Implementing international monetary cooperation through inflation targeting

This paper presents a two-country dynamic general equilibrium model with imperfect competition and nominal price rigidities in which productivity shocks coexist with markup shocks. After analyzing the features of the optimal cooperative solution, we show that this allocation can be implemented in a strategic context through inflation-targeting regimes. Under these regimes, each monetary authority minimizes a quadratic loss function that targets only domestic targets, namely, GDP inflation and the output gap

Designing targeting rules for international monetary policy cooperation

JEL Classification: E52, F41, F42inflation target, Monetary policy cooperation, sticky prices, targeting rules, welfare analysis

Designing Target Rules for International Monetary Policy Cooperation

This study analyzes a two-country dynamic general equilibrium model with nominal rigidities, monopolisticcompetition and producer currency pricing. A quadratic approximation to the utility of the consumers is derivedand assumed as the policy objective function of the policymakers. It is shown that only under special conditionsthere are no gains from cooperation and moreover that the paths of the exchange rate and prices in theconstrained-efficient solution depend on the kind of disturbance that affects the economy. It might be the caseeither for fixed or floating exchange rates. Despite this result, simple targeting rules that involve only targets forthe growth of output and for both domestic GDP and CPI inflation rates can replicate the cooperative allocation.monetary policy cooperation, sticky prices, welfare analysis, targeting rules, inflation target

Challenges for the dollar as a reserve currency

Gianluca Benigno examines the extent to which the financial crisis has undermined the dollar's pre-eminence.reserve currency, international, USA, China

Second-Order Approximation of Dynamic Models with Time-Varying Risk

This paper provides first and second-order approximation methods for the solution of nonlinear dynamic stochastic models in which the exogenous state variables follow conditionally-linear stochastic processes displaying time-varying risk. The first-order approximation is consistent with a conditionally-linear model in which risk is still timevarying but has no distinct role - separated from the primitive stochastic disturbances - in influencing the endogenous variables. The second-order approximation of the solution, instead, is sufficient to get this role. Moreover, risk premia, evaluated using only a first-order approximation of the solution, will be also time varying.stochastic volatility, second order approximation

Consumption and Real Exchange Rates with Incomplete Markets and Non-Traded Goods

This paper addresses the consumption-real exchange rate anomaly. International real business cycle models based on complete financial markets predict a unitary correlation between the real exchange rate and the ratio of home to foreign consumption when subjected to supply side shocks. In the data, this correlation is usually small and often negative. This paper shows that this anomaly can be successfully addressed by models that have an incomplete financial market structure and a non-traded as well as traded goods production sector.Consumption-real exchange rate anomaly, incomplete financial markets,nontraded goods

Equilibrium Exchange Rates and Supply Side Performance

This paper develops a two country, optimising, sticky price model of real exchange rate determination in the ënew open macroeconomics' tradition which allows several different forms of deviation from Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), both along the adjustment path and in the steady state. The model has a rich structure, and is designed to provide a flexible tool for policy analysis. Unlike most other papers in the literature, both of the key components of the real exchange rate -- the relative price of non-tradables, and the terms of trade -- are made endogenous, allowing a more complete analysis of the impact of structural shocks. To illustrate one possible application, the model is calibrated to match key elements of the UK and euro area economies, and used to examine the extent to which possible improvements in the UK's relative supply side performance might account for the sharp and persistent appreciation in sterling since 1996. The results are not supportive of this hypothesis. In the model, improvements in productivity, goods market and labour market competitiveness are all associated with a depreciation in both the spot and the equilibrium real sterling exchange rates. Two potential supply-side sources of an equilibrium appreciation -- a productivity improvement biased towards traded goods (Balassa-Samuelson effect), and an anticipated future productivity rise -- are considered; however each is insufficient to account for a long run equilibrium appreciation; the latter may account for an initial appreciation of the real exchange rate. We conclude by considering further mechanisms which could affect our results.

Consumption and Real Exchange Rates with Incomplete Markets and Non-traded Goods

This paper addresses the consumption-real exchange rate anomaly. International real business cycle models based on complete financial markets predict a unitary correlation between the real exchange rate and the ratio of home to foreign consumption when subjected to supply side shocks. In the data, this correlation is usually small and often negative. This paper shows that this anomaly can be successfully addressed by models that have an incomplete financial market structure and a non-traded as well as traded goods production sector.Consumption-real exchange rate anomaly; incomplete financial markets; non-traded goods.

Portfolio Allocation and International Risk Sharing

Recent contributions have shown that it is possible to account for the so-called consumption-real exchange anomaly in models with goods market frictions where international asset trade is limited to a riskless bond. In this paper, we consider a more realistic international asset market structure and show that as soon as we depart from the single bond economy, we can no longer account for the consumption-real exchange anomaly. Our central result holds for a simple asset market structure in which two nominal bonds are traded across countries. We explore the role of demand shocks such as news shocks in generating meaningful market incompleteness. We show that only under specific settings news shocks can improve the performance of the model in matching the portfolio positions and consumption-real exchange rate correlations that we observe in the data.Portfolio choice, incomplete financial markets, international risk sharing, consumption-real exchange rate anomaly