Commercial bank behavior and monetary policy in an open economy : West Germany 1960–1980

This paper studies movements in the ratio of free liquid reserves of West German commercial banks to total deposits over the period 1960–1980. The desired ratio is assumed to depend positively on the ‘own yield’, measured by recently experienced variance of the required-reserve ratio (a proxy for portfolio adjustment costs avoided by holding free reserves), and negatively on the yield on alternative assets. The observed free reserve ratio also responds to changes in the Bundesbank's holdings of foreign exchange and net government deposits. Empirical tests on quarterly data support the hypothesis, though behavioral shifts occured in 1966 and 1973.     

How fast can the US economy grow, 1995–2020?

This article of concern with future US economic growth responds to several major policy issues presently absorbing widespread attention in American society. It shows that much faster growth than the conventional estimates is possible. This more optimistic forecast requires in particular a policy recognition that growth is not exclusively determined by supply side factors, but is also to an important extent dependent upon demand-side influences. Empirical records are greatly relied upon to show the potential prospect, particularly the experience of the vigorous growth years 1947–74. A standard supply-side equation is modified and combined with an aggregate demand estimate to indicate that an annual growth rate for the quarter century selected can approach 3.7 percent. This is considerably higher than the conventional forecasts approximating 2.5 percent.     

The choice of a monetary instrument in a small open economy: The case of Korea

Using a small macroeconometric model of Korea, this paper evaluates the correct choice of a monetary instrument (either the money stock or the interest rate), the optimal multiperiod policy, and the value of current information on some monetary varialbles.     

基于利率途径的货币政策传导效果实证研究

本文选取1998年第一季度-2007年第二季度的数据,运用Johansen协整检验、格兰杰因果检验、向量自回归模型(VAR)、脉冲响应函数和方差分解等多种计量方法,对我国利率途径的货币政策传导机制进行实证分析,研究结果表明,我国利率途径不通畅而不能充分发挥其传导作用,而货币供给量却表现出相对显著的传导效果。本文在此基础上揭示我国应重视对利率传导渠道的完善,并提出应进一步推进利率市场化、企业与金融机构改革、微观主体对利率的敏感性改革的相关政策建议。     

A quantitative analysis of inflation as a tax on the underground economy

Inflation rates are more dispersed and are persistently higher in developing countries. This paper quantifies the importance of the public-finance motive for inflation in the presence of a tax-evading sector, the underground economy. The approach is motivated by the observation that the underground economy is especially large in poor countries. The analysis builds on a general equilibrium monetary model with two production sectors, where income in one of the sectors cannot be taxed. A benevolent government finances its budget using an optimal combination of the income tax rate and the inflation rate. The model is first calibrated to the U.S. economy and is then used for a cross-country simulation. The resulting relationships between the size of an underground economy, inflation rate, income tax rate and the share of seigniorage in the government revenue rationalize the cross-country data quantitatively well.     

Macroprudential policy transmission and interaction with fiscal and monetary policy in an emerging economy: a DSGE model for Brazil

We investigate the transmission of macroprudential (MaP) instruments in a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model where foreign capital flows interact with financial frictions and banks are exposed to different sources of credit default risk. The model is estimated for Brazil with Bayesian techniques. We compute optimal combinations of simple MaP, fiscal and monetary policy rules that can react to the business and/or the financial cycle. We find that the gains from implementing a cyclical fiscal policy are only significant if MaP policy countercyclically reacts to the financial cycle. Optimal fiscal policy is countercyclical in the business cycle.     

Explaining exchange rate volatility: an empirical analysis of ‘the holy trinity’ of monetary independence, fixed exchange rates, and capital mobility

This paper uses a panel of data from twenty-two countries between 1967 and 1992 to explain exchange rate volatility, focusing on potential tradeoffs between fixed exchange rates, independent monetary policy, and capital mobility. I use monetary models to parameterize monetary divergence and factor analysis to measure capital mobility. Exchange rate volatility is loosely linked to both monetary divergence and the degree of capital mobility. Interestingly, exchange rate volatility is significantly correlated with the width of the explicitly declared exchange rate band, even after taking monetary divergence and capital mobility into account.     

Hedging inflation risk in a developing economy: The case of Brazil

Inflation shocks are one of the pitfalls of developing economies and are usually difficult to hedge. This paper examines the optimal strategic asset allocation for a Brazilian investor seeking to hedge inflation risk at different horizons, ranging from one to 30 years. Using a vector-autoregressive specification to model inter-temporal dependency across variables, we measure the inflation hedging properties of domestic and foreign investments and carry out a portfolio optimisation. Our results show that foreign currencies complement traditional assets very efficiently when hedging a portfolio against inflation: around 70% of the portfolio should be dedicated to domestic assets (equities, inflation-linked (IL) bonds and nominal bonds), whereas 30% should be invested in foreign currencies, especially the US dollar and the euro.     

