Inflation
Russian central bank holds rigid ruble policy
Oleg Vyugin, first deputy chairman of the Russian central bank, said on Monday 17 November, "So far the Central Bank is not ready to use foreign exchange policy to a full extent to meet inflation target", according to Reuters. His comments followed calls…
RBZ calls for concerted fight against inflation
Zimbabwe's Reserve Bank called for a concerted fight against inflation last Thursday, 13 November, according to Associated Press. In its latest weekly economic highlights it said "Given the vagaries of high inflation in the economy, the need for…
SARB's inflation targeting made simpler
Changes have been made to the South African Reserve Bank's inflation target making the central bank's task easier, Governor of the SARB, Tito Mboweni said, reports Finance 24. In future it will target the year on year CPIX rate on a continuous basis,…
Folly in economics
Where does the hyperinflation fit in the rational world of economics? Martin Paldam finds the answers in Peter Bernholz's study of monetary abuse.
Bank of England Inflation Report, November 2003
The Bank of England published its quarterly Inflation Report for November 2003 on Wednesday 12 November. In the report the Bank forecast that growth in the UK would pick up to just under 3 per cent next year, and would be "marginally above trend" over…
Cleveland's Low-Inflation Economies Conference
The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland's Central Bank Institute is holding a conference and workshop titled "Low-Inflation Economies" from 19-21 November. The agenda includes papers titled "The Efficiency of Inflation Targeting" and "Monetary Policy…
EU inflation stays above ECB ceiling
According to provisional figures for eurozone inflation, released on Friday 31 October by Eurostat, the rate remained above the ECB's 2 per cent ceiling in October at 2.1 per cent, the Financial Times reports.
Sveriges Riksbank Inflation Report, No.3, 2003
Sweden's central bank, the Sveriges Riksbank, has published its Third Inflation Report for 2003. All in all, the Riksbank's assessment is that there is a risk that international economic activity will lead to lower inflation than in the main scenario…
Bank of Canada sees lower inflation
The Bank of Canada said on Wednesday 22 October that Canadians can expect lower inflation and increased economic growth next year, according to CBC News. The bank said in its latest monetary policy report that growth is expected to average a bit over 3…
Issing on Inflation targeting: prospects, problems
In a panel discussion at the conference "Inflation targeting: prospects and problems" on 17 October Otmar Issing of the ECB said that the differences in the practices of central banks oriented to price stability are in fact relatively limited. "I believe…
Fed's Bernanke wants public inflation objective
Fed governor Ben Bernanke told the St Louis Fed's inflation targeting conference on Friday 17 October that in the current climate of low inflation, it was important to keep the public informed about the Fed's long-run intentions, according to Reuters…
Inflation target could insulate Fed, Poole says
St. Louis Fed President William Poole said on Thursday 16 October that the Federal Reserve should adopt a target for an acceptable level of inflation in part to insulate itself from political pressures. He was speaking at the start of a two-day…
Is inflation targeting yesterday's success story?
The problem now for the Bank of England, this article in The Independent suggests, is that the achievement of low and stable inflation may have become a little too easy. Inflation targeting may work very well in puncturing a bubble of inflationary…
Improving monetary policy with inflation targets
In the Bank of Canada Working Paper "A Simple Test of Simple Rules: Can They Improve How Monetary Policy is Implemented with Inflation Targets?" the authors evaluate whether an assortment of simple rules could improve how the Bank of Canada implements…
Inflation differentials in the euro area
The European Central Bank has published a report entitled "Inflation differentials in the euro area: potential causes and policy implications" prepared by the Monetary Policy Committee of the European System of Central Banks. The report analyses the size…
Ed Gramlich: No formal US inflation target needed
Federal Reserve Governor Edward Gramlich said on Wednesday 1 October that the US could benefit from an agreed target range for prices, but an explicit inflation target was not needed as it could further tie down the FOMC. Speaking in Toronto he said some…
Heikensten on the Swedish economy, monetary policy
In a speech on 'The Swedish economy and monetary policy' given on 29 September Lars Heikensten of the Sveriges Riksbank said the outlook for economic activity and inflation has not changed much since August. For Sweden, it seems likely that the economy…
Tito Mboweni addresses threats to inflation target
South African Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni said on Friday 26 September, according to Finance 24, that the SARB still had much to do to conquer inflation expectations in the country, which at between 8% and 9% were currently far higher than the…
Nickell on Two Current Monetary Policy Issues
In a speech on 'Two Current Monetary Policy Issues' given on 16 September Stephen Nickell of the Bank of England said in the long run, thanks to differences in computational methods and the absence of the housing depreciation and council tax elements,…
Why inflation targeting is an inexact science
An article in the Independent says that in the past stronger-than-expected growth might have been a good reason to raise interest rates but if, today, stronger than expected growth results from the same process as lower-than-expected inflation, all our…
BoE Nickell: HICP will not affect monetary policy
Speaking on September 16 Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Stephen Nickell said, according to AFX UK, that the move to the HICP measure of inflation later this year would have little noticeable difference in the short run and in the long…
Fed economist- Inflation target brings credibility
St. Louis Fed economist William Gavin said on Monday 15 September that a formal inflation target would not be a big constraint on the Fed's freedom to set monetary policy and that the U.S. central bank's current commitment to keeping inflation stable was…
Iraq's central bank chief pledges to cut inflation
Sinan Al Shibibi, the newly appointed governor of the central bank of Iraq, said on Thursday 11 September that his top priorities were to fight inflation and to support the currency, according to the Gulf Daily News. But he acknowledged he has few of the…
Mboweni on Inflation targeting in South Africa
In a speech on 'Inflation targeting in South Africa' given on 2 September, Tito Mboweni of the South African Reserve Bank said whilst inflation targeting is certainly no panacea, the Reserve Bank still regards it as the most appropriate framework for…