We first sketch how central banks have used unconventional monetary policy measures by using three indicators based on the composition of the balance sheet of eleven central banks. Our analysis suggests that although the ECB's balance sheet has increased dramatically during the crisis, the...

We analyse the effects of announcements of changes in the Eurosystem's balance sheet size, duration and composition on inflation expectations, the exchange rate and the 10-year euro area government bond yield, using local projections. We explicitly take into account interaction effects between...

In this paper we assume that the natural rate of interest is fundamentally uncertain. Based on a small scale macroeconomic model, info-gap theory is used to rank different monetary policy strategies in terms of their robustness against this uncertainty. Applied to the euro area, we find that a...

This paper applies the info-gap approach to the unconventional monetary policy of the Eurosystem and so takes into account the fundamental uncertainty on inflation shocks and the transmission mechanism. The outcomes show that a more demanding monetary strategy, in terms of lower tolerance for...

Despite being an identity, the money multiplier (MM) is also a useful summary of the financial intermediation process as it can be interpreted as the rate of substitution between inside and outside money. By modelling the supply and demand for inside and outside money, we provide this rate of...

We examine the effect of Quantitative Easing (QE) by the ECB on the sovereign bond risks of Italy, Ireland, Spain and Portugal. First, outcomes of panel regression models suggest that QE lowered the effect of volatility on sovereign bond spreads by 1 to 2 percentage points. Compared to asset...

We apply complexity theory to financial markets to show that excess liquidity created by the Eurosystem has led to critical transitions in the configuration of interest rates. Complexity indicators turn out to be useful signals of tipping points and subsequent regime shifts in interest rates. We...

We analyse the empirical effects of credit easing and quantitative easing on inflation expectations and exchange rates. Both monetary policy strategies are summarised in measures for composition and size of the central bank balance sheet and included in a VAR model. The empirical results show...

We provide empirical evidence on banks' responses to shocks in wholesale funding, using data of 181 euro area banks over the period August 2007 to June 2013. Banks' adjustments of loan volumes and lending rates in response to funding liquidity shocks are analysed in a panel VAR framework. The...

We investigate the information content of financial variables as signalling devices of two abnormal inflationary regimes: (1) very low inflation or deflation, and (2) high inflation. Specifically, we determine the information content of equity and house prices, private credit volumes, and...