Inflation
BoE paper extracts inflation expectations from market rates
Market rates are an imperfect measure of expected future inflation, say economists, who break them down into constituent parts, stripping out risk premia and the ‘wedge’ between RPI and CPI
Reserve Bank of India ‘front-loads’ easing with 50bp cut
Rajan points to deterioration in global outlook and desire to boost investment; RBI will now focus on improving the transmission of cumulative 125bp reduction in key rate
Kuroda unfazed by ‘somewhat stagnant developments’
Japan’s economy has been through a summer lull but the BoJ chief insists it will bounce back, with inflation set to rise as expectations shift and low oil prices pass through
Global indicators can boost inflation forecasts in short term, paper finds
Author uses global inflation indicators and Brent oil price to augment domestic inflation forecasts in 523 countries, finding both improve accuracy
BoE’s FPC says no immediate action required on buy-to-let
Bank of England financial policy committee is ‘alert’ to impact of buy-to-let loans on the housing market and overall financial volatility but finds no ‘immediate’ case for action
Micro-data matters for unemployment, says BoE’s Broadbent
Deputy governor becomes latest economist to stress importance of micro data for macro policy, warning overreliance on ‘simple aggregates’ may lead central bankers astray
Draghi: too early to judge impact of global events on eurozone inflation
Mario Draghi says slowing growth in EMs, strong euro and weak commodity prices have ‘renewed downside risks’ to outlook; Peter Praet says eurozone still ‘going through correction phase’
Poloz expects Canada to manage adjustment well
Bank of Canada governor says the floating exchange rate will help the country to adjust to the resource price shock, while reducing the disinflationary risks that come with it
Limited case for leaning against the wind, says IMF report
Staff conclude the short-term costs of using higher interest rates to address financial risks exceed the longer-term benefits in most cases, but stress door should ‘remain open’
Fed presidents talk up prospect of 2015 hike
Richmond, St Louis and San Francisco reserve bank presidents offer thoughts in wake of last week’s decision to hold rates; all suggest a hike in October or December will likely be appropriate
Haldane weighs solutions to ZLB constraint
Andrew Haldane considers benefits and costs of adopting higher inflation targets, accepting QE as a conventional policy tool and creating central bank-issued digital currencies
Fed holds off rate increase but outlook largely unchanged
The majority of Fed governors and presidents still expect a hike this year, but concerns over global outlook and domestic inflation prompt FOMC to hold fire for now
Russian governor weighs exchange rate pass-through
Elvira Nabiullina discusses the bank of Russia’s estimates for how much the depreciation of the ruble will impact inflation, conceding prices have increased faster than expected
BoE’s Forbes calls for rethink of exchange rate pass-through
MPC member outlines new, more nuanced approach to measuring the exchange rate’s impact on inflation, noting this implies rates could need to be tightened sooner than older models suggest
Gaza blockade adds to leap in Palestinian inflation
Low oil prices are not fully offsetting a fuel crisis in the Gaza Strip as a continued blockade causes rapid price rises in certain goods, a Palestine Monetary Authority inflation report finds
RBNZ cuts OCR again in face of ‘softening’
Graeme Wheeler reiterates ‘some further easing in the OCR seems likely’ as he reveals the third consecutive rate cut; RBNZ notes importance of Chinese demand to commodity prices
Bank of England wary of China risks but UK outlook steady
The MPC’s view is not materially affected by recent volatility in the financial markets as it keeps policy on hold; domestically, an increase in wage growth is offset by higher productivity
Israel committee see risks to inflation outlook rising
Policy-makers at Bank of Israel discussed decline in short-term inflation expectations, a potential drop in growth and the strength of the shekel in August meeting
Riksbank is working on ‘big data’, says Skingsley
Deputy governor speaks to Central Banking about bringing together experts on big data, the possibility of leaning against the wind, risks in the housing market and more
US unemployment falls to 5.1% despite drop in jobs growth
Richmond Fed president describes it as a ‘right-down-the-middle-of-the-fairway’ unemployment report, as he spells out why the time is right to begin raising interest rates
Draghi stresses willingness to act as ECB cuts inflation forecasts
Governing council holds policy as ECB staff cut inflation forecasts over the forecast horizon; Mario Draghi stresses QE could run beyond September 2016 if necessary
BoJ’s Kiuchi warns 2% inflation unlikely ‘even in fiscal 2017’
Policy board member says Japanese inflation is unlikely to reach the central bank’s 2% target by the end of fiscal year 2017
Boston Fed president compares forthcoming rate hikes with past tightening cycles
Eric Rosengren finds this tightening cycle is likely to differ from those of 1994 and 2004, in that rates are set to rise more gradually and stop at a lower level
IMF urges central banks to retain easy monetary policy
Ahead of the G20 meeting in Turkey the IMF prepares a briefing on policy challenges; tells central banks to prevent real interest rates from ‘rising prematurely’