In a model with costly financial intermediation and financial disturbances, credit subsidies are desirable, irrespective of how they are financed. They are especially useful when the zero lower bound constraint is reached. They are superior to other credit policies such as direct lending.

The euro area has been experiencing a prolonged period of weak economic activity and very low inflation. This paper reviews models of business cycle stabilization with an eye to formulating lessons for policy in the euro area. According to standard models, after a large recessionary shock...

Can increased uncertainty about the future cause a contraction in output and its components? This paper examines the role of uncertainty shocks in a one-sector, representative-agent,dynamic, stochastic general-equilibrium model. When prices are flexible, uncertainty shocks are not capable of...

Recent developments in many industrialized countries have triggered a debate on whether monetary policy is effective when the nominal interest rate is close to zero. When the nominal interest rate hits its lower bound, the monetary authority is no longer in a position to pursue a policy of...

Recent developments in Canada, the United Kingdom, the euro area, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States have triggered a debate on whether monetary policy is effective when the nominal interest rate is close to zero. In this context, the monetary authority is no longer in a position...

Optimal commitment policy under the zero lower bound entails a high degree of complexity and time-inconsistency in a stochastic economy. This paper proposes a time-invariant duration policy that mitigates those problems and facilitates policy implementation and communication while retaining...