“Exchange rates, monetery policy, and financial policy”

In emerging and developing countries. That’s the title of a conference, organized by Gunther Schnabl (Leipzig) and Ansgar Belke (Duisberg-Essen), I’m attending in Leipzig.
link

A lot of the discussion centered on the various implications of the trilemma for non-advanced economies. Here’s my keynote presentation.

16 thoughts on ““Exchange rates, monetery policy, and financial policy”

  1. Patrick R. Sullivan

    Got any comment on the latest French Nobel laureate’s dishing it out on his own country, Menzie?

    http://www.france24.com/en/20141013-economics-nobel-prize-tirole-downsize-state-france-economy-unemployment/

    —————-quote————
    Hours after he won the economics Nobel Prize, Tirole said he felt “sad” the French economy was experiencing difficulties despite having “a lot of assets”.

    “We haven’t succeeded in France to undertake the labour market reforms that are similar to those in Germany, Scandinavia and so on,” he said in telephone interview from the French city of Toulouse, where he teaches.

    France is plagued by record unemployment and Tirole described the French job market as “catastrophic” earlier on Monday, arguing that the excessive protection for employees had frozen the country’s job market.

    “We haven’t succeeded also in downsizing the state, which is an issue because we have a social model that I approve of – I’m very much in favour of this social model – but it won’t be sustainable if the state is too big,” he added.
    ———————-endquote————–

    Wonder why he didn’t call for raising the minimum wage.

    1. Menzie Chinn

      Patrick R. Sullivan: I am still waiting to hear you admit you were in error regarding depth of the downturn in Canada vs. US during the Great Depression. As you recall, you stated unequivocally:

      Canada … had a less severe depression than the USA.

      And this statement is wrong.

  2. Patrick R. Sullivan

    I wonder if Menzie is in hiding because the Census Bureau’s new measurement of poverty by state, shows that Wisconsinites are living in a demi-paradise (a mere 11.2% of its citizens in poverty) compared to the nation’s average of 15.9%. Menzie’s state enjoys a rate less than half of California (23.4% of its population), half of Washington DC’s (22.4%) and not much more than half of Harry Reid’s Nevada (20%).

    http://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2014/demo/p60-251.pdf

    1. Menzie Chinn

      Patrick R. Sullivan: I am still waiting to hear you admit you were in error regarding depth of the downturn in Canada vs. US during the Great Depression. As you recall, you stated unequivocally:

      Canada … had a less severe depression than the USA.

      And this statement is wrong.

    2. Menzie Chinn

      Patrick R. Sullivan: I have repeatedly inquired of you whether you understand what a “fixed effect” is, but to no avail. Apparently you refuse to learn. Let me just note that over the 1977-2011 period, the poverty rate in Wisconsin has average 3.2 percentage points lower than the average of the poverty rates for the 50 states plus Washington, D.C.

      Come back when you’ve done a little more analysis than merely recounting the current poverty rate. Maybe you can do a diffs-in-diffs analysis.

      1. Patrick R. Sullivan

        So then, why all the wailing and gnashing of teeth over pooooooor Wisconsin all these months, Menzie?

        1. Menzie Chinn Post author

          Patrick R. Sullivan: I see you have never tasted the milk of human kindness. Not surprising.

          “If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.”

  3. Secondlook

    Sullivan,

    Interesting paper that explores just how significant is the effect of various cash, non-cash transfers, taxes, etc. on keeping people out poverty. Of course it using an average of data from 2011-2014, which makes the numbers, ah, dated. And, just by excluding Social Security payments (including SSDI payments), along with Medicare benefits by themselves, that a whole lot of households would take a major hit to their income.
    A simple mental example: Average benefits received by a couple, both retired workers is $24,576. Now the average income for that couple, according to the SSA, is $43,620 annually; the difference coming from part time work, private retirement plans, savings, and so on. Take away SS, and that couple now is officially in poverty.

    So, in abstract, as I said an interesting study on the benefits of various financial support programs, but in real life context, as things are now, a bit of truthiness, nothing more.

    Cheerio…

    1. Patrick R. Sullivan

      Or,perhaps an interesting study of incentives facing low income people. With a possible marginal income tax rate over 100%.

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