Mirco Balatti
International & European Relations
- Division
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External Developments
- Current Position
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Economist
- Fields of interest
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Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics,International Economics,Financial Economics
- 21 September 2021
- OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES - No. 263Details
- Abstract
- This paper assesses how globalisation has shaped the economic environment in which the ECB operates and discusses whether this warrants adjustments to the monetary policy strategy. The paper first looks at how trade and financial integration have evolved since the last strategy review in 2003. It then examines the effects of these developments on global productivity growth, the natural interest rate (r*), inflation trends and monetary transmission. While trade globalisation initially boosted productivity growth, this effect may be waning as trade integration slows and market contestability promotes a winner-takes-all environment. The impact of globalisation on r* has been ambiguous: downward pressures, fuelled by global demand for safe assets and an increase in the propensity to save against a background of rising inequality, are counteracted by upward pressures, from the boost to global productivity associated with greater trade integration. Headline inflation rates have become more synchronised globally, largely because commodity prices are increasingly determined by global factors. Meanwhile, core inflation rates show a lower degree of commonality. Globalisation has made a rather modest contribution to the synchronised fall in trend inflation across countries and contributed only moderately to the reduction in the responsiveness of inflation to changes in activity. Regarding monetary transmission, globalisation has made the role of the exchange rate more complex by introducing new mechanisms through which it affects financial conditions, real activity and price dynamics. Against the background of this discussion, the paper then examines the implications for the ECB’s monetary policy strategy. In doing so, it asks two questions. How is the ECB’s economic and monetary analysis affected by globalisation? And how does globalisation influence the choice of the ECB’s monetary policy objective and instruments? ...
- JEL Code
- E58 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit→Central Banks and Their Policies
F42 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance→International Policy Coordination and Transmission
F44 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance→International Business Cycles
F62 : International Economics→Economic Impacts of Globalization→Macroeconomic Impacts
F65 : International Economics→Economic Impacts of Globalization→Finance
- 22 June 2021
- ECONOMIC BULLETIN - ARTICLEEconomic Bulletin Issue 4, 2021Details
- Abstract
- The globalisation of inflation hypothesis argues that the factors influencing inflation dynamics are becoming increasingly global. The interest in the global determinants of inflation stems from the observed co-movement of inflation rates across advanced economies (AEs) amid the growing internationalisation of goods, services and financial markets. This article reviews recent inflation developments across AEs and the channels through which globalisation can feed into the more persistent component of inflation. The article finds that three elements of globalisation appear to be linked to a lower persistent inflation: trade integration, informational globalisation and global value chain participation. However, available estimates suggest that this effect is economically small, and the article concludes that globalisation does not appear to be a key determinant of the synchronisation and decline in inflation rates observed across AEs. Looking ahead a reversal (or further slowdown) of globalisation trends could provide only limited tailwinds for inflation trends.
- JEL Code
- E31 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Price Level, Inflation, Deflation
E42 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Money and Interest Rates→Monetary Systems, Standards, Regimes, Government and the Monetary System, Payment Systems
E50 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit→General
F36 : International Economics→International Finance→Financial Aspects of Economic Integration
F40 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance→General
F60 : International Economics→Economic Impacts of Globalization→General
- 29 January 2021
- WORKING PAPER SERIES - No. 2519Details
- Abstract
- In this paper we examine the effects of limited liability on mortgage dynamics. While the literature has focused on default rates, renegotiation, or loan rates individually, we study them together as equilibrium outcomes of the strategic interaction between lenders and borrowers. We present a simple model of default and renegotiation where the degree of limited liability plays a key role in agents' strategies. We then use Fannie Mae loan performance data to test the predictions of the model. We focus on Metropolitan Statistical Areas that are crossed by a State border in order to exploit the discontinuity in regulation around the borders of States. As predicted by the model, we find that limited liability results in higher default rates and renegotiation rates. Regarding loan pricing, while the model predicts higher interest rates for limited liability loans, we find no such evidence in the Fannie Mae data. We further investigate this by using loan application data, which contains the interest rates on loans sold to private vs public investors. We find that private investors do price in the difference in ex-ante predictable default risk for limited liability loans.
