Monetary Policy Gradualism and the Nonlinear Effects of Monetary Shocks

Monetary policy in the United States has often followed a gradual approach by changing policy rates through multiple small adjustments rather than all-at-once hikes or cuts. This conduct could provide a signal about the extent of the intended policy change. We quantify the state-dependent effects of monetary shocks in times of more and less gradual policy. We propose two indicators of high vs. low gradualism periods and use local projections to estimate the effects of identified high-frequency shocks in the two states. Our findings suggest that monetary policy transmission is stronger when the perception of gradualism is high.