A Fed for Our Times, a review essay on Twentieth Century Monetary Policy by Ben Bernanke
Journal of Economic Literature, December 2023.
Lucrezia Reichlin
Abstract:
This essay reviews 21st Century Monetary Policy: The Federal Reserve from the
Great Inflation to COVID-19 by Ben Bernanke, a fascinating account of the evolution of the Fed since the 1950s, and a stalwart defense of the status quo: of the Fed’s
remit, its independence, and the tools and practices it now uses to pursue its mandate.
The essay supports many of Bernanke’s key points and brings the experience of the
European Central Bank to illuminate them by contrast. However, it argues that the
book understates the significance of the changes in institutional architecture that have
emerged since the crisis. Questions that we thought had been settled are going to have
to be addressed anew, albeit in slightly different guises. This will have implications for
all aspects of economic governance. (JEL E31, E32, E52, E58, E62, N12, N22)
Citation:
A Fed for Our Times, a review essay on Twentieth Century Monetary Policy by Ben Bernanke, Journal of Economic Literature, December 2023.
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