TY  - JOUR
AU  - Mankiw,N. Gregory
TI  - U.S. Monetary Policy During the 1990s
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 8471
PY  - 2001
Y2  - September 2001
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w8471
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w8471.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
N. Gregory Mankiw
Department of Economics
Littauer 223
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA  02138
Tel: 617/495-4301
Fax: 617/495-7730
E-Mail: ngmankiw@fas.harvard.edu
AB  - This paper discusses the conduct and performance of U.S. monetary policy during the 1990s, comparing it to policy during the previous several decades. It reaches four broad conclusions. First, the macroeconomic performance of the 1990s was exceptional, especially if judged by the volatility of growth, unemployment, and inflation. Second, much of the good performance was due to good luck arising from the supply-side of the economy: Food and energy prices were well behaved, and productivity growth experienced an unexpected acceleration. Third, monetary policymakers deserve some of the credit by making interest rates more responsive to inflation than was the case in previous periods. Fourth, although the 1990s can be viewed as an example of successful discretionary policy, Fed policymakers may have been engaged in 'covert inflation targeting' at a rate of about 3 percent. The avoidance of an explicit policy rule, however, means that future policymakers inherit only a limited legacy.
ER  -