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Customer Anger at Price Increases, Time Variation in the Frequency of Price Changes and Monetary Policy

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Author Info
Julio J. Rotemberg

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Abstract

While much evidence suggests tha price rigidity is due to a concern with the reaction of customers, price increases do not seem to be typically associated with drastic reduction in purchases. To explain this apparent inconsistency, this paper develops a model where consumers care about the fairness of prices and react negatively only when they become convinced that prices are unfair. This leads to price rigidity, though the implications of the model are not identical to those of existing models of costly price adjustment. In particular, the frequency of price adjustment ought to depend on economy-wide variables observed by consumers. As I show, this has implications for the effects of monetary policy. It can, in particular, explain why inflation does not fall immediately after a monetary tightening.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 9320.

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Date of creation: Nov 2002
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:9320

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E3 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles
E4 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates

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  1. Levy, Daniel & Chen, Haipeng (Allan) & Ray, Sourav & Bergen, Mark, 2006. "Asymmetric Price Adjustment in the Small," MPRA Paper 1097, University Library of Munich, Germany. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Jean-Robert Tyran & Elke Renner, 2003. "Price Rigidity in Customer Markets," University of St. Gallen Department of Economics working paper series 2003 2003-16, Department of Economics, University of St. Gallen. [Downloadable!]
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  3. Sergio A. Lago Alves & Mirta N. S. Bugarin, 2006. "The Role of Consumer's Risk Aversion on Price Rigidity," Working Papers Series 121, Central Bank of Brazil, Research Department. [Downloadable!]
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  4. Daniel de Munnik & Kuan Xu, 2007. "Micro Foundations of Price-Setting Behaviour: Evidence from Canadian Firms," Working Papers 07-31, Bank of Canada. [Downloadable!]
  5. Claudia Kwapil & Josef Baumgartner & Johann Scharler, 2005. "The Price-Setting Behavior of Austrian Firms: Some Survey Evidence," Working Papers 100, Oesterreichische Nationalbank (Austrian Central Bank). [Downloadable!]
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  6. Hashmat Khan & Richhild Moessner, . "Competitiveness, inflation, and monetary policy," Bank of England working papers 246, Bank of England. [Downloadable!]
  7. Peter Tinsley & Sharon Kozicki, 2003. "Alternative Sources of the Lag Dynamics of Inflation," Computing in Economics and Finance 2003 92, Society for Computational Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  8. Ariel Burstein & Martin Eichenbaum & Sergio Rebelo, 2004. "Large Devaluations and the Real Exchange Rate," NBER Working Papers 10986, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Peter J. Klenow & Oleksiy Kryvtsov, 2005. "State-Dependent or Time-Dependent Pricing: Does it Matter for Recent U.S. Inflation?," NBER Working Papers 11043, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  10. Jerzy (Jurek) D. Konieczny & Fabio Rumler, 2006. "Regular adjustment - theory and practice," Working Paper Series 669, European Central Bank. [Downloadable!]
  11. Steffen Huck & Jean-Robert Tyran, 2004. "Reciprocity, Social Ties, and Competition in Markets for Experience Goods," Discussion Papers 04-12, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  12. Daniel Levy & Haipeng Allan Chen & Sourav Ray & Mark Bergen, 2004. "Asymmetric Price Adjustment "in the Small:" An Implication of Rational Inattention," Macroeconomics 0407012, EconWPA, revised 11 May 2005. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  13. Mark Zbaracki & Mark Ritson & Daniel Levy & Shantanu Dutta & Mark Bergen, 2004. "Managerial and Customer Costs of Price Adjustment: Direct Evidence from Industrial Markets," Macroeconomics 0402020, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  14. Sujit Kapadia, 2005. "Inflation-Target Expectations and Optimal Monetary Policy," Money Macro and Finance (MMF) Research Group Conference 2005 81, Money Macro and Finance Research Group. [Downloadable!]
  15. Emi Nakamura & Jon Steinsson, 2005. "Price Setting in a Forward-Looking Customer Market," Macroeconomics 0509010, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
  16. Lorenz Goette & Rudolf Minsch & Jean-Robert Tyran, 2005. "Micro Evidence on the Adjustment of Sticky-Price Goods: It's How Often, not How Much," Discussion Papers 05-20, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  17. Sujit Kapadia, 2005. "Inflation-Target Expectations and Optimal Monetary Policy," Economics Series Working Papers 227, University of Oxford, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
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