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Fed communication on financial stability concerns and monetary policy decisions: revelations from speeches

Author

Listed:
  • Klodiana Istrefi

    (Banque de France)

  • Florens Odendahl

    (Banco de España)

  • Giulia Sestieri

    (Banque de France)

Abstract

This paper studies the informational content of speeches of Fed officials, focusing on financial stability, from 1997 to 2018. We construct indicators that measure the intensity and tone of this topic for both Governors and Fed presidents. When added to a standard forward-looking Taylor rule, a higher topic intensity or negative tone is associated with more monetary policy accommodation than implied by the state of the economy. Our results are mainly driven by the information in speeches of Fed presidents. We discuss several channels to rationalize this finding.

Suggested Citation

  • Klodiana Istrefi & Florens Odendahl & Giulia Sestieri, 2021. "Fed communication on financial stability concerns and monetary policy decisions: revelations from speeches," Working Papers 2110, Banco de España.
  • Handle: RePEc:bde:wpaper:2110
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    Cited by:

    1. Baumgärtner, Martin & Zahner, Johannes, 2023. "Whatever it takes to understand a central banker: Embedding their words using neural networks," IMFS Working Paper Series 194, Goethe University Frankfurt, Institute for Monetary and Financial Stability (IMFS).
    2. Arina Wischnewsky & David‐Jan Jansen & Matthias Neuenkirch, 2021. "Financial stability and the Fed: Evidence from congressional hearings," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 59(3), pages 1192-1214, July.
    3. Parle, Conor, 2022. "The financial market impact of ECB monetary policy press conferences — A text based approach," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    4. Rayane Hanifi & Klodiana Istrefi & Adrian Penalver, 2022. "Central Bank Communication of Uncertainty," Working papers 898, Banque de France.
    5. Klodiana Istrefi & Florens Odendahl & Giulia Sestieri, 2022. "ECB Communication and its Impact on Financial Markets," Working papers 859, Banque de France.
    6. Stolbov, Mikhail & Shchepeleva, Maria & Karminsky, Alexander, 2022. "When central bank research meets Google search: A sentiment index of global financial stress," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    7. Martin Baumgaertner & Johannes Zahner, 2021. "Whatever it takes to understand a central banker - Embedding their words using neural networks," MAGKS Papers on Economics 202130, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    monetary policy; Federal Reserve; financial stability; communication;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E03 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General - - - Behavioral Macroeconomics
    • E50 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - General
    • E61 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Policy Objectives; Policy Designs and Consistency; Policy Coordination

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