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Optimal fiscal substitutes for the exchange rate in monetary unions

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  • Kaufmann, Christoph

Abstract

This paper studies optimal monetary and fiscal policy in a New Keynesian 2-country open economy framework, which is used to assess how far fiscal policy can substitute for the role of nominal exchange rates within a monetary union. Giving up exchange rate flexibility leads to welfare costs that depend significantly on whether the law of one price holds internationally or whether firms can engage in pricing-to-market. Calibrated to the euro area, the welfare costs can be reduced by 86% in the former and by 69% in the latter case by using only one tax instrument per country. Fiscal devaluations can be observed as an optimal policy in a monetary union: if a nominal devaluation of the domestic currency were optimal under flexible exchange rates, optimal fiscal policy in a monetary union is an increase of the domestic relative to the foreign value added tax.

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  • Kaufmann, Christoph, 2019. "Optimal fiscal substitutes for the exchange rate in monetary unions," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 43-62.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:dyncon:v:103:y:2019:i:c:p:43-62
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jedc.2019.04.005
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Monetary union; Optimal monetary and fiscal policy; Exchange rate;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F41 - International Economics - - Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance - - - Open Economy Macroeconomics
    • F45 - International Economics - - Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance - - - Macroeconomic Issues of Monetary Unions
    • E63 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Comparative or Joint Analysis of Fiscal and Monetary Policy; Stabilization; Treasury Policy

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