Monetary analysis and central banks: Introduction

Intellectual and historical background, with particular reference to the high-powered money multiplier analysis developed by Friedman and his associates; the Polak model developed at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which served as the basis for IMF financial programming; the credit counterparts/flow of funds approach used more in Europe, including the UK; the rationale for and experience of monetary targeting, from adoption to abandonment, with particular attention to the USA and France; the experience of developing/emerging countries with an emphasis on data availability and an example in the form of Egypt; and the role of quantitative easing in a possible revival of interest in monetary analysis.