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Writing Clearly: ECB’s Monetary Policy Communication

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Author Info
Martin Cihák
Katerina Smídková
Ales Bulir

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Abstract

The paper presents a methodology for measuring the clarity of central bank communication, illustrating it with the case of the European Central Bank (ECB) in 1999-2007. The analysis identifies the ECB's written communication as clear about 95 percent of instances, which is comparable to, or even better than, other central banks for which a similar analysis is available. We also find that the additional information contained in the ECB's Monthly Bulletins helps to improve communication clarity compared to ECB's press releases. In particular, the Bulletins contain useful clarifying information on individual inflation factors and the overall forecast risk; in contrast, the bulletin's communication on monetary shocks has a negative, albeit small, impact on clarity.

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Paper provided by International Monetary Fund in its series IMF Working Papers with number 08/252.

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Length: 34 pages
Date of creation: 28 Oct 2008
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:08/252

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Related research
Keywords: European Central Bank ; Monetary policy ; Central bank policy ; External shocks ;

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    Other versions:
  5. Berger, Helge & Ehrmann, Michael & Fratzscher, Marcel, 2006. "Forecasting ECB monetary policy: accuracy is (still) a matter of geography," Discussion Papers 2006/11, Free University Berlin, School of Business & Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Spencer Dale & Athanasios Orphanides & Par Osterholm, 2008. "Imperfect Central Bank Communication: Information versus Distraction," Working Papers 2008-1, Central Bank of Cyprus, revised Mar 2008. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Podpiera, Jiri­, 2008. "Monetary policy inertia reconsidered: Evidence from endogenous interest rate trajectory," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 100(2), pages 238-240, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Svensson, Lars E. O., 1997. "Inflation forecast targeting: Implementing and monitoring inflation targets," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 41(6), pages 1111-1146, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Andrew G. Haldane & Nicoletta Batini, 1998. "Forward-Looking Rules for Monetary Policy," NBER Working Papers 6543, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  10. Alina Carare & Robert Tchaidze, 2005. "The Use and Abuse of Taylor Rules: How Precisely Can We Estimate Them?," IMF Working Papers 05/148, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
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  11. S Derlind, Paul & S Derstr M, Ulf & Vredin, Anders, 2005. "Dynamic Taylor Rules And The Predictability Of Interest Rates," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 9(03), pages 412-428, June. [Downloadable!]
  12. Christian Conrad & Michael J. Lamla, 2007. "The High-Frequency Response of the EUR-US Dollar Exchange Rate to ECB Monetary Policy Announcements," KOF Working papers 07-174, KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich. [Downloadable!]
  13. David-Jan Jansen & Jakob de Haan, 2007. "The Importance of Being Vigilant: Has ECB Communication Influenced Euro Area Inflation Expectations?," DNB Working Papers 148, Netherlands Central Bank, Research Department. [Downloadable!]
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  14. Katerina Smídková & Viktor Kotlán & David Navrátil & Ales Bulir, 2008. "Inflation Targeting and Communication: It Pays Off to Read Inflation Reports," IMF Working Papers 08/234, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
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