2017 - 18 Year in Review

8 The IGM hosted conferences in Miami (in August and November 2017, and April 2018) to discuss the state of the global economy and issues related to financial stability. The conferences consisted of off-the-record discussions among central bank and government officials, senior financial services executives, and academic economists. The IGM held its 10th annual US Monetary Policy Forum (USMPF) in New York in February 2018. The USMPF brings together academic researchers, market economists, and policymakers. A standing group of academic and private sector economists share rotating responsibility for reporting on a critical medium-term issue confronting the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC). The topic of the USMPF’s main report this year was “A Skeptical View of the Impact of the Fed’s Balance Sheet.” The report discusses communication policy and was written by David Greenlaw (Morgan Stanley), James D. Hamilton (University of California, San Diego, and the National Bureau of Economic Research), Ethan S. Harris (Bank of America Merrill Lynch), and Kenneth D. West (University of Wisconsin and the National Bureau of Economic Research). The report was discussed by President William Dudley of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and President Eric Rosengren of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and was moderated by Frederic S. Mishkin (Graduate School of Business at Columbia University). Paul Krugman from City University of New York’s Graduate Center gave the keynote lunch address. The conference concluded with a panel discussion reviewing the objectives of monetary policy featuring Olivier Blanchard (Peterson Institute for International Economics), Benoît Cœuré (European Central Bank), and Loretta J. Mester (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland). Esther L. George (Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City) moderated the panel. Copies of the report, the discussants’ comments and panelists’ remarks, and a list of participants at the conference are available on the IGM website. MIAMI CONFERENCE (AUGUST AND NOVEMBER 2017, AND APRIL 2018) US MONETARY POLICY FORUM (FEBRUARY 23, 2018)