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Should Inequality Factor into Central Banks' Decisions?

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  • Mr. Niels-Jakob H Hansen
  • Alessandro Lin
  • Rui Mano

Abstract

Inequality is increasingly a concern. Fiscal and structural policies are well-understood mitigators. However, less is known about the potential role of monetary policy. This paper investigates how inequality matters for monetary policy within a tractable Two-Agent New Keynesian model that captures important dimensions of inequality. We find some support for making inequality an explicit target for monetary policy, particularly if central banks follow standard Taylor rules.

Suggested Citation

  • Mr. Niels-Jakob H Hansen & Alessandro Lin & Rui Mano, 2020. "Should Inequality Factor into Central Banks' Decisions?," IMF Working Papers 2020/196, International Monetary Fund.
    • Handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2020/196
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    Cited by:

    1. Aliocha Accardo & Sylvérie Herbert & Cristina Jude & Adrian Penalver, 2023. "Measuring and Comparing Consumption Inequality between France and the United States," Working papers 904, Banque de France.
    2. Ruben Tarne & Dirk Bezemer & Thomas Theobald, 2021. "The Effect of borrower-specific Loan-to-Value policies on household debt, wealth inequality and consumption volatility," IMK Working Paper 212-2021, IMK at the Hans Boeckler Foundation, Macroeconomic Policy Institute.
    3. Lin, Alessandro & Peruffo, Marcel, 2024. "Aggregate uncertainty, HANK, and the ZLB," Working Paper Series 2911, European Central Bank.
    4. Tarne, Ruben & Bezemer, Dirk & Theobald, Thomas, 2022. "The effect of borrower-specific loan-to-value policies on household debt, wealth inequality and consumption volatility: An agent-based analysis," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).

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