- JEL Code
- D10 : Microeconomics→Household Behavior and Family Economics→General
E40 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Money and Interest Rates→General
G21 : Financial Economics→Financial Institutions and Services→Banks, Depository Institutions, Micro Finance Institutions, Mortgages
R20 : Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics→Household Analysis→General
R30 : Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics→Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location→General
- 12 November 2020
- ECONOMIC BULLETIN - BOXEconomic Bulletin Issue 7, 2020Details
- Abstract
- The September 2020 ECB staff macroeconomic projections used a revised weighting scheme for the euro area’s trading partners. Two key conceptual changes were implemented in the weighting scheme this year. First, data on trade in services were used in addition to data on trade in goods. Second, the number of euro area trading partners was increased from 30 to 42. As a result of these changes, the coverage of the euro area’s foreign demand by individual country data increased from 85% to 92%, with the remaining countries covered by regional aggregates.
- JEL Code
- E50 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit→General
E66 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook→General Outlook and Conditions
F01 : International Economics→General→Global Outlook
F17 : International Economics→Trade→Trade Forecasting and Simulation
- 21 September 2020
- WORKING PAPER SERIES - No. 2469Details
- Abstract
- The Banking Euro Area Stress Test (BEAST) is a large scale semi-structural model developed to assess the resilience of the euro area banking system from a macroprudential perspective. The model combines the dynamics of a high number of euro area banks with that of the euro area economies. It reflects banks’ heterogeneity by replicating the structure of their balance sheets and profit and loss accounts. In the model, banks adjust their assets, interest rates, and profit distribution in line with the economic conditions they face. Bank responses feed back to the macroeconomic environment affecting credit supply conditions. When applied to a stress test of the euro area banking system, the model reveals higher system-wide capital depletion than the analogous constant balance sheet exercise.
- JEL Code
- E37 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
E58 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit→Central Banks and Their Policies
G21 : Financial Economics→Financial Institutions and Services→Banks, Depository Institutions, Micro Finance Institutions, Mortgages
G28 : Financial Economics→Financial Institutions and Services→Government Policy and Regulation
- 21 July 2020
- WORKING PAPER SERIES - No. 2448Details
- Abstract
- Inflation volatility is clearly important for structural analysis, forecasting and policy purposes, yet it is often overlooked in the literature. This paper compares inflation volatility among advanced open economies with inflation targeting monetary policy frameworks. The results of the empirical exercise using a panel dataset suggest that, over the last two decades, the volatility of inflation was similar among countries, even when controlling for monetary policy activity and other factors. In particular, there is only a weak and statistically not significant correlation between inflation volatility and country size. Also, point-targeting central banks (in contrast with range-targeters) and commodity exporters are only weakly associated with higher inflation swings. Equivalent conclusions are reached when decomposing inflation volatility in a transitory and a permanent component. I thus argue that small and large advanced open economies are exposed to global fluctuations to a comparable extent. A range of robustness tests confirm that the results are not sensitive to methodological choices and the relationship was not altered by the Great Recession or the low interest rate environment.
- JEL Code
- E31 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Price Level, Inflation, Deflation
E42 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Money and Interest Rates→Monetary Systems, Standards, Regimes, Government and the Monetary System, Payment Systems
E50 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit→General
F10 : International Economics→Trade→General
F41 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance→Open Economy Macroeconomics
- 2 July 2019
- OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES - No. 226Details
- Abstract
- This paper presents an approach to a macroprudential stress test for the euro area banking system, comprising the 91 largest euro area credit institutions across 19 countries. The approach involves modelling banks’ reactions to changing economic conditions. It also examines the effects of adverse scenarios on economies and the financial system as a whole by acknowledging a broad set of interactions and interdependencies between banks, other market participants, and the real economy. Our results highlight the importance of the starting level of bank capital, bank asset quality, and banks’ adjustments for the propagation of shocks to the financial sector and real economy.
- JEL Code
- E37 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
E58 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit→Central Banks and Their Policies
G21 : Financial Economics→Financial Institutions and Services→Banks, Depository Institutions, Micro Finance Institutions, Mortgages
G28 : Financial Economics→Financial Institutions and Services→Government Policy and Regulation