Monetary policy
Ukraine’s Gontareva on one of the toughest jobs in central banking
The outgoing National Bank of Ukraine governor speaks about transforming the central bank while engaging in wartime deficit funding and overhauling the banking sector
IMF’s Werner: central banks need better understanding of interventions
Central banks in Latin America have employed a host of unconventional market interventions, but figuring out what works and what does not is proving tricky
Sterling depreciation will increase pace of tightening, BoE says
Inflation will overshoot target for longer period, reveals latest Inflation Report, but raising rates will not help, BoE says; “extraordinary circumstances” call for delicate balancing act
Barbados raises reserve requirements for first time in a decade
Acting governor holds first press conference since 2014 to field questions about state of the economy; country needs “stronger fiscal discipline” before it can go to IMF, Haynes says
The BoJ’s risky yield curve control experiment
The Bank of Japan’s experiment with yield curve control could work if appropriate targets and communication strategies were applied. But its current policy objectives are muddled
Fischer attacks ‘mechanical’ use of policy rules
Fed vice-chair says policy committees have strengths that rule-following lacks
John Williams backs move to price-level targeting
San Francisco Fed chief says inflation targeting is losing its effectiveness in the face of a very low natural rate
Norges Bank board to meet more and publish minutes
Governor Øystein Olsen says the Norwegian central bank is looking to be more transparent around monetary policy; the executive board holds the key rate at 0.5%
ECB paper looks at PSPP’s ‘flow effects’ on sovereign bond yields
“Flow effects” have limited but real impact, researchers find
ECB paper studies impact of Fed surprises on other countries
Researchers find similar effects on real economy but differences in financial impacts
Riksbank says own inflation forecasts are among least accurate
Study compares central bank’s forecasts with those of nine other institutions
Price disparity in housing market a cause for concern, says RBA’s Lowe
Australian house prices rising ‘briskly’ in some sectors, says governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia
RBNZ’s Krippner: term structure models can make for better policy
Central bank economist talks about his work on modelling monetary policy at the zero lower bound, and what comes next
Should more attention be paid to house prices?
The Czech National Bank’s experiences offer insights into using a broader inflation measure with a greater weight on housing to address both monetary and macro-prudential policy requirements
Draghi stands firm on QE
Eurozone recovery seems stronger, ECB president says
Governors think unconventional tools may not stay – ECB survey
Advanced economies’ governors are more likely to favour keeping QE tools
BoE’s Saunders hints at willingness to raise rates
MPC member signals he sees the UK economy running somewhat hotter than the consensus view suggests
Paper takes novel approach to identifying monetary policy shocks
Researcher combines dynamic factor model with changes to financial instruments
BoJ board nominations add to dovish slant
Japan’s government has nominated two economists seen as likely to support further easing, in the place of two frequent dissenters
Fresh exchange rate cap remains an option – CNB minutes
Minutes of extraordinary meeting say exchange rate commitment or other unconventional tools cannot be ruled out if deflation risks re-emerge
Book notes: Bankers, Bureaucrats and Central Bank Politics, by Christopher Adolph
An interesting, if slightly dated, analysis of those who made monetary policy decisions in advanced economies between 1950–2001, attempting to understand whether personal background influences decision-making
Bank of Canada’s Vardy and Harrison on the move to ‘peacetime’ communications
Central bank has reshaped its communications approach post-crisis, embedding it into the policy process and encouraging markets to think for themselves
Fed paper seeks better forecasts from information inefficiencies
Paper finds it is difficult to build a better forecast on the basis of deviations from rationality in surveys, implying such inefficiencies are not “economically meaningful”
No ‘taper tantrum’ this time around – Fischer
Fed vice-chair says US central bank has learned from mistakes made in 2013; markets unlikely to face same disruptions as Fed unwinds balance sheet, says Fischer