Disinflation According to Fabio Panetta
Fabio Panetta, member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank, will be the keynote speaker at the webinar, Getting Disinflation Right. Scheduled for 11am on Thursday 3 August, it has been organized by the Bocconi Baffi Research Center, led by Donato Masciandaro. The event will start with a welcome address by Rector Francesco Billari and an introduction by Elena Carletti, Dean for Research. Then, Panetta – who will take on the role of Governor of the Bank of Italy on 1 November – will talk about how to correctly reduce inflation without stopping economic growth. The term disinflation was coined in 1949 by Edwin G. Nourse, economic adviser to Harry Truman, 33rd President of the United States (1945-53).
"The Baffi Research Center is very happy and honored by the fact that Fabio Panetta has accepted this invitation, for several interconnected reasons," explains Masciandaro. "First, Bocconi University recently renamed the Center, which studies the relationship between economics, finance and regulation, in honor of Paolo Baffi, distinguished Bocconi graduate and Governor of the Bank of Italy from 1975 to 1979. This event with the future Governor is the Center's first initiative with its new name. Secondly, Paolo Baffi was a pioneer of the role of communication as an instrument of monetary policy. In May 1979 he wrote, 'The actions of central banks have broken their silence, perhaps never to go back. While in the past that silence may have been perceived as a guarantee of independence, today independence is achieved by giving an explicit account of one's own actions.' Now, in August 2023, we can say with certainty that Baffi's words were prophetic, and his prudent 'perhaps' can be erased. Communication," concludes Masciandaro, "has become a necessary condition for the effectiveness of monetary policy, so it will be particularly important to hear from Panetta – currently an executive member of the Council of the European Central Bank – in a decisive phase of the disinflationary policy that the Frankfurt institution is implementing."
Participate in the webinar at this link.