This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Central Bank Independence and Accountability Under Complete Information

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Francesca Castellani () (IUHEI)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

This paper investigates the accountability of the independent monetary authority in the case of strategic interaction between the delegating authority (government) and the agent (central bank) in the policy game with complete information. As the unelected monetary authority is not the by-product of society's preferences, delegation turns out to be socially costly. Two main results emerge from the model. First, a monetary stance biased towards price stability makes the optimal fiscal strategy time-inconsistent, destroys the credibility of the mandate to deliver the socially optimum inflation rate and prevents the monetary authority from being held accountable for achieving it. Hence, delegation results ill-designed to make the monetary authority both independent and accountable. To this end, specific policy coordination mechanisms may have to be imposed on the fiscal authority to complement the delegation mechanism. Second, in the case where the government can precommit on fiscal strategies, no fiscal arrangement is ineeded and strict inflation targeting allows the central bank to be accountable.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://hei.unige.ch/sections/ec/pdfs/Working_papers/HEIWP05-2001.pdf
Our checks indicate that this address may not be valid because: 404 Not Found. If this is indeed the case, please notify (Kornel Mahlstein)
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by Economics Section, The Graduate Institute of International Studies in its series HEI Working Papers with number 05-2001.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length: 30
Date of creation: 10 Oct 2001
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:gii:giihei:heiwp05-2001

Contact details of provider:
Postal: P.O. Box 36, 1211 Geneva 21
Phone: ++41 22 731 17 30
Fax: ++41 22 738 43 06
Email:
Web page: http://hei.unige.ch/sections/ec/
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Kornel Mahlstein).

Related research
Keywords: central bank accountability; inflation targeting; fiscal restraints;

Other versions of this item:

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports: References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Dixit, Avinash & Lambertini, Luisa, 2001. "Monetary-fiscal policy interactions and commitment versus discretion in a monetary union," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(4-6), pages 977-987, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Marco Catenaro & Patrizio Tirelli, 1999. "Reconsidering The Pros and Cons of Fiscal Policy Coordination in a Monetary Union: Should We Set Public Expenditure Targets?," Working Papers 30, University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Economics, revised Sep 2000. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Barro, Robert J. & Gordon, David B., 1983. "Rules, discretion and reputation in a model of monetary policy," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 101-121. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. Rogoff, Kenneth, 1985. "The Optimal Degree of Commitment to an Intermediate Monetary Target," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 100(4), pages 1169-89, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Bennett T. McCallum, 1995. "Two Fallacies Concerning Central Bank Independence," NBER Working Papers 5075, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Schaling, E. & Hoeberichts, M. & Eijffinger, S., 1998. "Incentive contracts for central bankers under uncertainty: Walsh-Svensson non-equivalence revisited," Discussion Paper 11, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research. [Downloadable!]
  7. Lohmann, Susanne, 1992. "Optimal Commitment in Monetary Policy: Credibility versus Flexibility," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 82(1), pages 273-86, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Eijffinger, Sylvester C W & Hoeberichts, Marco & Schaling, Eric, 2000. "A Theory of Central Bank Accountability," CEPR Discussion Papers 2354, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  9. Agell, Jonas & Calmfors, Lars & Jonsson, Gunnar, 1996. "Fiscal policy when monetary policy is tied to the mast," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(7), pages 1413-1440, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Xavier Debrun, 2000. "Fiscal Rules in a Monetary Union: A Short-Run Analysis," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 11(4), pages 323-358, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Walsh, Carl E, 1995. "Optimal Contracts for Central Bankers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(1), pages 150-67, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Barro, Robert J., 1986. "Reputation in a model of monetary policy with incomplete information," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 3-20, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  13. Levine, Paul L & Pearlman, Joseph, 1998. "Monetary Union: The Ins and Outs of Strategic Delegation," CEPR Discussion Papers 1800, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  14. Alesina, Alberto & Tabellini, Guido, 1987. "Rules and Discretion with Noncoordinated Monetary and Fiscal Policies," Economic Inquiry, Oxford University Press, vol. 25(4), pages 619-30, October.
  15. Beetsma, Roel M. W. J. & Lans Bovenberg, A., 1997. "Designing fiscal and monetary institutions in a second-best world," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 13(1), pages 53-79, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  16. Alesina, Alberto & Summers, Lawrence H, 1993. "Central Bank Independence and Macroeconomic Performance: Some Comparative Evidence," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 25(2), pages 151-62, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  17. Muscatelli, Anton, 1998. "Optimal Inflation Contracts and Inflation Targets with Uncertain Central Bank Preferences: Accountability through Independence?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 108(447), pages 529-42, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Castrén, Olli, 1999. "Accountability of the ECB and a Government's Incentives to Rebel against the Common Monetary Policy in EMU," Research Discussion Papers 2/1999, Bank of Finland. [Downloadable!]
  19. Dornbusch, Rudi, 1997. "Fiscal Aspects of Monetary Integration," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(2), pages 221-23, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  20. Cukierman, A., 2000. "Accountability, Credibility, Transparency and Stabilization Policy in the Eurosystem," Papers 2000-4, Tel Aviv.
  21. Persson, Torsten & Tabellini, Guido, 1993. "Designing institutions for monetary stability," Carnegie-Rochester Conference Series on Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 53-84, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  22. Kydland, Finn E & Prescott, Edward C, 1977. "Rules Rather Than Discretion: The Inconsistency of Optimal Plans," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 85(3), pages 473-91, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  23. Svensson, Lars E O, 1997. "Optimal Inflation Targets, "Conservative" Central Banks, and Linear Inflation Contracts," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(1), pages 98-114, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  24. Castren, O., 1999. "Accountability of the ECB and a Government's Incentives to Rebel Against the Common Monetary Policy in EMU," Bank of Finland - Studies in Economics and Finance 2/99, Bank of Finland. Research Department..
  25. Cukierman, Alex, 1994. "Central Bank Independence and Monetary Control," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 104(427), pages 1437-48, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Katrin Ullrich, 2007. "Introducing Instruments of Central Bank Accountability in a Monetary Union," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 239-262, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Ullrich, Katrin, 2003. "Unabhängigkeit und Verantwortlichkeit der Europäischen Zentralbank," ZEW Discussion Papers 03-65, ZEW - Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung / Center for European Economic Research. [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? Each page is provided with a technical contact, in case something is not right with the supplied information. See under "publisher info".

This page was last updated on 2009-11-20.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.