JP Marin-Arrese │Any seasoned central banker knows by heart that words rather than measures better serve monetary policy. The material effect any move delivers doesn’t match the impact on expectations and market sentiment an authoritative message conveys.
Fernando Fernández (IEAF) | Perhaps the moment has arrived to abandon the temptation to arbitrate, to recover humility and discuss what should be the aim of monetary policy.
Francesco Saraceno | According to Wren-Lewis, central banks were not involved in the push towards fiscal consolidation, and their “only” sin was of not being vocal enough. I think he is too nice. At least in the Eurozone, the ECB was a key actor in pushing austerity.
James Alexander via Historinhas | In no other country in the euro zone is the public so intensely engaged with each monetary policy measures of the ECB as passionately as in Germany. This applies to the Bavarian public, which is particularly known for distinct opinions and clear announcements.
July 10, 2015 | By Benjamin Cole via Marcus Nunes’ Historinhas | As a lot, central bankers are not entrepreneurs or real estate developers, and are very risk-averse, and are minutely concerned with the strict control of prices (as measured) as opposed to robust prosperity.
WASHINGTON | March 2, 2015 | By Pablo Pardo | Neil Irwin believes central bankers are the real heroes of the economic crisis that continues to bog down the eurozone. In his book ‘The alchemists’, the New York Times senior correspondent paints Ben Bernanke as a hero and ECB’s Jean-Claude Trichet, as one of the greatest villains.
The Corner | February 28, 2015 | The fall in oil prices may yet push the Bank of England to raise rates, which it has been keeping at 0.5% since March 2009. It currently owns the equivalent of 25% of UK’s nominal GDP (see graph above).
MADRID | By JP Marín Arrese | Central bankers would be ill-advised to cave in to pressure from the markets. Yet, the ECB can hardly resist the urgent need to implement a fully-fledged QE programme involving sovereigns. Anything less could end-up sparking a period of vicious turmoil as Syriza seems poised to win the upcoming elections in Greece and the oil market continues to tumble into utter disarray. Such a grim outlook requires drastic action. Would it solve all the current problems? There are plenty of reasons to doubt it.
SAO PAULO | By Benjamin Cole via Historinhas | No, I do not have dense pages of calculus for the reader, purporting that QE would be ruin or divine salvation, or that minor deflation is the theoretical apex of an economic model.
Benjamin Cole via Historinhas | The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) shoots for an “inflation band” of between 2 percent and 3 percent, and the Aussie economy (as recently illustrated here by Marcus Nunes) has been among the best-performing following the 2008 Great Recession. Could it be that simple? Should central banks merely shoot for a somewhat flexible and slightly higher inflation target? Worth noting is the People’s Bank of China has overseen much prosperity with a 4 percent inflation target.