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Inflation: costs and benefits





  • A Non-Paradoxical Interpretation of the Gibson Paradox

    Staff Working Paper 1998-22 Serge Coulombe
    In this study, we show how, to yield the real cost of borrowing, the price level can be combined with the nominal interest rate in a monetary regime where the level of prices is trend stationary. We show that the price level then conveys intertemporal information in a way similar to nominal interest rates. We […]
    Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Inflation and prices, Inflation targets, Inflation: costs and benefits, Interest rates
  • December 14, 1998

    Downward wage rigidity

    Bank of Canada Review - Winter 1998-1999 Allan Crawford, Seamus Hogan
    There has recently been considerable discussion about the ability of inflation to facilitate the adjustment of prices and wages and thus enhance economic performance. The discussion centres on whether wages are downwardly rigid. Wages are said to be downwardly rigid if it is difficult for the wages of some workers to fall despite underlying supply and demand pressures for decreases. Some authors have suggested that if downward nominal wage rigidity is prevalent it would be desirable to select a positive rate of inflation as the target for monetary policy. In this article, the authors evaluate the wage-rigidity hypothesis. They first examine the empirical evidence to assess whether the degree of downward rigidity is significant in Canada. They then analyze some key assumptions of the wage-rigidity hypothesis and its implications for employment. They also look at the empirical evidence on whether the combination of downward wage rigidity and low inflation has reduced employment.
    Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Inflation: costs and benefits
  • November 14, 1998

    Lower inflation: Benefits and costs

    Bank of Canada Review - Autumn 1998 Donald Coletti, Brian O'Reilly
    The federal government and the Bank of Canada have been committed for some time to achieving and maintaining price stability as a way to foster a rising standard of living for all Canadians. To support this objective, the inflation-control target range of 1 to 3 per cent was recently extended through to the end of 2001. By then, the government and the Bank plan to announce a long-run target for monetary policy. In this article, the authors provide an overview of the most recent empirical evidence on the benefits of lower inflation. They draw on an extensive earlier survey and on work presented at two recent conferences on price stability hosted by the Bank of Canada. They find that, when inflation and tax interactions are taken into account, there are large benefits to lowering inflation. When these benefits are compared with the transitional costs associated with lowering inflation, significant positive benefits remain. However, the authors note that the extension of the inflation-control targets to the end of 2001 allows further research to ensure an operational definition of price stability that will help Canadians achieve a high standard of living.
    Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Inflation: costs and benefits

  • On the Believable Benefits of Low Inflation

    Staff Working Paper 1998-15 Christopher Ragan
    This paper reviews the existing theoretical and empirical literature addressing the benefits of low inflation. The ultimate goal is to arrive at a set of benefits in which a monetary authority can have genuine confidence. I argue that the current state of economic research—both empirical and theoretical—provides little basis for believing in significant observable benefits […]
    Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Inflation: costs and benefits JEL Code(s): E, E3, E31

  • Non-Linearities in the Output-Inflation Relationship: Some Empirical Results for Canada

    Staff Working Paper 1998-14 Chantal Dupasquier, Nicholas Ricketts
    This paper analyzes the short-run dynamic process of inflation in Canada and examines whether a systematic variation in the relationship between inflation and output can be detected over time. In the theoretical literature, different models of price-setting behaviour predict that the slope of the Phillips curve will be a function of macroeconomic conditions, implying a […]
    Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Inflation: costs and benefits, Productivity
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