Structural Asymmetries and the Optimal Monetary Policy Instrument of the European Central Bank

Although the existence of differences in economic structure across European countries is well known, their implications for the conduct of the single monetary policy in Stage Three of EMU have not yet been analyzed. This paper explores the issue on the basis of a two-country, rational-expectations, stochastic model characterized by asymmetric structural equations and a general formulation for monetary policy. Only if financial shocks are the main source of instability can heterogeneity in structures be neglected. When real shocks to aggregate demand prevail, their geographical distribution and the difference in the elasticity of aggregate supply are the key factors governing the response to structural differences. When supply shocks predominate, irrespective of their geographical distribution monetary policy should lean against the wind with more determination than if countries were identical. Differences in the transmission lag of monetary policy or some concern for growth when pursuing price stabilization reduce the size of the correction in monetary policy called for by structural asymmetries.     

Revisiting the shocking aspects of Asian monetary unification

There is renewed interest in monetary cooperation in Asia. To the extent that such cooperation evolves to include discussions about co-ordination of exchange rate policies it is important to evaluate the desirability of such co-ordination. Such an evaluation involves in part an assessment of the cross-country correlation of macro-economic shocks, a criterion used in the past to assess the desirability of monetary unification. In revisiting this question this paper not only updates previous studies, but it makes two significant methodological contributions to the literature based on estimates of vector autoregression (VAR) models. Our empirical specification allows for the possibility that aggregate demand and aggregate supply shocks are contemporaneously correlated within each economy, on the one hand, and takes explicit account of third-country common influences on each economy, on the other. Our results show that previous findings in the literature do not always hold up when our modelling methodology is applied to the data. With respect to the implications for monetary unification our results do not clearly identify a group of countries for which shocks are unambiguously highly correlated and which therefore would be able to perform well with a common monetary policy. The correlation structure differs between aggregate demand shocks and aggregate supply shocks.     

The appropriate intermediate target for monetary policy in less developed countries: Empirical evidence

It is argued in this paper that recent financial innovations and deregulation in less developed countries may have established a case for an intermediate target strategy for monetary policy. The question of which financial aggregate to target is not, however, a trivial one. Three criteria have to be met for a financial aggregate to serve as an appropriate target for monetary policy. Using time series data from a sample of six less developed countries, these three criteria are empirically tested to determine whether narrow money, broad money or domestic credit is the most appropriate target for monetary policy in less developed countries. The results indicate that it is difficult to generalize and that until monetary policy can be independent of fiscal policy in these countries, none of the tested financial aggregates would be appropriate as an intermediate target.     

“大水漫灌”还是“精准滴灌”:基于时-频域动态视角下房价调控机制研究

基于时-频域动态视角采用小波分析模型,文章结合高频序列和低频数据在同一框架内研究总量货币政策、结构性信贷政策和房价波动三者之间不同时期的动态影响关系,并进一步甄别供需调控对房价的异质性影响。实证发现,作为房价调控的手段,结构性信贷要优于总量货币政策,而结构性信贷的影响机制是,中期时供给端调控存在非对称性,长期和超长期需求端优于供给端调控,这表明需求结构性信贷政策+总量货币政策工具的调控效果更佳。因此,应用价值体现在遏制房价的过程中,政府应该让"大水漫灌"式的总量货币政策用于"事前预防",而让"精准滴灌"式的结构性信贷政策用于"事后控制",在不同的时-频域中以前者为辅后者为主交替或协调使用,以此防止房地产市场泡沫累积而爆发风险。     

Inflation Dynamics of Franc-Zone Countries Determinants,Co-movements and Spatial Interactions

This paper shows the uneven role played in the inflation dynamics of African franc zone countries by their integration in a regional monetary union. We obtain three main results sharply contrasting the central- (CEMAC) and west-African (WAEMU) regions. First, differences in the structure of economies and national fiscal stances play a similar role in both unions and appear as potential sources of inflation differentials. Second, even though co-movements are the principal drivers of inflation dynamics in both subregions, global factors dominate regional ones in WAEMU while both play an equal role in CEMAC. Thirdly, spatial interactions are unimportant in CEMAC due to little intra-zone trade, but take an asymmetric form in WAEMU due to the large size of Ivory Coast and Senegal.     

Can We Still Lean Against the Wind?

