nep-fdg New Economics Papers
on Financial Development and Growth
Issue of 2016‒07‒02
two papers chosen by
Iulia Igescu
Ministry of Presidential Affairs

  1. Time-varying volatility, financial intermediation and monetary policy By Sandra Eickmeier; Norbert Metiu; Esteban Prieto
  2. Do fiscal multipliers depend on fiscal positions ? By Huidrom,Raju; Kose,Ayhan; Lim,Jamus Jerome; Ohnsorge,Franziska Lieselotte

  1. By: Sandra Eickmeier; Norbert Metiu; Esteban Prieto
    Abstract: We document that expansionary monetary policy shocks are less effective at stimulating output and investment in periods of high volatility compared to periods of low volatility, using a regime-switching vector autoregression. Exogenous policy changes are identified by adapting an external instruments approach to the non-linear model. The lower effectiveness of monetary policy can be linked to weaker responses of credit costs, suggesting a financial accelerator mechanism that is weaker in high volatility periods. To rationalize our robust empirical results, we use a macroeconomic model in which financial intermediaries endogenously choose their capital structure. In the model, the leverage choice of banks depends on the volatility of aggregate shocks. In low volatility periods, financial intermediaries lever up, which makes their balance sheets more sensitive to aggregate shocks and the financial accelerator more effective. On the contrary, in high volatility periods banks decrease leverage, which renders the financial accelerator less effective; this in turn decreases the ability of monetary policy to improve funding conditions and credit supply, and thereby to stimulate the economy. Hence, we provide a novel explanation for the non-linear effects of monetary stimuli observed in the data, linking the effectiveness of monetary policy to the procyclicality of leverage.
    Keywords: Monetary policy, credit spread, non-linearity, intermediary leverage, financial accelerator
    JEL: C32 E44 E52
    Date: 2016–05
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:een:camaaa:2016-32&r=fdg
  2. By: Huidrom,Raju; Kose,Ayhan; Lim,Jamus Jerome; Ohnsorge,Franziska Lieselotte
    Abstract: This paper analyzes the relationship between fiscal multipliers and fiscal positions of governments using an Interactive Panel Vector Auto Regression model and a large data-set of advanced and developing economies. The methodology permits tracing the endogenous relationship between fiscal multipliers and fiscal positions while maintaining enough degrees of freedom to draw sharp inferences. The paper reports three major results. First, the fiscal multipliers depend on fiscal positions: the multipliers tend to be larger when fiscal positions are strong (i.e. when government debt and deficits are low) than weak. For instance, the long-run multiplier can be as large as unity when the fiscal position is strong, while it can be negative when the fiscal position is weak. Second, these effects are separate and distinct from the impact of the business cycle on the fiscal multiplier. Third, the state-dependent effects of the fiscal position on multipliers is attributable to two factors: an interest rate channel through which higher borrowing costs, due to investors'increased perception of credit risks when stimulus is implemented from a weak initial fiscal position, crowd out private investment; and a Ricardian channel through which households reduce consumption in anticipation of future fiscal adjustments.
    Keywords: Currencies and Exchange Rates,Debt Markets,Economic Theory&Research,Economic Stabilization,Emerging Markets
    Date: 2016–06–22
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:7734&r=fdg

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