Monetary Economics
Monetary policy influences inflation, employment, and economic activity. A stable but dynamic monetary system is vital for supporting economic growth, individual liberty, and a prosperous society. Therefore, we examine the causes and consequences of monetary policy (including inflation), identify ideal and practical steps towards a better monetary policy regime, and look at monetary alternatives and financial regulation.
Research Publications for Monetary Economics
Central bank independence and the Federal Reserve’s new operating regime
JL Jordan, WJ Luther
The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance 84, 510-515, 2022
War, money & economy: Inflation and production in the Fed and pre-Fed periods
TL Hogan, DJ Smith
The Review of Austrian Economics, 1-23, 2022
On the origins of cryptocurrencies
WJ Luther, N Sridhar
A Modern Guide to Austrian Economics, 200-215, 2022
RE Wright
Journal of Interdisciplinary History 52 (4), 624-626, 2022
Cash, crime, and cryptocurrencies
JR Hendrickson, WJ Luther
The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance 85, 200-207, 2022
Articles
The Lumber Market Delirium
“A sordid cocktail of Covid lockdowns and expansionary monetary policy have led to explosive conditions in long-docile lumber markets.” ~ Peter C. Earle
The Rise of Bitcoin
“The blockchain technology at bitcoin’s core provides a new and fundamentally different way to process payments. It relies on neither decentralized nor centralized clearing. Instead, it processes transactions over a distributed network. And, by solving the double spending problem without recourse to a trusted third party, it has the potential to offer a degree of financial privacy comparable to decentralized payment mechanisms like cash.” ~ William J. Luther
Biden’s Infrastructure Boondoggle
“The immediate lesson from all of this is that Biden’s plan is a boondoggle waiting to happen (just as would have been the case with Trump). The longer-term lesson is that we should get the federal government out of the business of infrastructure.” ~ Daniel J. Mitchell