Conference paper

Publication year: 2015

URL: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/112906

Conference: Jahrestagung des Vereins für Socialpolitik 2015: Ökonomische Entwicklung - Theorie und Politik

Abstract: 

In this paper we analyze the effects of changes in peoples' beliefs about the timing of the exit from Quantitative Easing ("tapering") on asset prices. To quantify beliefs of market participants, we use data from Twitter, the social media application, covering the entire Twitter volume on Federal Reserve tapering in 2013. Based on the time series of beliefs about an early or late tapering, we estimate a VAR model with appropriate sign restrictions on the impulse responses to identify a belief shock. The results show that shocks to tapering beliefs have strong and robust effects on interest rates, exchange rates and asset prices. We also derive measures of monetary policy uncertainty and disagreement of beliefs, respectively, and estimate their impact. The paper is the first to use social media data for analyzing monetary policy and also adds to the rapidly emerging literature on macroeconomic uncertainty shocks.

Harvard Citation style: Tillmann, P. and Meinusch, A. (2015) Quantitative Easing and Tapering Uncertainty: Evidence from Twitter, Jahrestagung des Vereins für Socialpolitik 2015: Ökonomische Entwicklung - Theorie und Politik, Münster, 6. bis 9. September 2015. https://hdl.handle.net/10419/112906

APA Citation style: Tillmann, P., & Meinusch, A. (2015, 6. bis 9. September 2015). Quantitative Easing and Tapering Uncertainty: Evidence from Twitter. Jahrestagung des Vereins für Socialpolitik 2015: Ökonomische Entwicklung - Theorie und Politik, Münster. https://hdl.handle.net/10419/112906