Background
High-powered money, also known as the monetary base or base money, constitutes the forms of currency that serve as the foundation of commercial bank reserve assets. This includes physical currency like coins and notes, and reserves held at the central bank. It is fundamental to the banking system because it supports the larger credit market through a multiplier effect.
Historical Context
The concept of high-powered money gained prominence as economists sought to understand and manage the money supply in modern economies. Milton Friedman and other monetarists emphasized its role in controlling inflation and stabilizing the economy by regulating this base level of money supply.
Definitions and Concepts
- High-powered Money: Money that can be directly used as reserves by commercial banks and which includes coins, notes, and deposits held at a central bank.
- It is deemed “high-powered” due to its leverage effect on the total money supply. With a reserve ratio of \( a \), an addition of £1m in high-powered money can lead to an expansion of total deposits by \( \frac{1}{a} \times £1m \).
Major Analytical Frameworks
Classical Economics
Classical economists emphasize the self-regulating nature of markets, asserting that high-powered money influences the broader money supply indirectly as the economy adjusts to ensure full employment naturally.
Neoclassical Economics
Neoclassical economists emphasize the role of high-powered money in influencing interest rates and hence investment decisions and economic growth through the money multiplier effect.
Keynesian Economics
Keynesians highlight the role of high-powered money in addressing liquidity preferences and influencing aggregate demand, particularly during fiscal interventions to combat recessions.
Marxian Economics
Marxian economics sees high-powered money as a tool within the framework of capital accumulation and control, often evaluating how monetary policies affect wage relations and production cycles.
Institutional Economics
Institutional economists focus on high-powered money as part of a broader context where institutions and regulatory frameworks shape its effectiveness in managing the economy.
Behavioral Economics
Behavioral economists might study how perceptions and behaviors within financial institutions and among the public respond to changes in the levels of high-powered money.
Post-Keynesian Economics
Post-Keynesians critically examine the control of high-powered money, emphasizing its role in regulating endogenous money supply mechanisms and addressing financial market stability.
Austrian Economics
The Austrian school focuses on how manipulation of high-powered money can lead to malinvestments and economic cycles, advocating for reduced intervention in its supply.
Development Economics
High-powered money is analyzed through a lens of its impact on developmental goals, financial inclusion, and economic stability in developing nations.
Monetarism
Central to monetarism, high-powered money is seen as a crucial lever for controlling the broader money supply and by extension inflation. Monetarists argue that careful regulation of this money can stabilize prices and promote sustainable economic growth.
Comparative Analysis
Different economic schools of thought provide varied perspectives on how high-powered money should be viewed and managed. Comparisons highlight the spectrum, from tight control advocated by monetarists to more flexible uses seen by Keynesians and institutional economists.
Case Studies
- The Federal Reserve Example: Examination of how the Federal Reserve’s manipulation of high-powered money impacts the US economy.
- The Bank of Japan’s Experience: Analysis of Japan’s quantitative easing and its reliance on adjusting high-powered money levels.
Suggested Books for Further Studies
- “A Monetary History of the United States” by Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz
- “The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money” by John Maynard Keynes
- “Money, Bank Credit, and Economic Cycles” by Jesús Huerta de Soto
Related Terms with Definitions
- Monetary Base: The sum of currency in circulation and reserves held at the central bank.
- Reserve Ratio: The fraction of deposits that a commercial bank holds as reserves, either in the vault or with the central bank.
- Money Multiplier: The ratio that calculates the amount of money that banks generate with each dollar of reserves.
- Quantitative Easing: A monetary policy where a central bank buys securities to increase the money supply and encourage lending and investment.
