This paper evaluates potential explanations for the sometimes poor forecasting performance of the Phillips curve. One explanation is that out-of-sample metrics are noisy or, equivalently, have relatively low power. Another potential explanation is instability in the coefficients of the model. To...

We develop methods for testing whether, in a finite sample, forecasts from nested models are equally accurate. Most prior work has focused on a null of equal accuracy in population — basically, whether the additional coefficients of the larger model are zero. Our asymptotic approximation...

Central banks and other forecasters are increasingly interested in various aspects of density forecasts. However, recent sharp changes in macroeconomic volatility, including the Great Moderation and the more recent sharp rise in volatility associated with increased variation in energy prices and...

With the concept of trend inflation now being widely understood to be important to the accuracy of longer-term inflation forecasts, this paper assesses alternative models of trend inflation. Reflecting the models which are common in reduced-form inflation modeling and forecasting, we specify a...

This paper examines the responses of prices at different stages of production to monetary policy shocks. In aggregate price analysis, the VAR of Christiano et al. (1996a, 1996b) is used to identify the policy shock as the federal funds rate innovation and trace out the responses of prices. In...

This paper uses disaggregate inflation data spanning all of consumption to examine: (i) the persistence of disaggregate inflation relative to aggregate inflation; (ii) the distribution of persistence across consumption sectors; and (iii) whether persistence has changed. Assuming mean inflation...