The Taming of the Skew: Asymmetric Inflation Risk and Monetary Policy

The Taming of the Skew: Asymmetric Inflation Risk and Monetary Policy

Series: Working Papers. 2626.

Author: Andrea De Polis, Leonardo Melosi and Ivan Petrella

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Abstract

Time-varying asymmetric inflation risks generate persistent stagflationary effects. A quantitative general equilibrium model with time-varying skewness in the distribution of cost-push shocks matches these effects. Central to the analysis is a representation theorem that provides a tractable characterization of a broad class of models with asymmetric shock distributions. The theorem enables a closed-form characterization of optimal monetary policy, according to which the central bank should lean against the balance of inflation risks, while rendering quantitative general-equilibrium models with time-varying risks amenable to counterfactual and scenario analysis.

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