Optimal inflation, monetary integration, and asymmetric sticky prices

2020 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 710-730
Author(s):  
Wojtek Paczos

Abstract This article explores the optimal rate of trend inflation in open economies with and without a monetary union, accounting for empirically observed differences in the degree of price stickiness across countries. In a closed economy, the optimal inflation rate is negative to offset the markup caused by imperfect competition. In an open economy there is a ‘beggar-thy-neighbour’ incentive and the optimal inflation is positive. Monetary union is globally welfare improving because it removes this externality. In both setups, as price stickiness increases, the degree of price dispersion increases, and the optimal inflation rate tends towards zero. Gains from monetary integration are higher for economies with more flexible prices.

2014 ◽  
Vol 104 (3) ◽  
pp. 753-792 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emi Nakamura ◽  
Jón Steinsson

We use rich historical data on military procurement to estimate the effects of government spending. We exploit regional variation in military buildups to estimate an “open economy relative multiplier” of approximately 1.5. We develop a framework for interpreting this estimate and relating it to estimates of the standard closed economy aggregate multiplier. The latter is highly sensitive to how strongly aggregate monetary and tax policy “leans against the wind.” Our open economy relative multiplier “differences out” these effects because monetary and tax policies are uniform across the nation. Our evidence indicates that demand shocks can have large effects on output. (JEL E12, E32, E62, F33, H56, H57, R12)


Author(s):  
Ihor Soroka

The question of whether or not to adopt the euro is a very important one, not only for the 13 European Union members that do not share the same currency, but also for future EU candidates. Current literature on the effect of the euro on trade is scarce since the European Monetary Union (EMU) was officially created in 1999, and up until recently there has not been enough data to analyze this issue. This paper aims to estimate the effect of the euro on trade between member countries using the standard gravity model of trade. Using data from current 25 EU members over the period from 1997 to 2004, I show that higher trade volumes between EMU members cannot be attributed to the adoption of the euro. I find evidence that the euro adoption has had a short-run effect on bilateral trade and that this effect is eliminated over a short period of time. My findings suggest that members of the EMU trade on average from 8.8% to 47% more compared to non-members depending on the type of regression used, while members of the Free Trade Agreement trade 61.3% more. The effect of the euro on trade is eliminated as soon as I control for country-pair specific effects that include the FTA effect as well as history of trade relations between two countries. I conclude that the adoption of the euro should be seen as a final step in the European economic and monetary integration for countries that already benefit from relatively high volumes of bilateral trade. Full text availale at: https://doi.org/10.22215/rera.v2i1.166


2021 ◽  
pp. 097215092110161
Author(s):  
Papageorgiou Christos ◽  
Anastasiou Athanasios ◽  
Liargovas Panagiotis

Four indicators corresponding to the four targets of the European Monetary Union were calculated. The study showed that: (a) concerning the deviation of state’s general government deficit/surplus from 3% of gross domestic product (GDP), all member states had reached their target, with the exception of Cyprus, which was slightly under the target, (b) concerning the deviation of state’s general government debt from 60% of GDP, half of all European Union (EU) member states did not reach their targets, and there was a lot to be done, especially from the EU15 member states, (c) concerning the deviation of state’s inflation rate from the mean of the three states with best results of +1.5%, it was observed that the average value of EU28 member states had reached the final target, mainly due to the performances of the EU15 member states, (d) and concerning the deviation of state’s interest rate from the mean of the three states with the best results of +2%, it was observed that the average value of EU28 member states had reached the final target.


2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gunther Schnabl

Abstract The paper scrutinizes the role of diverging fiscal policy stances for diverging current account positions in Europe with a focus on the European Monetary Union (EMU). In a heterogeneous monetary union fiscal policy has the task to absorb asymmetric shocks to ensure the efficacy of the one-size monetary policy. It is argued that since the early years of the European Monetary Union divergent fiscal policies combined with monetary expansion constituted a major determinant of current account divergence within the euro area, which finally led into the European debt and financial crisis. Panel regressions reveal a significant impact of fiscal policies on current account positions, which to a large extent are independent from the exchange rate regime and turn out to be contingent on monetary and fiscal policy mix. Based on the findings economic policy recommendations are presented.


2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ihor Soroka

The question of whether or not to adopt the euro is a very important one, not only for the 13 European Union members that do not share the same currency, but also for future EU candidates. Current literature on the effect of the euro on trade is scarce since the European Monetary Union (EMU) was officially created in 1999, and up until recently there has not been enough data to analyze this issue. This paper aims to estimate the effect of the euro on trade between member countries using the standard gravity model of trade. Using data from current 25 EU members over the period from 1997 to 2004, I show that higher trade volumes between EMU members cannot be attributed to the adoption of the euro. I find evidence that the euro adoption has had a short-run effect on bilateral trade and that this effect is eliminated over a short period of time. My findings suggest that members of the EMU trade on average from 8.8% to 47% more compared to non-members depending on the type of regression used, while members of the Free Trade Agreement trade 61.3% more. The effect of the euro on trade is eliminated as soon as I control for country-pair specific effects that include the FTA effect as well as history of trade relations between two countries. I conclude that the adoption of the euro should be seen as a final step in the European economic and monetary integration for countries that already benefit from relatively high volumes of bilateral trade.


2008 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 279-308
Author(s):  
Jean-Pierre Allegret ◽  
Alain Sand-Zantman

This paper assesses the monetary consequences of the Latin-American integration process. Over the period 1991-2007, we analyze a sample of five Latin-American countries focusing on the feasibility of a monetary union between L.A. economies. To this end, we study the issue of business cycle synchronization with the occurrence of common shocks. First, we assess the international disturbances influence on the domestic business cycles. Second, we analyze the impact of the adoption of different exchange rate regimes on the countries' responses to shocks. .


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