The author has been described by News Ltd as an "iconoclast", "Svengali", a pollie's "economist muse", and "pungently accurate". Fairfax says he is a "Renaissance man" and "one of Australia’s most respected analysts." Stephen Koukoulas concludes that he is "85% right", and "would make a great Opposition leader." Terry McCrann claims the author thinks "‘nuance’ is a trendy village in the south of France", but can be "scintillating" when he thinks "clearly". The ACTU reckons he’s "an enigma wrapped in a Bloomberg terminal, wrapped in some apparently well-honed abs."

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Ian Macfarlane was a much more powerful RBA Governor than Glenn Stevens. Why?

This is a good article by Tom Cowie on Glenn Stevens over at The Power Index. My quotes:

"Stevens ostensibly controls the 'price of money', so he is extremely powerful," economist Christopher Joye tells The Power Index. "In finance, he is the most powerful person after the Treasurer. Absolutely no doubt."

But Joye says transparency has lessened Stevens' influence: "Ian Macfarlane was a much more powerful governor than Stevens. Why? Because of the way he wielded it," says Joye. "Under Mac, there was no board debate, no board dissent. He completely controlled the monetary policy outcomes."
at 1:30 PM