2015 Homer Jones Memorial Lecture

June 3, 2015

Welcoming Remarks by James Bullard

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard welcomes attendees to the 2015 Homer Jones Memorial Lecture and introduces noted economist and monetary policymaker Athanasios Orphanides, who discussed "Fear of Liftoff: Uncertainty, Rules and Discretion in Monetary Policy Normalization."

Full text of President Bullard's remarks.

Lecture by Athanasios Orphanides

In his presentation on "Fear of Liftoff: Uncertainty, Rules and Discretion in Monetary Policy Normalization," Athanasios Orphanides reviews the four most recent U.S. recessions and the Federal Reserve's corresponding monetary policy actions. He then explores some of the reasons why the Federal Reserve has not begun to remove the historic levels of monetary policy accommodation implemented during and after the Great Recession of 2007-2009. He explains the importance of having an independent central bank with a clear mandate and concludes with making a case for the Federal Reserve to design and apply a simple policy rule to help achieve optimal economic outcomes.

Q&A Session

Following the presentation, Athanasios Orphanides conducts a Q&A session with the audience.

Read the article in the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Review: Fear of Liftoff: Uncertainty, Rules, and Discretion in Monetary Policy Normalization.

Orphanides is currently a professor of the Practice of Global Economics and Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management, a research fellow with the London-based Centre for Economic Policy Research and a member of the Shadow Open Market Committee. He served a five-year term as governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus and was a member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank from 2007-2012. Previously, he served as senior adviser with the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, where he started his professional career as an economist.

About the Homer Jones Memorial Lecture Series

The Homer Jones Memorial Lecture Series honors those who exemplify the highest qualities of leadership in economics and public policy.  As research director, and later as senior vice president at the St. Louis Fed, Homer Jones (1906-1986) played a major role in developing the Bank as a leader in monetary research and statistics.

The Homer Jones Memorial Lecture Series is supported by the following institutions and organizations:

• Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
• St. Louis Gateway Chapter of the National Association for Business Economics
• Saint Louis University
• Southern Illinois University–Edwardsville
• University of Missouri–St. Louis
• Washington University in St. Louis

Watch past lectures and learn more about the series »