Monetary Policy In Australia Research Articles

Does the Reserve Bank of Australia follow a forward-looking nonlinear monetary policy rule?

ABSTRACTThe conventional monetary policy rule describes a simple linear relationship between the domestic interest rate, inflation rate and output gap. An important extension to this rule is to incorporate the forward-looking behaviour of central banks, where it is assumed that they target an expected level of inflation instead of its current realised value. Using quarterly observations for the period 1993:1-2018:2, this paper investigates whether the conduct of monetary policy in Australia can be described by a forward-looking linear monetary policy rule, or by a nonlinear forward-looking monetary policy rule. In particular, the nonlinear forward-looking monetary policy rule is analysed in a regime-switching framework using a smooth logistic transition regression model. While the results show that the conventional forward-looking linear monetary policy rule describes the application of monetary policy in Australia reasonably well, the interest rate setting behaviour of the RBA is best described by a nonlinear forward-looking monetary policy rule.

How justified is abandoning money in the conduct of monetary policy in Australia on the grounds of instability in the money‐demand function?

AbstractThe role of money in the design and conduct of monetary policy has reemerged as an important issue in both advanced and developing economies, especially since the 2007 global financial crisis. A growing body of recent literature suggests that the causal relationship between money supply growth and inflation remains intact across countries and over time and that this relation is not conditional on the stability of the money‐demand function or whether money is endogenous or exogenous. Moreover, critical for a rule‐based monetary policy is the presence of a long‐run stable money‐demand function, rather than a short‐run money‐demand model that may exhibit instability for many reasons, including problems with estimating a money‐demand model with high‐frequency data. Provided that a stable money‐demand function exists, it could be useful to establish long‐run equilibrium relations among money, output, prices, and exchange rates, as the classical monetary theory suggests. Within this analytical framework, this paper addresses the question of whether money has any role in the conduct of monetary policy in Australia. The conventional wisdom is that the money‐demand function in Australia has been unstable since the mid‐1980s due to financial deregulation and reforms; this led to a change in the strategy of monetary policy for price stability in the form of inflation targeting that ignores money insofar as inflation and its control are concerned. This paper reports empirical findings for Australia, obtained from a longer quarterly data series over the period 1960Q1–2015Q1, which suggest that instability in the narrow‐money‐demand function in Australia was primarily due to the exclusion of variables which have become important in the deregulated environment since the 1980s. These findings are confirmed by an expanded form of the narrow‐money‐demand function that was found stable over the past two decades, although it experienced multiple structural breaks over the study period. The paper draws the conclusion that abandoning the monetary aggregate as an instrument of monetary policy in Australia, under a rule‐based monetary policy such as inflation targeting, cannot be justified by instability in the money‐demand function or even by lack of a causal link between money supply growth and inflation.

Household Debt, Consumption, and Monetary Policy in Australia

This paper discusses the evolution of the household debt in Australia and finds that while higher-income and higher-wealth households tend to have higher debt, lower-income households may become more vulnerable to rising debt service over time. Then, the paper analyzes the impact of a monetary policy shock on households' current consumption and durable expenditures depending on the level of household debt. The results corroborate other work that households' response to monetary policy shocks depends on their debt and income levels. In particular, households with higher debt tend to reduce their current consumption and durable expenditures more than other households in response to a contractionary monetary policy shocks. However, households with low debt may not respond to monetary policy shocks, as they hold more interest-earning assets.

Household Debt, Consumption, and Monetary Policy in Australia

This paper discusses the evolution of the household debt in Australia and finds that while higher-income and higher-wealth households tend to have higher debt, lower-income households may become more vulnerable to rising debt service over time. Then, the paper analyzes the impact of a monetary policy shock on households’ current consumption and durable expenditures depending on the level of household debt. The results corroborate other work that households’ response to monetary policy shocks depends on their debt and income levels. In particular, households with higher debt tend to reduce their current consumption and durable expenditures more than other households in response to a contractionary monetary policy shocks. However, households with low debt may not respond to monetary policy shocks, as they hold more interest-earning assets.

Does money have a role in the inflation process? Evidence from Australia

Inflation, defined as a sustained increase in the price level, is considered a monetary phenomenon, as it can be explained within the framework of money‐demand and money‐supply relationships. In the extant literature, money growth is shown to remain causally related to inflation across countries and over time, irrespective of the exchange rate regime and stability of the money‐demand function. Nevertheless, emerging literature suggests a diminishing role of money in the conduct of monetary policy for price stability, especially under inflation targeting. Monetary policy in Australia under inflation targeting since 1993 is an example of policy that denies a relationship between money growth and inflation. The proposition that money does not matter insofar as inflation is concerned seems odd in both theory and the best‐practice monetary policy for price stability. This paper uses annual data for the period 1970–2017 and quarterly data for the period 1970Q1–2015Q1. It deploys both the Johansen cointegration approach and the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) cointegration approach to investigate for Australia whether money, real output, prices and the exchange rate (non‐stationary variables) maintain the long‐run price‐level relationship that the classical monetary theory suggests in the presence of such stationary variables as the domestic and foreign interest rates. As expected, the empirical findings for Australia are consistent with the classical long‐run price‐level relationship between money, real output, prices and the exchange rate. The error‐correction model of inflation confirms the presence of a cointegral relationship among these variables; it also provides strong evidence of a short‐run causal relationship between money supply growth and inflation. On the basis of a priori theoretical predictions and empirical findings, the paper draws the conclusion that the monetary aggregate and its growth rate matter insofar as inflation is concerned, irrespective of the strategy of monetary policy for price stability.

