This call is more than merely a short-lived fashion. There are two especially valid reasons for the formerly rather reserved central banks to communicate openly and in good time. For one thing, transparency - in particular, ex post transparency - is an indispensable precondition for accountability and thus also a necessary correlative to independence. Beyond this, transparency is an effective means of gaining the confidence of the public and the markets. Central banks depend much more on this confidence in fulfilling their mandate than other institutions. For another, the increased significance attached to transparency derives from the central role played by expectations, also in macroeconomic processes. If the efficiency of forming expectations in the financial markets and in the real sector can be improved with greater transparency, this serves to enhance the productivity of an economy. Transparency, however, should be optimised rather than maximised. Individual demands can occasionally be quite unrealistic. In my view, this even applies to ex post transparency, which is basically less problematic. Accordingly, I do not see any merit in the popular practice which has gained ground in various countries to publish the minutes of board meetings. Board members, too, are only human. Like anyone else, they respond to incentives. My fear is that publication will lead to a certain amount of window talk and probably also to critical discussions being held outside the recorded meetings.
Upturn cut short by sovereign debt problems in 2011–2012 An effect of the severe crisis of 2008 was a shutdown in global trade, which brought the Swedish economy to a sudden halt. To support the economy, the Riksbank quickly lowered the repo rate to a, at the time, historically low level of 0.25 per cent. Around the world, other central banks and governments made herculean efforts to kick-start the financial system and reverse the trend. As the situation on the credit markets improved and global trade picked up, the recovery occurred more rapidly than expected in Sweden. From mid-2010, the Riksbank began raising the repo rate towards a more normal level. But during 2011, the recovery stuttered when unease linked to the problems of heavily burdened public finances in several European countries started to affect the credit markets to an ever-increasing degree. Measures by institutions such as the EU and the ECB helped to stabilise the situation, but weak confidence and low demand among households and companies subdued European developments. This, in turn, led to a slowdown in Swedish economic activity, despite relatively high domestic demand. GDP fell again in 2012 and the Riksbank lowered the repo rate in a number of steps. Focus on inflation and maintaining confidence in the inflation target has produced results Something which provoked head-scratching around the world during these years was that inflation remained at a relatively high level to begin with, despite the major economic slowdown after 2008.