Policy Regime Shifts Research Articles

Monetary Policy Regime Shifts and Inflation Persistence

This paper reports the results of estimating a Markov-Switching New Keynesian (MSNK) model using Bayesian methods. The broadest and best fitting MSNK model is a four-regime model allowing independent changes in the regimes governing monetary policy and the volatility of the shocks. We use the estimates to investigate the mechanisms that lead to a decline in the persistence of inflation. We show that the population moment describing the serial correlation of inflation is a weighted average of the autocorrelation parameters of the exogenous shocks. Changes in the monetary or shock volatility regimes shift weight over these serial correlation parameters and affect the serial correlation properties of inflation. Estimation results indicate that a shift to a monetary regime that reacts more aggressively to inflation reduces the weight on the more persistent shocks, so lowers inflation persistence. Similarly, a shift to the low-volatility regime reduces the weight on the more persistent shocks and also contributes to reducing inflation persistence. Estimates of model-implied inflation persistence indicate that it began rising in the late 1960s and peaked around the Volcker disinflation. The subsequent decline in persistence is due to both a more aggressive monetary policy regime and less volatile shocks.

Introduction: Globalization–Poverty Channels and Case Studies from Sub-Saharan Africa

In 2004 the United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER) embarked on a large-scale research project on the ‘Impact of Globalization on the World’s Poor’ co-directed by Machiko Nissanke and Erik Thorbecke. The first conference was essentially conceptual in nature, meant to understand better the various mechanisms and channels through which globalization affects the poor either directly or indirectly. The other three conferences focused on each of the major regions of the developing world: Asia, Africa and Latin America. Theobjectivesofthisintroductionarethreefold:first,toreviewbrieflyhow the forces of globalization influence poverty in general; second, to describe and discuss the main transmission channels and mechanisms; and third to analyze the impact of globalization on Africa and present an overview of the six Africa case studies included in this issue. 1. The Impact of Globalization on the World’s Poor Globalization provides a strong potential for a major reduction in poverty in the developing world because it creates an environment conducive to fastereconomicgrowthandtransmissionofknowledge. 1 However,structural factors and policies within the world economy and national economies have impeded the full transmission of the benefits of the various channels of globalization for poverty reduction. In particular sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) hasbeenrelativelylessaffectedbytheforcesofglobalizationthanotherparts of the world. World income distribution continues to be very unequal and many poor countries particularly in Africa are stagnating. Moreover, there is much empirical evidence that openness contributes to more within-country

Monetary Policy Regime Shifts: New Evidence from Time-Varying Interest-Rate Rules

We estimate forward-looking interest-rate rules for five large OECD economies, allowing for time variation in the responses to macroeconomic conditions and in the variance of the policy rate. Conventional constant-parameter reaction functions likely blur the impact of i) model uncertainty, ii) conflicting objectives, iii) shifting preferences and iv) nonlinearities of policymakers choices. We find that monetary policies followed by the US, the UK, Germany, France and Italy are best summarized by feedback rules that allow for time variation in their parameters. Estimated rules point to sizeable differences in the actual conduct of monetary policies, even in the countries now belonging to the EMU. Also, our TVP specification outperforms the conventional Taylor rule and GMM-based estimates of reaction functions in tracking the actual Fed funds rate.

Evidence of non-stationary bias in scaling by square root of time: Implications for Value-at-Risk

In this paper, we show that scaled conditional volatilities obtained by the square root formula applied to i.i.d residuals from a sample of Canadian stock market data for various time horizons and error distributions, typically underestimate the true conditional volatility; consistently have a higher standard deviation and exhibit non-stationary kurtosis. Furthermore, the bias produced by volatility scaling is non-stationary in mean and standard deviation and its magnitude is likely influenced by monetary policy regime shifts. Moreover, while VaR is risk-coherence for elliptical distributions, this bias remains even for this class of distributions.

Optimal Debt Management with a Stability and Growth Pact

The Stability and Growth Pact introduces deficit stabilization as a new interesting objective of debt management. The interest payments on public debt may serve as an important buffer against the budget consequences of cyclical downturns and unexpected deflation. The optimal debt composition depends on the correlations between interest rates, output and inflation. Estimated correlations for the period 1960-1988 and the implied debt compositions provide benchmarks for implications regarding the EMU. The paper explores how relevant correlations between output, inflation and interest rates may have changed with the shift in the monetary policy regime and thus how the debt composition, which stabilizes the dificit, has changed. A longer maturity structure of conventional debt is optimal if the ECB places a lower weight on output stabilization then the national monetary authorities and if EMU member states are hit by asymmetric shocks. Short term conventional debt should instead be issued by countries which experience a relatively higher output and inflation uncertainty and a lower sensitivity of aggregate demand to interest-rate changes. The optimal share of inflation indexed debt is largest in a strict inflation targeting regime; the lower the weight that the ECB assigns to output stabilization, the more attractive is inflation indexation for deficit stabilization.

