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Output Gap in Colombia: An Eclectic Approach

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  • Adolfo L.Cobo

Abstract

In an economy conducted under an Inflation Targeting regime, the output gap becomes one of the most important variables to guide monetary policy. Defined as the difference between observed and potential or non-inflationary output, the gap is a measure of the state of aggregate demand and, therefore, of inflationary pressures on the economy. However, this relationship might be obscured by supply and price shocks, perhaps more relevant in the case of emerging economies. This paper estimates and evaluates the output gap for Colombia between 1970 and 2003 using a wide array of methods that go from univariate approaches such as Hodrick-Prescott (HP) and Band Pass filters to multivariate or structural methods obtained by the Kalman filter technique or the production function approach. We also include some mixed procedures like the multivariate filter and the prior-consistent filter. The last one takes into account some supply and price shocks observed in the Colombian economy since 1990. An evaluation of the different estimators is made by a simulated out-of sample forecasting exercise. The results show that multivariate structural filters have a better performance than pure mechanical approaches, but the difference is marginal with respect to a prior-consistent HP filter that takes into account supply shocks. In general, the forecasting performance of all the output gaps estimators improves when we re-define core inflation to exclude some price shocks.

Suggested Citation

  • Adolfo L.Cobo, 2005. "Output Gap in Colombia: An Eclectic Approach," Borradores de Economia 327, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
  • Handle: RePEc:bdr:borrec:327
    DOI: 10.32468/be.327
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jorge Iván RODRIGUEZ MUNOZ & Juan Ricardo PERILLA JIMENEZ & José Daniel REYES PEÑA, 2004. "Cálculo del PIB Potencial en Colombia.:1970-2003," Archivos de Economía 2078, Departamento Nacional de Planeación.
    2. Mr. Jaromir Benes & Mr. Papa M N'Diaye, 2004. "A Multivariate Filter for Measuring Potential Output and the NAIRU Application to the Czech Republic," IMF Working Papers 2004/045, International Monetary Fund.
    3. Gerlach, Stefan & Yiu, Matthew S., 2004. "Estimating output gaps in Asia: A cross-country study," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 115-136, March.
    4. Robert J. Gordon, 1997. "The Time-Varying NAIRU and Its Implications for Economic Policy," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 11(1), pages 11-32, Winter.
    5. Juan Manuel Julio, 2001. "How Uncertain are NAIRU Estimates in Colombia," Borradores de Economia 184, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    6. Odile Chagny & Jörg Döpke, 2001. "Measures of the Output Gap in the Euro-Zone: An Empirical Assessment of Selected Methods," Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung / Quarterly Journal of Economic Research, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research, vol. 70(3), pages 310-332.
    7. Paul Conway & Ben Hunt, 1997. "Estimating potential output: a semi-structural approach," Reserve Bank of New Zealand Discussion Paper Series G97/9, Reserve Bank of New Zealand.
    8. Gordon de Brouwer, 1998. "Estimating Output Gaps," RBA Research Discussion Papers rdp9809, Reserve Bank of Australia.
    9. Mr. Andreas Billmeier, 2004. "Ghostbusting: Which Output Gap Measure Really Matters?," IMF Working Papers 2004/146, International Monetary Fund.
    10. Andrew Rennison, 2003. "Comparing Alternative Output-Gap Estimators: A Monte Carlo Approach," Staff Working Papers 03-8, Bank of Canada.
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    Cited by:

    1. J. Sebastián Amador-Torres, 2018. "New Keynesian NAIRU and the Okun Law: An application for Colombia," Borradores de Economia 1034, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    2. Roberto Steiner & Adolfo Barajas & César Pabón & Leonardo Villar, 2014. "Singular Focus or Multiple Objectives? What the Data Tell Us about Inflation Targeting in Latin America," Economía Journal, The Latin American and Caribbean Economic Association - LACEA, vol. 0(Fall 2014), pages 177-213, June.
    3. Amador-Torres, Juan S. & Gomez-Gonzalez, Jose Eduardo & Ojeda-Joya, Jair N. & Jaulin-Mendez, Oscar F. & Tenjo-Galarza, Fernando, 2016. "Mind the gap: Computing finance-neutral output gaps in Latin-American economies," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 444-452.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Colombia; output gap; inflation forecasting; supply shocks.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E31 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Price Level; Inflation; Deflation
    • E37 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy

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