This paper presents a model in which "instrument uncertainty"—that is, an uncertain mapping from monetary policy to macroeconomic outcomes—may mitigate the inflationary bias problem that arises when efficient monetary policy rules are time-inconsistent. If the relation between monetary policy and macroeconomic outcomes is uncertain, the private sector has an incentive to scrutinize the past for...

This paper outlines the practical steps which need to be undertaken to use autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) time series models for forecasting Irish inflation. A framework for ARIMA forecasting is drawn up. It considers two alternative approaches to the issue of identifying ARIMA models the Box Jenkins approach and the objective penalty function methods. The emphasis is on forec...

This paper examines the correlation between stock and bond returns. It first documents that the major trends in stock-bond correlation for G7 countries follow a similar reverting pattern in the past forty years. Next, an asset pricing model is employed to show that the correlation of stock and bond returns can be explained by their common exposure to macroeconomic factors. The link between the ...

This paper develops methods for Bayesian VAR forecasting when the researcher is uncertain about which variables enter the VAR and the dimension of the VAR may be changing over time. It considers the case where there are N variables which might potentially enter a VAR and the researcher is interested in forecasting N∗ of them. Thus, the researcher is faced with 2N−N ∗ potential VARs. If N is lar...

Generally, we value forecasts for their accuracy. In some cases, however, the forecasts themselves are interesting because of what they reveal about the forecaster. Monetary policymaker forecasts are important because they partially reveal what policymakers believe will follow from their decisions. Forecasts of inflation and real output (whether made by Federal Reserve officials or private sect...