The Policy Preferences of the U.S. Federal Reserve

This paper uses a small data-consistent model of the United States to identify and estimate the Federal Reserve's policy preferences. We find critical differences between the policy regimes in operation during the Burns-Miller and Volcker-Greenspan periods. Over the Volcker-Greenspan period we estimate the inflation target to be 2.0% and find that policymakers were willing to allow the real interest rate to change in order to keep overall changes in the nominal interest rate relatively small. In contrast, for the Burns-Miller period the inflation target is estimated to be 5.9%, and we find that policy makers were much more prepared to tolerate changes in the nominal interest rate than they were changes in the real interest rate. Consequently, over this period policymakers tended to accommodate movements in inflation. We find statistical evidence that a policy regime shift occurred with Volcker's appointment to Federal Reserve chairman.

Labour markets, liquidity, and monetary policy regimes

Abstract. We develop an equilibrium model of the monetary policy transmission mechanism that highlights information frictions in the market for money and search frictions in the labour market. The information friction increases the persistence in the response of interest rates following monetary policy regime shifts. This occurs because agents have incomplete information about the nature of the shifts and optimally update their inflation forecasts using an ‘adaptive’ expectations rule. The search friction transmits the interest rate movements to the labour market by affecting job creation activities; together, the two frictions imply that unemployment reacts very gradually to monetary policy shocks. JEL Classification: E4, E5

Inflation targeting and switch of fiscal regime in New Zealand

Monetary policy cannot be adequately addressed without also specifying fiscal policy. I interpret the economic reforms in New Zealand in the 1980s using a simple model that includes reaction functions of both monetary and fiscal policy. The interpretation is based on the wealth effects of the government debt. The successful and sustainable shift in monetary policy regime in New Zealand was supported by a compatible switch in fiscal policy.

Monetary policy rules and regime shifts

A growing body of empirical literature has established interest rate rules as a convenient way to model and interpret monetary policy. However, as pointed out by Rudebusch (1998), vector autoregression (VAR) models used to recover the central banks' reaction functions generally rely on the dubious assumptions of linearity and time invariance. This paper proposes an empirical framework which allows the parameters of an interest rate rule to vary over time allowing for multiple regime shifts. Employing Markov-switching VAR models this study is able to identify significant and persistent shifts which affects the dynamics of the central banks' instrument interest rates. The shifts are mainly driven by discrete changes in inflation targets.

An Empirical Note on the Export-Led Growth Hypothesis: The Case of Malaysia

The present empirical note re-examines the export-led growth hypothesis for the case of Malaysia. Using standard procedures of unit root testing, cointegration and error correction modelling, we find evidence for bi-directional causality between exports and real output per capita. Addressing the issue of exogeneity, we test for weak exogeneity and super exogeneity of exports within the error correction framework. We find evidence that exports are not weakly exogenous and subsequently, are not super exogenous. This result weakens the case for the export-led growth hypothesis. In the Malaysian context, the Lucas critique applies, namely, that the relationship between exports and real output per capita is not invariant to policy changes or regime shifts.

Monetary Policy Rules and Regime Shifts

A growing body of empirical literature has established interest rate rules as a convenient way to model and interpret monetary policy. However, as pointed out by Rudebusch (1998), vector autoregression (VAR) models used to recover the central banks' reaction functions generally rely on the dubious assumptions of linearity and time invariance. This paper proposes an empirical framework which allows the parameters of an interest rate rule to vary over time allowing for multiple regime shifts. Employing Markov-switching VAR models we are able to identify significant and persistent shifts which affects the dynamics of the central banks' instrument interest rates. The shifts are mainly driven by discrete changes in inflation targets.

Interest Rate Effects on Output: Evidence from a GDP Forecasting Model for South Africa

Forecasting models for output are presented to throw light on monetary transmission. Recent research finds multistep forecasting superior to recursive forecasting from a VAR model when structural breaks are present; there are important political and policy regime breaks in South Africa. The equilibrium correction models have a four-quarter ahead forecast horizon, appropriate for measuring interest rate effects. A stochastic trend measures underlying shifts in productivity and other supply side trends. The inclusion of important monetary policy regime shifts, which altered the output response to interest rates, and the control for other structural changes (e.g. trade liberalization), address the Lucas critique in forecasting output growth. There are important and persistent effects of high real interest rates, which significantly constrained growth in the 1990s, and significant potential growth benefits from fiscal discipline. South African growth appears to have become more responsive to the exchange rate with increasing trade openness in the 1990s.

Interdependence and dynamics in currency futures markets: A multivariate analysis of intraday data

This paper investigates long-term interdependencies and short-term dynamics in currency futures utilizing intraday data for six major foreign currencies: the British Pound, Deutsche Mark, Swiss Franc, Australian Dollar, Canadian Dollar, and Japanese Yen. Lack of cointegration (CI) among the foreign exchange futures is found to be the prevailing mode of behavior, but some temporary deviations from the no-CI condition are detected. There is a notable overlap between detected CI relationships and the timing of policy changes, world events, and regime shifts, indicating that the observed CIs are event-driven. The robustness of the CI results is checked with respect to variations in the model, lag structure, data period, sample horizon, and currency basket grouping. Impulse–response functions (IRFs) reveal that currency markets are in general efficient and absorb new information within the day. The interdependence among currencies is found to be asymmetric.

