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Targeting Constant Money Growth at the Zero Lower Bound

Author

Listed:
  • Michael T. Belongia

    (University of Mississippi)

  • Peter N. Ireland

    (Boston College)

Abstract

Unconventional policy actions, including quantitative easing and forward guidance, taken during and since the financial crisis and Great Recession of 2007–09, allowed the Federal Reserve to influence long-term interest rates even after the federal funds rate hit its zero lower bound. Alternatively, similar policy actions could have been directed at stabilizing the growth rate of a monetary aggregate in the face of severe disruptions to the financial sector and the economy at large. A structural vector autoregression suggests it would have been feasible for the Fed to target the growth rate of a Divisia monetary aggregate once the federal funds rate had reached its zero lower bound and that doing so would have supported a stronger, more rapid recovery.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael T. Belongia & Peter N. Ireland, 2018. "Targeting Constant Money Growth at the Zero Lower Bound," International Journal of Central Banking, International Journal of Central Banking, vol. 14(2), pages 159-204, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:ijc:ijcjou:y:2018:q:1:a:4
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    Cited by:

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    2. Barnett, William A. & Bella, Giovanni & Ghosh, Taniya & Mattana, Paolo & Venturi, Beatrice, 2022. "Shilnikov chaos, low interest rates, and New Keynesian macroeconomics," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    3. Michael T. Belongia & Peter N. Ireland, 2021. "A Classical View of the Business Cycle," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 53(2-3), pages 333-366, March.
    4. Ida, Daisuke, 2023. "The effect of real money balances on international monetary policy transmission," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    5. El-Shagi, Makram & Tochkov, Kiril, 2022. "Divisia monetary aggregates for Russia: Money demand, GDP nowcasting and the price puzzle," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 46(4).
    6. Belongia, Michael T. & Ireland, Peter N., 2019. "The demand for Divisia Money: Theory and evidence," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 1-1.
    7. Barnett William A. & Bella Giovanni & Ghosh Taniya & Mattana Paolo & Venturi Beatrice, 2023. "Controlling chaos in New Keynesian macroeconomics," Studies in Nonlinear Dynamics & Econometrics, De Gruyter, vol. 27(2), pages 219-236, April.
    8. Belongia, Michael T. & Ireland, Peter N., 2022. "A reconsideration of money growth rules," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    9. Dery, Cosmas & Serletis, Apostolos, 2021. "Interest Rates, Money, And Economic Activity," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 25(7), pages 1842-1891, October.
    10. Wang, Ling, 2022. "The dynamics of money supply determination under asset purchase programs: A market-based versus a bank-based financial system," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    11. Michael T. Belongia & Peter N. Ireland, 2018. "Monetary Policy Lessons from the Greenbook," Boston College Working Papers in Economics 955, Boston College Department of Economics.
    12. Ivan Jaccard, 2024. "Monetary Asymmetries Without (And With) Price Stickiness," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 65(2), pages 1003-1047, May.
    13. John W. Keating & Logan J. Kelly & A. Lee Smith & Victor J. Valcarcel, 2019. "A Model of Monetary Policy Shocks for Financial Crises and Normal Conditions," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 51(1), pages 227-259, February.
    14. Roberto M. Billi & Ulf Söderström & Carl E. Walsh, 2023. "The Role of Money in Monetary Policy at the Lower Bound," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 55(4), pages 681-716, June.
    15. Maciej Ryczkowski, 2021. "Money and inflation in inflation-targeting regimes – new evidence from time–frequency analysis," Journal of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(1), pages 17-44, January.
    16. Belongia, Michael T. & Ireland, Peter N., 2017. "Circumventing the zero lower bound with monetary policy rules based on money," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 54(PA), pages 42-58.
    17. Chen, Zhengyang & Valcarcel, Victor J., 2021. "Monetary transmission in money markets: The not-so-elusive missing piece of the puzzle," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    18. Serletis, Apostolos & Xu, Libo, 2020. "Functional monetary aggregates, monetary policy, and business cycles," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    19. Ida, Daisuke, 2024. "The neo-Fisherian effect in a new Keynesian model with real money balances," MPRA Paper 120575, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Peter N. Ireland, 2019. "Monetary Policy Implementation: Making Better and More Consistent Use of the Federal Reserve's Balance Sheet," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 31(4), pages 68-76, December.
    21. Cosmas Dery & Apostolos Serletis, 2023. "Macroeconomic Fluctuations in the United States: The Role of Monetary and Fiscal Policy Shocks," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 34(5), pages 961-977, November.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • E37 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
    • E41 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Demand for Money
    • E43 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Interest Rates: Determination, Term Structure, and Effects
    • E47 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
    • E51 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Money Supply; Credit; Money Multipliers
    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy
    • E65 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Studies of Particular Policy Episodes

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