policies
Fund staff tell Japan to launch even more fiscal and monetary stimulus, but caution against monetisation of the government's debt
Colombia to treat new credit line as ‘insurance’ against extreme shocks
IMF expands agreement with Colombia to $11.5 billion; deputy technical governor highlights role it has to play as economy goes through period of adjustment
Yellen offers helicopter money cautious support
Fed chair says central banks could "legitimately consider" stimulus by financing government spending but only in "extreme" circumstances and with an eye on the many cases where it has gone wrong
Argentina releases first inflation data following statistics overhaul
Prices for transportation, food and housing drive up inflation, which rose 4.2% in May; IMF reviews progress next month
Yellen says July hike ‘not impossible’ as Fed holds
Fed keeps policy unchanged as widely anticipated; expected path of interest rate hikes becomes more gradual while the long-run level is revised down again
BoJ economists shed light on quality-price dynamics
Study of large database of prices shows how firms take advantage of new product launches to raise prices partly due to higher quality and partly to maintain profits
Sarb bulletin charts divergence in survey expectations
For first time since 2014, average inflation expectations of analysts are higher than those of business people and trade unions; aggregate expectations for inflation to average 6.2% this year and next
Governor cites stabilising inflation as Bank of Uganda cuts
Bank of Uganda cuts policy rate to 15% on back of inflation outlook; Tumusiime-Mutebile says central bank wants to have an "impact" on the state of economy where possible
BoJ vigilant to bond market impact of QQE, Nakaso says
Central bank is monitoring effects of large-scale asset purchases and doing its best to maintain market stability, deputy governor says
External factors most important inflation driver, Mauritius survey shows
Inflation expectation shows 71% of stakeholders asked believe external environment is most important factor in inflation pattern; exchange rate viewed as second most important
Strong anti-inflationary monetary policy helps mitigate uncertainty shocks, Italian paper says
Central bank has better chance of mitigating uncertainty-driven recessions by following Taylor rule with high weight on inflation, paper finds
Yellen upbeat but concerned by weak jobs data
Janet Yellen expects continued progress to Fed’s objectives; says latest labour market report is “concerning” but warns against reading too much into it
Hitting inflation targets may be harder now, thanks to lower bound – paper
Working paper warns of potential for lower bound episodes to affect expectations of when they will occur in future, something that can act as a drag on inflation in the present
State money and bank money: lifting the fog around QE
Steve Hanke says economists are missing important details by focusing on interest rates, rather than the money supply
Book notes: A few hares to chase, by Alan Bollard
The former Reserve Bank of New Zealand governor has produced a interesting account of the life of engineer-turned-economist Bill Phillips
BIS paper: money growth-inflation link weakens, credit link grows
Authors find money growth is less important in driving price changes, but credit growth is becoming a more critical factor in financial crises