Yield Curve and Monetary Policy Expectations in Small Open Economies

This paper estimates a New Keynesian dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model in small open economies using the yield curve data as well as standard macro data. The DSGE model is estimated on the data of three inflation-targeting small open economies (Australia, Canada, and New Zealand) using Bayesian methods. We find that the long-end of the yield curve is highly correlated with the current and future short-term interest rates determined by domestic central banks. Yield curve data are particularly informative about the future stance of monetary policy in Australia and Canada in that the correlation between the model-implied monetary policy expectations and the ex-post realized policy interest rates increases when the yield curve data are used in estimation. Unlike the estimation results solely based on the macro data that imply the cental bank’s relatively strong focus on inflation stabilization, our results using yield curve information suggest that even inflation-targeting central banks have a significant concern for output stabilization. We also document that persistent domestic shocks, not foreign disturbances, drive the average level of the yield curve in these three countries.

Do central banks respond to exchange rate movements? Some new evidence from structural estimation

AbstractThis paper investigates the impact of exchange rate movements on the conduct of monetary policy in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. We develop and estimate a structural general equilibrium model, in which monetary policy is represented as a simple rule and exchange rate pass‐through is incomplete due to the presence of local currency pricing and distribution services. We find that the Bank of Canada, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, and the Bank of England have not adjusted interest rates in response to exchange rate movements since the adoption of inflation targeting, while our model selection results for Australia are less clear.

Investigating the Housing Market Fluctuation Under an Expansionary Monetary Policy in Australia

This research empirically investigates the impact of monetary policy on the housing market in Australia from 1996 to 2009. Three primary variables associated with the housing sector and monetary policy, including interest rates, money supply and house prices, are estimated by a structural vector autoregression (VAR) model. Depending upon the analysis using the impulse response function, it can be identified that monetary policy significantly affects the housing market in Australia by the adjustments in interest rates and money supply. The empirical results from this study may be useful for policy makers to enact appropriate policies in relation to the infrastructure planning.

Do central banks respond to exchange rate movements? A structural investigation

We estimate a small-scale, structural general equilibrium model of a small open economy using Bayesian methods. Our main focus is the conduct of monetary policy in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the UK. We consider generic Taylor-type rules, where the monetary authority reacts in response to output, inflation, and exchange-rate movements. We perform posterior odds tests to investigate the hypothesis whether central banks do target exchange rates. The main result of this paper is that the central banks of Australia and New Zealand do not, whereas the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England do include the nominal exchange rate in its policy rule. This result is robust for various specification of the policy rule. We also find that terms-of-trade movements do not contribute significantly to domestic business cycles.

Asymmetric Monetary Policy in Australia*

We find evidence for asymmetric behaviour in Australian monetary policy. During 1984–1990, the Reserve Bank of Australia acted with considerable discretion yielding poor performance of an interest rate rule. However, it behaved asymmetrically to inflation and the output gap in downturns and upturns. On embracing inflation targeting from 1991, it enhanced its credibility by anchoring inflation expectations. Not only did its actions become more predictable in 1991–2002, it responded asymmetrically only to output, switching to act more acutely in downturns. Although its asymmetric behaviour could result from asymmetric preferences or non‐linear aggregate supply, our results support the former explanation.

The term structure of interest rates in Australia: an application of long run structural modelling

The term structure of interest rates in Australia, using data of different types as well as frequencies covering the period 1991(11) to 2000(9) is investigated using a relatively new modelling strategy previously untested on Australian interest rate data. Developed by Pesaran and Shin (2002), this strategy incorporates long-run structural relationships in an otherwise unrestricted vector autoregression model (VAR). The econometric tests indicate that in Australia, contrary to popular belief, long-term interest rates more often than not lead shorter-term interest rates, at least for the interest rates and time period under investigation. While these findings are not conclusive, if they are an accurate representation of interest rate behaviour, this does pose a major challenge for the monetary policy in Australia. The findings are consistent with the recent experience of the USA as well (Sarno and Thornton, 2003). The findings of the study based on recent rigorous time-series techniques tend to cast doubts ...