In an overlapping generations model without financial frictions, Gali (Am Econ Rev 104(3):721–752, 2014) observed that a ‘leaning against the wind’ monetary policy is likely to aggravate the fluctuations in the bubble. He found that optimal monetary policy in such an economy must strike a balance between stabilization of the bubble and stabilization of aggregate demand. This paper extends Gali (Am Econ Rev 104(3):721–752, 2014)’s model by introducing various financial frictions in the bubbly economy with a Samuelson 2-period overlapping agents and examine how ‘leaning against the wind’ macro-prudential policies like capital adequacy affect the size and volatility of bubble, inflation and aggregate demand. While the results of the model with financial frictions vindicate Gali (Am Econ Rev 104(3):721–752, 2014) that a leaning against the wind monetary policy generates a larger volatility in the bubble than a policy of benign neglect, the paper finds that minimisation of bubble volatility requires an active macro-prudential policy. It is also observed that stronger interest rate response of monetary policy to the bubble necessitates a stronger macroprudential response possibly to absorb the excess volatility generated by the monetary policy. However, the paper also finds that tightening macroprudential policy parameter beyond a threshold value may encourage banks to take more risks and increase credit supply, aggravating the bubble in the process. With respect to macroprudential policy, there is no conflict between stabilization of current aggregate demand and stabilization of future aggregate demand and both call for a strong macroprudential response, at least until the macroprudential parameter attains the threshold value, although the conflict between the two objectives persists with respect to monetary policy as in Gali (Am Econ Rev 104(3):721–752, 2014). Empirical verification of the provisioning cost channel through structural vector autoregression confirm that a positive provisions shock can contract asset bubbles by restricting credit, output and a delayed marginal response of interest rate spreads.     

Explaining inflation in the period of quantitative easing in Japan: Relative-price changes,aggregate demand,and monetary policy

Concentrating on the period of quantitative easing in Japan, this paper reexamines the correlation between the asymmetry of sectoral relative-price changes and the aggregate inflation rate. This correlation is widely interpreted as evidence that short-run inflation is determined by supply-side factors; however, we study whether, in addition to the inflation rate, monetary policy and aggregate demand explain it. Using producer price index data, we show, first, that the positive and significant effect of relative-price change asymmetries on inflation is not robust with respect to various indicators of asymmetry. Second, using a VAR framework, we find that aggregate demand robustly affects the measures of asymmetries, which raises doubt about whether they can be interpreted as pure supply-side indicators. Third, in addition to the indirect effect via measures of asymmetries, demand directly affects inflation. Thus, we reject the claim that the recent disinflation/deflation period in Japan can be understood as primarily a supply-side phenomenon and suggest that the main driving force was demand, whereas supply and monetary policy were of lesser importance.     

On the choice of an anchor for the GCC currency: does the symmetry of shocks extend to both the oil and the non-oil sectors?

This paper assesses the costs of forming a monetary union among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries by looking at economic linkages within the GCC, and between the GCC and the potential anchors (the US, and major European countries such as France, Germany and Italy) for their proposed new currency. We investigate the importance of the US dollar compared to the Euro by focusing on aggregate demand (AD) and aggregate supply (AS) shock symmetry across these countries. We differentiated between oil and non-oil sector by estimating structural vector autoregression (SVAR) models with a combination of variables: oil output, non-oil output, total output, nominal/real price of oil and overall price level. One set of models was identified with the long-run restrictions of Blanchard and Quah (Am Econ Rev 79(4):655–673, 1989), whereas the set that assesses the robustness of the findings was estimated with the short-run restrictions of Sims (Eur Econ Rev 36(5):975–1000, 1992). We find overwhelming support for AD shock symmetry across the GCC countries and between the GCC and the US, but none for the major European countries with the GCC. Non-oil AS shocks are mostly asymmetric, but oil AS shocks are mostly symmetric when the real price of oil is included. This agrees with the view that GCC countries are subjected to common oil shocks. It also suggests that previous VAR models estimated to pass judgment on the feasibility of monetary union across GCC countries may have suffered from problems of mis-specification if the real price of oil was not considered. We surmise that the US dollar is a better anchor candidate for anchoring the new GCC currency than the Euro, since US monetary policy can at least help smooth demand shocks in these countries.     

Unemployment in Latin America and the Caribbean

This study constructs a new data set on unemployment rates in Latin America and the Caribbean and then explores the determinants of unemployment. We compare different countries, finding that unemployment is influenced by the size of the rural population and that the effects of government regulations are generally weak. We also examine large, persistent increases in unemployment over time, finding that they are caused by contractions in aggregate demand. These demand contractions result from either disinflationary monetary policy or the defense of an exchange-rate peg in the face of capital flight. Our evidence supports hysteresis theories in which short-run changes in unemployment influence the natural rate.     

Sources of Real Exchange Rate Volatility in Africa: The Case of ECOWAS*

Abstract: This study examines the impact of (real) demand shocks, (aggregate) supply shocks, and monetary shocks on real exchange rates in 13 West African countries. We observe that the real demand shocks explain most of the fluctuations in real exchange rates in all these countries. Accordingly, policymakers should adopt a careful demand management strategy by controlling government expenditure and taxes.     

Chinese monetary policy and the banking system

Chinese monetary policy differs from that of many other countries in its use of multiple policy instruments. This paper assesses the effectiveness of some of the instruments employed, using a model of the banking sector and elasticities estimated from Chinese data. We find that direct interest rate changes are a poorer instrument of monetary control in China than changes in reserve requirement ratios and loan-to-deposit ratios. This finding is based on the ambiguous estimated response of deposit demand to such changes, and may help to explain why changes to administered interest rates have been used sparingly as an instrument of Chinese monetary policy. We also find that the ambiguous deposit demand response could pose challenges for the effectiveness of open market operations under interest rate liberalisation, while exchange rate liberalisation is likely to make monetary instruments more powerful.     

