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Formal targets, central bank independence and inflation dynamics in the UK: A Markov-Switching approach

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  • Miles, William
  • Vijverberg, Chu-Ping

Abstract

We examine inflation and uncertainty in the UK with a version of the Markov Switching model, which allows for changes in the variance as well as in the mean and persistence of a series. We find that the UK’s attempts at exchange rate pegs in the form of shadowing the deutschmark and entering the ERM were ineffective, and in the latter case counterproductive in lowering inflation uncertainty. The 1981 budget, however, greatly lowered uncertainty, and the adoption of a formal inflation target also had a palpable, negative impact on inflation uncertainty. As a suggestive exercise, we examine inflation uncertainty in the US, and find that, over 2005–2008, in the absence of an inflation target, uncertainty rose in the US, while uncertainty remained low in the UK over this period of rising commodity prices and financial turmoil.

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  • Miles, William & Vijverberg, Chu-Ping, 2011. "Formal targets, central bank independence and inflation dynamics in the UK: A Markov-Switching approach," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 644-655.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jmacro:v:33:y:2011:i:4:p:644-655
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jmacro.2011.04.003
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    3. Guglielmo Maria Caporale & Luis Alberiko Gil‐Alana & Tommaso Trani, 2022. "On the persistence of UK inflation: A long‐range dependence approach," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(1), pages 439-454, January.
    4. Oscar V. De la Torre-Torres & Dora Aguilasocho-Montoya & José Álvarez-García, 2019. "Active portfolio management in the Andean countries'' stock markets with Markov-Switching GARCH models," Remef - Revista Mexicana de Economía y Finanzas Nueva Época REMEF (The Mexican Journal of Economics and Finance), Instituto Mexicano de Ejecutivos de Finanzas, IMEF, vol. 14(PNEA), pages 601-616, Agosto 20.
    5. Oscar V. De la Torre-Torres & Evaristo Galeana-Figueroa & José Álvarez-García, 2020. "Markov-Switching Stochastic Processes in an Active Trading Algorithm in the Main Latin-American Stock Markets," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-23, June.
    6. Oscar V. De la Torre-Torres & Dora Aguilasocho-Montoya & María de la Cruz del Río-Rama, 2020. "A Two-Regime Markov-Switching GARCH Active Trading Algorithm for Coffee, Cocoa, and Sugar Futures," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 8(6), pages 1-19, June.
    7. William Miles, 2015. "Bubbles, Busts and Breaks in UK Housing," International Real Estate Review, Global Social Science Institute, vol. 18(4), pages 455-471.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Central banks and their policies; Inflation; Monetary policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E31 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Price Level; Inflation; Deflation
    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy
    • E58 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Central Banks and Their Policies

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