Pricing Policies and Inflation Inertia

Abstract

The paper proposes a monetary model with nominal rigidities that differs from the conventional New Keynesian model in that firms set pricing policies instead of price levels. In response to permanent or highly persistent monetary policy shocks this model generates the empirically observed slow (inertial) and prolonged (persistent) reaction of the inflation rate, and also the recession which typically accompanies moderate disinflations. The reason is that firms respond to such shocks mostly through achange in the long-run or inflation updating component of their pricing policies. With staggered pricing policies this takes time to be reflected in aggregate inflation.