Monetary Policy (Edexcel IGCSE Economics)
Revision Note
Written by: Steve Vorster
Reviewed by: Jenna Quinn
An Overview of Monetary Policy
Monetary policy involves adjusting the the central bank's interest rate and the money supply in order to influence the total demand in an economy
If businesses and households borrow money, they must pay it back plus interest, so in effect the price of borrowing money is the interest paid
The money supply is the amount of money in circulation in an economy at any given moment in time
It consists of coins, banknotes, bank deposits and central bank reserves
Central Banks are usually responsible for setting monetary policy
Central Bank committees usually meet 4-8 times a year to set policy
In an economic crisis, the committee may sit more frequently
The Role of the Central Bank
Central Banks play a vital role in maintaining stability in the financial system. Additionally, the policy tools at their disposal help to meet Government economic objectives and create economic growth
Implementation of monetary policy
This is more fully explained in Sub-topic 4.4.1Banker to the government
The Government sets the annual budget but it is the Central Bank that manages the tax receipts and payments. In 2022 there were 5.7 million public sector workers in the UK who had to be paid by the Central Bank each monthBanker to the banks—lender of last resort
Commercial banks are able to borrow from the Central Bank when they run into short-term liquidity issues. Without this help, they might go bankrupt leading to instability in the financial system and a potential loss of savings for many householdsRegulation of the banking industry
The high level of asymmetric information in financial markets requires that commercial banks be regulated in order to protect consumers
Interest and the Base Rate
Interest is the cost of borrowing money or the reward received for saving money
The interest rate is the percentage charged for borrowing money or the percentage offered for saving money
E.g. DBS bank in Singapore offers an interest rate of 3% on savings
The base rate (also know as the bank rate) is the interest rate at which the Central Bank lends money to commercial banks such as HSBC or Lloyds Bank
Commercial Banks use the base rate as the baseline for interest rates offered to their customers
E.g. If the base rate set by the Central Bank is 2%, then DBS will borrow money from the Central Bank at 2% and lend it to customers at 3%
This allows DBS to make a profit of 1% on the transaction
Central Banks usually have a special committee that meets regularly to decide if the base rate should be modified
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) under the Bank of England (UK Central Bank) is responsible for setting monetary policy
It meets roughly eight times a year to set policy and consists of nine members
The single most important consideration in their deliberations is the inflation target rate of 2% CPI
At this meeting, they each vote to set the central base rate
A majority vote decides the policy
Some effects of the decision are immediate, for example, some mortgage rates are usually adjusted in line with changes of the base rate on the same day
It can take up to two years for the full effects of interest rate changes to be seen throughout in the economy
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