How tight are the policy constraints? The policy convergence thesis, institutionally situated actors and expansionary monetary policy in Australia

We proceed by briefly outlining the key parameters of the financial globalisation/policy convergence debate. Then, a model of situated institutional behaviour is developed, first in the abstract and then as illustrated by the Australian empirics. Given the substantial degree of central bank independence from government in this case, the main empirical focus is on the behaviour of central bank authorities at the Reserve Bank of Australia. By tracing the history of Australia's relatively expansionary monetary policy, with its comparatively strong emphasis on striking a balance between acceptable levels of inflation and economic growth, the article turns to the task of explaining the logic and dynamics of such a stance and the degree of policy discretion it evinces. At the level of domestic institutions, the theoretical focus is on how institutionally situated and interpretive actors navigate their way with a degree of discretion through the institutional, ideational and structural terrains they confront. The argument concludes with a brief comparison with the much more strongly convergent New Zealand case. Even here, however, attention to the choices of situated actors reveals choices framed more by domestic ideological and political factors than by external constraints or pressures. Finally, we discuss what the analysis of these cases suggests about the policy convergence thesis and wider debates about globalisation.

Dating Changes in Monetary Policy in Australia

Dating Changes in Monetary Policy in Australia

Expectations of monetary policy in Australia implied by the probability distribution of interest rate derivatives

The paper describes and compares different methods of extracting the implied probability distribution of the underlying interest rate futures from the prices of traded options on these futures as well as from past futures prices. These methods are applied to short-term contracts on bank accepted bills trading on the Sydney Futures Exchange. The information on the distribution of the underlying asset thus obtained is very important to the central bank authorities since this allows them to monitor market expectations regarding future price movements. Alternatively market reaction to central, bank monetary policy changes may be judged this way. It is also important to practitioners for use in pricing over the counter (OTC) or exotic products where the trading volume is not particularly high. In that situation, the information on the distribution recovered from highly traded products from the exchange may be used as representative for the OTC products as well. As an empirical application, the recovered information on distribution is analysed in the context of reductions in interest rates in Australia by the Reserve Bank between July 1996 and May 1997.

Financial deregulation, demand for narrow money and monetary policy in Australia

This paper examines the long-run relationship between narrow money and output, interest rate, and price level in Australia for the period 1970–1993 with quarterly seasonally adjusted data using the concept of cointegration. The results suggest the presence of a long-run demand function, the absence of instability in the relationship in the face of deregulation/innovation in the Australia's financial system around 1980. The results also indicate the rejection of price homogeneity in the demand equation vindicating this specification in terms of nominal money balances. The underlying latent relationship is further promoted by a high speed of short-run adjustment evidenced from an analysis of short-run dynamics. All the estimated elasticities proved significant and were correctly signed.

Monetary Policy in Australia: An Introduction

This Policy Forum brings together three views on the conduct of monetary policy in Australia. It arose from a submission by Peter Stemp which was refereed in the normal manner for contributed papers. One referee, Stephen Grenville, was prompted to forego his anonymity and to submit a paper addressing similar issues but taking a very different approach on the objectives of monetary policy. The editors asked John Pitchford to comment on both papers. The Grenville and Pitchford papers were edited in the manner used for Policy Forum.

The Role of Monetary Policy in Australia: A Minimalist Approach

The Role of Monetary Policy in Australia: A Minimalist Approach

MONETARY POLICY IN AUSTRALIA

MONETARY POLICY IN AUSTRALIA

Monetary Policy in Australia: The Conflict between Short‐Term and Medium‐Term Objectives

AbstractThis article argues that the recent implementation of monetary policy in Australia has been dominated by the response to a large range of unanticipated shocks. In the process of trying to minimise the adverse effects of such shocks, considerable uncertainty has been created about likely outcomes in the medium term. This makes medium‐term objectives harder to achieve. Taking the reduction of inflation as an example of an appropriate medium‐term objective, simulations are presented using the Murphy model of the Australian economy. The simulations demonstrate that a tightening of monetary policy will reduce inflation more slowly if private agents believe that the tightening is unlikely to be sustained for long. Under uncertainty, monetary policy will have to be tighter and real GDP significantly lower to achieve a given reduction in inflation. A confingency rule of medium complexity is suggested as one way in which appropriate medium‐term objectives might be achieved while allowing some flexibility to react to unexpected outcomes in the short run.

Deregulation and the Conduct of Monetary Policy

AbstractThis paper examines the evolution of monetary policy in Australia since the mid 1980s when financial markets were rapidly deregulated. The paper discusses the conduct of monetary policy within the framework of monetary targeting and how deregulation affected this framework. Alternative strategies for conducting monetary policy are discussed. However, it is argued that since 1985, monetary authorities have often changed the focus of monetary policy with no specific framework within which the policy is implemented.Deregulation has forced interest rates to become the main focus of monetary policy. But, since the deregulation of financial markets, the transmission mechanism by which interest rates affect the economy, has changed significantly.