Many countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have recently experienced surges in money growth that apparently have not generated significant inflationary pressures. Moreover, several MENA countries have followed monetary policy rules that according to standard monetary theory...

Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. MONEY AND PRICES IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA: THE PUZZLE OF THE MISSING INFLATION -- III. AN ALTERNATIVE ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK: THE FISCAL THEORY OF PRICES -- A. The Underlying Model: Standard Cash-in-Advance -- B. Multiple Equilibria -- IV. THE...

The paper explains the behavior of inflation in Georgia in the post-stabilization period. A long-run equation linking prices to money and the exchange rate, as well as a short-run, dynamic equation for inflation are estimated. The inflation equation is stable, points to a dominant role of the...

While inflation differentials in a monetary union can be benign, reflecting a catch-up process, or an adjustment mechanism to asymmetric shocks or different business cycles, they may also indicate distortions related to inefficiencies in domestic product and labor markets that amplify or make...