Central bank transparency and communication of future policy rates The second big theme I want to address is central bank transparency and, in particular, Alan’s suggestion that central banks should announce their conditional monetary policy plans, at least as part of their forecasts.
When discussing the issues of transparency and communication, it is important to distinguish between general aims and principles, on the one hand, and practical and effective means of fulfilling them, on the other. I fully agree with Alan on the importance of, and the reasons for, (maximum) central bank transparency and I partly share his view on the limits to (optimal) transparency.