Implementing Inflation Targeting in Brazil

Brazil has put in place an inflation-targeting framework for monetary policy in mid-1999, less than six months after moving to a floating exchange rate system. This paper presents the macroeconomic background that has led to the shift in monetary policy regime, and describes the general institutional arrangements and operational framework that has been adopted. The paper also discusses the basic modeling approach that has aided the decision-making process in the initial phase of inflation targeting in Brazil. We describe the family of small-scale macroeconomic models that has been used for informing and disciplining discussions about monetary policy within the Central Bank. These models contain few equations and few variables, but carry a considerable theoretical content and provide a stylized representation of the monetary policy transmission mechanism. They are easily understood, and especially suitable for simulation of a wide range of issues. We conclude with the main lessons that may be drawn from the initial Brazilian experience with inflation targeting.

Strategic export policy with foreign direct investment and import substitution

The paper examines discretionary and strategic foreign direct investment (FDI) incentives in the export sector relative to a non-interventionist policy. The analysis is based on a two-country model with both countries seeking to attract FDI. Countries differ in cost levels and in their levels of tariff protection on intermediate inputs. A shift in the trade policy regime toward the strategic promotion of exports results in a decrease in FDI allocated to the low-cost country when it has a low level of protection on intermediate inputs, and an increase in FDI when it has a high level of protection on intermediates inputs. Furthermore, even if FDI increases with export policy activism relative to non-intervention, welfare may be lower.

Policy regime changes and the long-run sustainability of fiscal policy: an application to Greece

This paper questions the widespread practice of assessing the hypothesis of long-run fiscal policy sustainability by means of conventional unit-root tests that do not allow for the possible impact of regime shifts. Using the Greek economy as a model case, the Zivot-Andrews sequential integratibility testing procedure which allows for the endogenous determination of possible regime changes is deployed to this end. The empirical evidence reached supports strongly the failure of the Greek government to satisfy intertemporal budget balance in the long-run and identifies as the cause of this failure a deterministic policy regime shift taking place in 1979.

The impact of monetary regime changes: Some exchange rate evidence

Lucas has argued that coefficient changes can be explained by changing expectations caused by the policy regime shifts. This paper provides evidence consistent with the Lucas critique. Using an efficient markets/news framework, Kalman Filter results show that surprise relative U.S. monetary expansion is associated both with periods of U.S. $ depreciation and appreciation. I show that variables representing changes in monetary policy regimes can explain a substantial fraction of the movements in the time-varying parameter.

Stopping Inflations, Big and Small

Previous studies of disinflation work with models in which firms use time dependent strategies, changing nominal prices at intervals of fixed length. These models may be criticized for failing to allow pricing behavior to adjust after a large shift in policy regime. Consequently, this paper develops a model that permits firms to adopt strategies that are partially state-dependent, changing nominal prices whenever they depart sufficiently from their target values. The paper uses this model to examine how the welfare costs and benefits of disinflation vary with the initial inflation rate and the speed of disinflation. Copyright 1997 by Ohio State University Press.

Is there a Greek‐Turkish arms race?: Evidence from cointegration and causality tests†

Greece and Turkey are both members of NATO and are two of the principal players in the Balkan region. Their respective defence burdens (i.e. the share of military expenditure to GDP) are the highest in NATO. Their bilateral relations are marred by serious friction and conflict of interest and have on a number of occasions come close to an armed confrontation. Their strategic interaction and mutual weapons build‐up has recently attracted the attention of researchers in the field testing the hypothesis of a Greek‐Turkish arms race with conflicting results. This paper, using cointegration and causality tests, finds evidence of a systematic armaments competition between the two countries provided that a defence policy regime shift estimated to occur in 1985 is explicitly taken into consideration. This policy regime change is associated with the stagnation of defence spending in Greece owing to the gradual deterioration of Greek public finances over the last decade.

Growth and trade dynamics under regime shifts in Australia

Uses parametric Granger causality techniques to test whether trade acted as an engine of growth during the period 1971(2)‐1994(2) in Australia. The causality tests were performed on time‐series data that were filtered after unit root and cointegration testing. During the study period there was a dramatic shift from a protectionist to a more liberal trading regime in Australia. Superexogeneity tests were applied to the conditional growth and the marginal trade policy models derived by the application of general to specific methodology. The superexogeneity tests examined whether the shift from a protectionist to a more liberal trading regime in the mid‐1980s undermined the structure of Australian trade growth dynamics as foreshadowed in the Lucas critique. Reviews the macropolicy implications of the trade policy regime shift.