Has Macro-forecasting Failed?

Has Macro-forecasting Failed?
Author: Victor Zarnowitz
Publisher:
Total Pages: 56
Release: 1991
Genre: Economic forecasting
ISBN:

The answer to this question depends on the treatment of logically and empirically prior questions about (1) what the forecasts are and why they are needed, and (2) what can reasonably be expected of them. Further, what forecasters can and should do cannot be established without studying the record and assessing the probable future of their endeavors. Accordingly, the basic approach taken in this paper is to ask of the assembled data what professional standards have economists engaged in macro-forecasting been able to attain and maintain in competing with each other and alternative methods. There is much disenchantment with economic forecasting. The difficult question is how much of it is due to unacceptably poor performance and how much to unrealistically high prior expectations. My argument is that the latter is a major factor. In times of continuing expansion with restrained inflation, as in the 1960s, macro-forecasts looked good and economists were held in high repute. Later when inflation accelerated, serious recessions reappeared, and long-term growth of productivity and total output slackened, the errors of macroeconomic models and forecasts, and the old and new controversies among the economists, received increased public attention. The reputation of the profession suffered, and the interest of academic economists in forecasting, never very strong, weakened still more. Yet the performance of professional economic forecasters, when assessed proper relative terms, has been considerably better in recent times than in the earlier post-World War II period. What happened is that the improvements fell short of enabling the forecasters to cope with the new problems they faced.

Macroeconomic Forecasting

Macroeconomic Forecasting
Author: Robert Evans
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 278
Release: 2002-01-22
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1134623453

Drawing on interviews with the UK government's Panel of Independent Forecasters, the author shows how economic models, forecasts and policy analysis depend crucially upon the judgements of economists.

Business Cycles

Business Cycles
Author: Victor Zarnowitz
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 613
Release: 2007-11-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0226978923

This volume presents the most complete collection available of the work of Victor Zarnowitz, a leader in the study of business cycles, growth, inflation, and forecasting.. With characteristic insight, Zarnowitz examines theories of the business cycle, including Keynesian and monetary theories and more recent rational expectation and real business cycle theories. He also measures trends and cycles in economic activity; evaluates the performance of leading indicators and their composite measures; surveys forecasting tools and performance of business and academic economists; discusses historical changes in the nature and sources of business cycles; and analyzes how successfully forecasting firms and economists predict such key economic variables as interest rates and inflation.

How Well Do Economists Forecast Recessions?

How Well Do Economists Forecast Recessions?
Author: Zidong An
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 31
Release: 2019-03-05
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1513510657

We describe the evolution of forecasts in the run-up to recessions. The GDP forecasts cover 63 countries for the years 1992 to 2014. The main finding is that, while forecasters are generally aware that recession years will be different from other years, they miss the magnitude of the recession by a wide margin until the year is almost over. Forecasts during non-recession years are revised slowly; in recession years, the pace of revision picks up but not sufficiently to avoid large forecast errors. Our second finding is that forecasts of the private sector and the official sector are virtually identical; thus, both are equally good at missing recessions. Strong booms are also missed, providing suggestive evidence for Nordhaus’ (1987) view that behavioral factors—the reluctance to absorb either good or bad news—play a role in the evolution of forecasts.

Understanding Economic Forecasts

Understanding Economic Forecasts
Author: David F. Hendry
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2003
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780262582421

How to interpret and evaluate economic forecasts and the uncertainties inherent in them.

Business Cycles, Indicators, and Forecasting

Business Cycles, Indicators, and Forecasting
Author: James H. Stock
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 350
Release: 2008-04-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0226774740

The inability of forecasters to predict accurately the 1990-1991 recession emphasizes the need for better ways for charting the course of the economy. In this volume, leading economists examine forecasting techniques developed over the past ten years, compare their performance to traditional econometric models, and discuss new methods for forecasting and time series analysis.

Macroeconomic Fluctuations and Policies

Macroeconomic Fluctuations and Policies
Author: Edouard Challe
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2023-09-19
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0262549298

The basic tools for analyzing macroeconomic fluctuations and policies, applied to concrete issues and presented within an integrated New Keynesian framework. This textbook presents the basic tools for analyzing macroeconomic fluctuations and policies and applies them to contemporary issues. It employs a unified New Keynesian framework for understanding business cycles, major crises, and macroeconomic policies, introducing students to the approach most often used in academic macroeconomic analysis and by central banks and international institutions. The book addresses such topics as how recessions and crises spread; what instruments central banks and governments have to stimulate activity when private demand is weak; and what “unconventional” macroeconomic policies might work when conventional monetary policy loses its effectiveness (as has happened in many countries in the aftermath of the Great Recession.). The text introduces the foundations of modern business cycle theory through the notions of aggregate demand and aggregate supply, and then applies the theory to the study of regular business-cycle fluctuations in output, inflation, and employment. It considers conventional monetary and fiscal policies aimed at stabilizing the business cycle, and examines unconventional macroeconomic policies, including forward guidance and quantitative easing, in situations of “liquidity trap”—deep crises in which conventional policies are either ineffective or have very different effects than in normal time. This book is the first to use the New Keynesian framework at the advanced undergraduate level, connecting undergraduate learning not only with the more advanced tools taught at the graduate level but also with the large body of policy-oriented research in academic journals. End-of-chapter problems help students master the materials presented.

Handbook of Research Methods and Applications in Macroeconomic Forecasting

Handbook of Research Methods and Applications in Macroeconomic Forecasting
Author: Michael P. Clements
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 491
Release: 2024-11-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1035310058

Bringing together the recent advances and innovative methods in macroeconomic forecasting, this erudite Handbook outlines how to forecast, including following world events such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the global financial crisis. With contributions from global experts, chapters explore the use of machine-learning techniques, the value of social media data, and climate change forecasting. This title contains one or more Open Access chapters.

Macroeconomic Foundations of Macroeconomics

Macroeconomic Foundations of Macroeconomics
Author: Alvaro Cencini
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 368
Release: 2012-10-12
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1134382243

Contrary to common belief, macroeconomics is not merely a theory of aggregates, and cannot be constructed from individual behaviour. Both nationally and internationally, there are economic laws that are logically independent of economic agents’ behaviour. These are the macroeconomic foundations of macroeconomics. Presenting cutting-edge material, Alvaro Cencini explores these foundations, and shows that the introduction of money entails economics being interpreted conceptually not mathematically. His innovative book provides the elements for a new approach by applying the most recent results of monetary analysis to the study of national and international economics. It covers recent progress in monetary theory, provides the reader with a greater understanding of the subject, and will be essential reading for economic students as well as a valuable resource for economists.

Forecasting Non-stationary Economic Time Series

Forecasting Non-stationary Economic Time Series
Author: Michael P. Clements
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 398
Release: 1999
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780262531894

This text on economic forecasting asks why some practices seem to work empirically despite a lack of formal support from theory. After reviewing the conventional approach to forecasting, it looks at the implications for causal modelling, presents forecast errors and delineates sources of failure.