The role of house prices in the monetary policy transmission mechanism in small open economies

We analyse the role of house prices in the monetary policy transmission mechanism in Norway, Sweden and the UK, using structural VARs. A solution is proposed to the endogeneity problem of identifying shocks to interest rates and house prices by using a combination of short-run and long-run (neutrality) restrictions. By allowing the interest rate and house prices to react simultaneously to news, we find the role of house prices in the monetary transmission mechanism to increase considerably. In particular, house prices react immediately and strongly to a monetary policy shock. Furthermore, the fall in house prices enhances the negative response in output and consumer price inflation that has traditionally been found in the conventional literature. Moreover, we find that the interest rate responds systematically to a change in house prices. However, the strength and timing of response varies between the countries, suggesting that housing may play a different role in the monetary policy setting.     

The effect of uncertain inflation on firm value in a multiperiod economy

We model firm value in a multiperiod setting with uncertain inflation and show that real rates of return on the firm's securities are intertemporally dependent. The model also predicts an inverse intertemporal relationship between the real rate of return and the lagged value of Tobin'sq. We report empirical evidence in support of the hypothesized relationship. The model could explain the mean-reverting property of long-horizon stock returns reported in recent studies.     

The determinants of contract length: An empirical analysis based on Canadian micro data

Recent theoretical work on the determinants of wage-contract length focuses on inflation uncertainty as an explanatory variable additional to the more traditional variable of transactions costs. This paper analyses the empirical determinants of contract duration using a large sample of contract data and confirms the conclusions reached in the theoretical literature.     

Equity markets and growth: Cross-country evidence on timing and outcomes, 1980–1995

The rapid expansion of organized equity exchanges in both emerging and developed markets has prompted policymakers to raise important questions about their macroeconomic impact, yet the need to focus on recent data poses implementation difficulties for econometric studies of dynamic interactions between stock markets and economic performance in individual countries. This paper overcomes some of these difficulties by applying recent developments in the analysis of panels with a small time dimension to estimate vector autoregressions for a set of 47 countries with annual data for 1980–1995. After describing recent theories on the role of stock markets in growth and considering a pure cross-sectional empirical approach, our panel VARs show leading roles for stock market liquidity and the intensity of activity in traditional financial intermediaries on per capita output. The findings underscore the potential gains associated with developing deep and liquid financial markets in an increasingly global economy.     

基于多层次模糊综合评价的中小企业信用风险评估

引入多层次模糊评价方法,设计包括行业状况、上下游状况、产品状况、管理水平、财务状况和资信状况的指标体系,构建多层次模糊综合评价的中小企业信用风险评估模型。算例分析表明该方法综合了定性因素和定量因素,能有效地评价中小企业的信用风险。     

The rules of standard‐setting organizations: an empirical analysis

This article empirically explores standard‐setting organizations' policy choices. Consistent with our earlier theoretical work, we find (i) a negative relationship between the extent to which an SSO is oriented to technology sponsors and the concession level required of sponsors and (ii) a positive correlation between the sponsor friendliness of the selected SSO and the quality of the standard. We also develop and test two extensions of the earlier model: the presence of provisions mandating royalty‐free licensing is negatively associated with disclosure requirements, and the relationship between concessions and user friendliness is weaker when there is only a limited number of SSOs.     

Risk management,nonlinearity and aggressiveness in monetary policy: The case of the US Fed

We contribute to the empirical literature on the risk-management approach to monetary policy by estimating regime switching models where the strength of the response of monetary policy to macroeconomic conditions depends on the level of risk associated with the inflation outlook and risk in financial markets. Using quarterly data for the Greenspan period we find that: (i) risk in the inflation outlook and in financial markets are a more powerful driver of monetary policy regime changes than variables typically suggested in the literature, such as the level of inflation and the output gap; (ii) estimation of regime switching models shows that the response of the US Fed to the inflation outlook is invariant across policy regimes; (iii) however, in periods of high economic risk monetary policy tends to respond more aggressively to the output gap and the degree of inertia tends to be lower than in normal circumstances; and (iv) the US Fed is estimated to have responded aggressively to the output gap in the late 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, and in the late 1990s and early 2000s. These results are consistent with Mishkin (2008)’s view that in periods of high economic risk monetary authorities should respond aggressively to changes in macroeconomic conditions while the degree of inertia should be lower than in normal circumstances.