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What Measure of Inflation Should a Developing Country Central Bank Target?

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  • Anand, Rahul

    (International Monetary Fund)

  • Prasad, Eswar

    (Cornell University)

  • Zhang, Boyang

    (Cornell University)

Abstract

In closed or open economy models with complete markets, targeting core inflation enables monetary policy to maximize welfare by replicating the flexible price equilibrium. We analyze this result in the context of developing economies, where a large proportion of households are credit constrained and the share of food expenditures in total consumption expenditures is high. We develop an open economy model with incomplete financial markets to show that headline inflation targeting improves welfare outcomes. We also compute the optimal price index, which includes a positive weight on food prices but, unlike headline inflation, assigns zero weight to import prices.

Suggested Citation

  • Anand, Rahul & Prasad, Eswar & Zhang, Boyang, 2015. "What Measure of Inflation Should a Developing Country Central Bank Target?," IZA Discussion Papers 9219, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp9219
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    headline inflation; core inflation; monetary policy framework; inflation targeting; financial frictions;
    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
    • E61 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Policy Objectives; Policy Designs and Consistency; Policy Coordination

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