Cover IMF Working Papers
Writing Clearly: ECB’s Monetary Policy Communication
Author: Mr. Martin Cihakhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-3571-9707, Ms. Katerina Smídková, and Mr. Ales Bulir
Series:
IMF Working Papers
Volume/Issue:
Volume 2008: Issue 252
Language:
English
Publication Date:
01 Oct 2008
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5089/9781451871104.001
ISBN:
9781451871104
ISSN:
1018-5941
Pages:
34
Keywords:
WP; central bank; monetary policy
Legal-disclaimer:
IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.
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The paper presents a methodology for measuring the clarity of central bank communication, illustrating it with the case of the European Central Bank (ECB) in 1999-2007. The analysis identifies the ECB's written communication as clear about 95 percent of instances, which is comparable to, or even better than, other central banks for which a similar analysis is available. We also find that the additional information contained in the ECB's Monthly Bulletins helps to improve communication clarity compared to ECB's press releases. In particular, the Bulletins contain useful clarifying information on individual inflation factors and the overall forecast risk; in contrast, the bulletin's communication on monetary shocks has a negative, albeit small, impact on clarity.
Cover IMF Working Papers
IMF Working Papers
ISSN:
1018-5941
Publisher:
International Monetary Fund