企业债务违约风险与货币政策立场——微观财务信息的宏观预测价值

文章基于2004年第一季度至2019年第三季度数据,构建汇总层面的利息偿付倍数、现金持有水平以及会计盈余作为企业债务违约风险的代理变量,考察其对国家货币政策调控立场的预测价值。研究发现：（1）汇总层面的企业债务违约风险越高,政府未来越倾向于采取更为宽松的货币政策,表现为未来信贷投放规模的增长和借贷利率的下降;（2）分析师宏观预测以及投资者的投资决策也一定程度上考虑了汇总层面的企业债务违约风险。研究表明,汇总层面的企业债务违约风险能够反映实体经济的资金供求状况,从而对货币政策立场发挥一定的预测价值,有助于监管当局提高对宏观经济的监测和预警能力。     

Divisia monetary aggregates and money demand for Malaysia

Divisia M1 and M2 are constructed for Malaysia. Unlike M1, Divisia M2 shows significant differences in both level and growth rates from its simple sum counterpart. We also compare these Divisia measures to simple sum M1 and M2 in a money demand function. Using error correction models, we examine short-run dynamics between these monetary aggregates and money demand determinants such as inflation, domestic and foreign interest rates, financial wealth, and income. We find that Divisia M2 is the most appropriate monetary aggregate of the four candidates to track money demand in Malaysia and should be used when conducting monetary policy.     

Inflation under the Bretton Woods system: The spillover effects of U.S. expansionary policies

This paper examines the transmission effects of U.S. expansionary policies on inflation in the G7 countries under the latter years of the Bretton Woods system. Using quarterly data and structural vector autoregressions, this paper investigates the extent of inflation variability due to U.S. aggregate supply and aggregate demand impulses in major industrial countries. Empirical results show that a sizable proportion of inflation variability in these countries can be attributed to U.S. shocks. A brief discussion follows concerning the breakdown of Bretton Woods and implications for the design and functioning of international monetary arrangements.     

Fallacies in the interpretation of a european monetary aggregate

Conclusions This paper leads to the following two conclusions regarding the role of a European monetary aggregate in stages two and three of the process towards EMU. First, the relatively high stability of the demand for a European monetary aggregate is no indication for a high degree of currency substitution. Calls for a more symmetric monetary coordination scheme during stage two therefore cannot be based on this argument. Second, present estimates of European money demand functions give an overly optimistic idea of money demand stability after EMU.     

In search for stability: An empirical appraisal of the demand for money in the G7 and EC countries

Summary The demand for money has been at the centre of monetary econometrics. The policy debate has focused on the stability issue. To investigate this the present paper presents an overview of 400 estimated demand-for-money equations in the EC countries and G7 member states taken from the literature. The results of this survey suggest, firstly, serious doubts on the stability of the demand for money and, secondly, a remarkable evolution in econometric methodology in an attempt to improve the statistical evidence. Thirdly and important from a policy perspective, the analysis of the reported standard errors of the equations shows that among the large European countries Germany has the most stable money demand.     

Can inflation targeting regimes be effective in developing countries? The Turkish experience

This paper examines the performance of Turkey's inflation targeting (IT) experience. We find the IT regime to be an effective framework. Our judgment is based on three broad conclusions supported by empirical analyses. First, fiscal stability is an effective tool for a successful monetary policy. Second, the overnight policy of the Central Bank of Turkey rate is a significant determinant of the changes in market lending rates, which is the preliminary step in the monetary transmission mechanism. Third, recent developments on the broader issue of the effectiveness of interest rate policy in controlling inflation through aggregate demand management and through other channels are encouraging. Based on our findings, we argue that the impact of policy rate changes on economic activity and inflation have become more predictable and changed in the direction in line with theory, improving the transmission capacity of monetary policy.     

The myth of a stable European money demand

Recent empirical studies suggest that an aggregate EC-wide money demand function is more stable than national money demand functions in the European Community. If true, this would facilitate monetary policy after Economic and Monetary Union. The evidence presented in this paper, however, shows that in general there is no relationship between the size of a currency area and the stability of its demand for money. I conclude that the stability of European money demand is a statistical artifact and has nothing to say about money demand stability in a future larger European currency area.     

MONETARY POLICY IN RWANDA: A COINTEGRATION ANALYSIS

Countries in Africa are increasingly becoming similar in outlook, especially as regards monetary policy. With a view to conducting a long‐term study of monetary policy in Africa, we apply an empirical test for the coherence of inflation targeting, first conducted by Nell (2003 ) for South Africa, to data from Rwanda. We find that like South Africa, Rwanda has a stable money demand function and the adoption of an inflation target is a wise policy option. Also, the Rwandan money market needs just over five quarters to eliminate half of any monetary disequilibrium. These results are of some interest to economists and policy makers for all the countries in the increasingly interconnected continent of Africa.