Ingves and Flodén: Hearing on monetary policy
Date
07/11/2013
On Thursday, Governor Stefan Ingves and Deputy Governor Martin Flodén took part in the year's third hearing on monetary policy at the Riksdag Committee on Finance.
Mr Ingves began the hearing by giving an account of the situation in the Swedish economy with particular emphasis on inflation and unemployment in Sweden. He pointed out that the repo rate had been cut to an historically low level to contribute to the low inflation rate rising towards 2 per cent. Mr Ingves also stressed that the low repo rate will contribute to unemployment falling in the coming period, but at the same time pointed out that monetary policy is not able to remedy structural problems in the labour market. Reducing unemployment significantly also requires measures in other policy areas.
Mr Flodén then talked about his assessment of monetary policy. Like the majority of Executive Board members, he considered that the repo rate needs to remain low to provide support to the Swedish economy and for inflation to rise towards 2 per cent. He also felt that the high level of household debt creates risks for the economy and that this is something monetary policy should take into account. However, Mr Flodén emphasised that this should be balanced against the inflation target. He felt that the repo rate needed to be cut even further to ensure that inflation rises towards the target.
Follow the links to see the Powerpoint presentations to the Riksdag Committee on Finance.
The Governor of the Riksbank and one of the deputy governors attend hearings on monetary policy at the Riksdag Committee on Finance three times a year.
