Saturday, March 08, 2008

Whatever happened to inflation targeting?

(Click on the graph to enlarge.)

The Cleveland Fed calls this measure "a good estimate of the market's estimate of future inflation." It is derived from the 10-year yields on nominal and real bonds. The recent increase to 3.4 percent should have monetary policymakers worried.

Update on Sunday morning: Unfortunately, the link above no longer delivers what it is supposed to, I trust only temporarily. Whenever I try to access the Cleveland Fed's "inflation central" features, I am told the system "has experienced an unexpected error."

The irony: That is precisely what some market participants are starting to worry about. I hope the problem is fixed soon.