Search Results for: inflation target

Dario Perkins of Lombard St Research got me thinking about whether Bitcoin – or some other digital cryptocurrency – would obviate the need for or possibility for a lender of last resort.  Without implicating him in any bad thinking here, … Continue reading →

The original plan for balance sheet shrinkage, articulated by Bernanke in the States, and Mervyn King in the UK, was organised around the idea of spending as small an amount of time as possible using QE as the marginal tool … Continue reading →

Well, not really:  that was click-bait.   But bear with me. The unprecedented increase in the size of central bank balance sheets since before the great financial crisis is unlikely to be entirely reversed.  And that means a one-off bit … Continue reading →

Budget day.    Article 50 is about to be invoked.  From here until actual EU exit, there is a sizeable risk of a sharp reduction in growth, or even a recession, as information emerges about the likely terms of trade with … Continue reading →

A curt summary of my remarks – few of them new to those who read this blog – at this year’s Centre for European Reform conference at Ditchley Park, on the topic of ‘Brexit and the economics of populism’. In … Continue reading →

The Bank of Japan has been tinkering with its monetary policy, and one thing about it struck me as curious. There is now the determination to try to overshoot the inflation target.  The idea is to try to raise the … Continue reading →

Following on from my previous post…. Phillip Hammond has suggested a ‘reset’ of fiscal policy might be in order, which could be read as him recognising that monetary policy might not be able to offer an adequate response to the … Continue reading →

People may differ on the effectiveness and desirability of unconventional monetary policy. But most of those in the sensible camp would agree that if we were about to head into recession, the most important aspect of the policy response is … Continue reading →

Simon is a member of Jeremy Corbyn’s economic advisory team, and participating in a review commissioned by John McDonnell on the Bank of England’s mandate. So the fact that he sees fit to pose the question ‘can central banks make … Continue reading →

Adair Turner wrote arguing for helicopter money, as an alternative to lower, or negative interest rates, to stimulate the economy.  Paul Krugman comes down on the side of Adair, concluding that I have got confused about what effect a helicopter … Continue reading →