Australian money supply analysis: The relationship between the monetary base,secondary reserves and the money supply

Utilising the criteria of predictability, stability over time, and instrument stability this paper examines the relationship between the reserve base and the money supply in Australia. Various modifications to the money supply function are made to incorporate the influence of direct monetary controls, of the overdraft lending system, and of the increased substitutability of government securities for high powered money arising from the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy of pegging government security yields. Doubt is cast on the ability of the Australian authorities to control the primary monetary aggregates on a short-run basis.