Background: The main unifying theme of the conference is that successful policy requires that central bankers’ decisions be based on clearly-understood rules—including legal limits, institutional structures, mandates, traditions, procedures, or formulas—and not solely on discretion. The main aim of the conference is a set of policy-focused recommendations for the rules, limits, guidance, structure and communications of central-bank policy-making based on data, theory and history of the past 100 years.
| THURSDAY, MAY 29 | |
| 12:00 to 12:45 PM | Registration and casual lunch |
| 12:45 to 1:00 PM | Opening Remarks, John B. Taylor |
| 1:00 to 2:00 PM | John Cochrane, Monetary Policy with Interest on Reserves. Discussant: Edward Prescott |
| 2:00 to 3:00 PM | David Papell, Deviations from Rules-Based Policy and Their Effects Discussant: Monika Piazzesi |
| 3:00 to 3:30 PM | Coffee |
| 3:30 to 4:30 PM | Marvin Goodfriend, Lessons from a Century of Fed Policy: Why Monetary and Credit Policies Need Rules and Boundaries Discussant: Athanasios Orphanides |
| 4:30 to 5:30 PM | Panel Discussion on the Methodology of Economic History for Evaluating Monetary Policy Panelists: Barry Eichengreen, Niall Ferguson, Allan Meltzer, Chair: Michael Bordo |
| 6:30 PM | Reception and Dinner at Stanford Park Hotel Dinner Remarks, Esther George, President, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City |
| FRIDAY, MAY 30 | |
| 8:00 to 8:30 AM | Continental Breakfast |
| 8:30 to 9:30 AM | Lee Ohanian, Monetary Policy in the Midst of Big Shocks Discussant: Martin Schneider |
| 9:30 to 10:30 AM | Andrew Levin, The Design and Communication of Systematic Monetary Policy Strategies Discussant: Otmar Issing |
| 10:30 to 11:00 AM | Coffee |
| 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM | Michael Bordo, Rules for a Lender of Last Resort: An Historical Perspective Discussant: Jeff Lacker |
| 12:00 to 1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 1:00 to 2:00 PM | Richard Clarida, Monetary Policy in Open Economies: Practical Perspectives for Pragmatic Central Bankers Discussant: Maurice Obstfeld |
| 2:00 to 3:00 PM | Rules-Based Policy: From Theory to Practice Panelists: Charles Plosser, Thomas Sargent, John Williams, Chair: George Shultz |
| 3:00 PM | Adjourn |
You can download a PDF of the agenda here and of the speaker bios here.
The conference was well covered by several news sources. A selection of the coverage is available below, or see the conversation on Twitter:
- Stanford News
- Wall Street Journal (subscription may be required)
- John Taylor: Interest Rates Should Already Be Higher
- Fed Officials Downplay Financial Stability Concerns
- Fed’s Plosser: Fed Should Adopt More Formal Policy Rule
- Fed’s Policy Hawks Express Mix of Views on Timing of Rate Hikes
- Grand Central: KC Fed’s George Sets Battle Lines on Rate Hikes
- Esther George Says Fed Should Begin Rate Hikes ‘Shortly’ After Bond Buys End
- Fed Ignores Policy Rules at Own Peril, Paper Finds
- New York Times
- Financial Times
- Washington Post:
- Bloomberg News:
- John Taylor on Bloomberg Radio
- Niall Ferguson on Bloomberg Radio
- Charles Plosser on Bloomberg Radio
- Michael Bordo and Hoover research fellow Tim Kane on Bloomberg Radio
- Cameron Teitelman, founder of non-profit StartX), on Bloomberg Radio
- Michael Cuggino, president of the Permanent Portfolio family of funds, on Bloomberg Radio
- David Pappel on Bloomberg Radio
- Reuters:
- Fed officials say rates should not be used to fight bubbles
- DIARY – Top Economic Events to June 12
- Fed’s George wants rate hikes soon, and not too gradual
- Lacker warns on Fed’s role in credit markets
- Fed’s Plosser floats new approach to forward guidance on rates
- U.S. Fed’s George says open to big balance sheet
- U.S. Fed can’t fight inflation on its own, economist says
- What to Watch in The Day Ahead; Friday, May 30
- Fed’s Lacker says Q2 rate lift off next year “plausible”-CNBC
- Market News International:
- Economic Principles
