From the next quarterly monetary policy assessment, the SNB intends to publish “monetary policy discussions” by the governing board in summarised form – four weeks after the decision is made.
The most important points from the discussions during the two-day monetary policy assessment and the assessment of the economic and currency situation will be published.
This is what SNB President Martin Schlegel said on Wednesday at an event organised by the Ticino Bankers Association, according to the speech transcript. Communication is “a central element in the fulfilment of our mandate”. The SNB has therefore decided to publish a new summary of monetary policy discussions in addition to the existing means of communication.
The past few years have shown how quickly economic conditions can change, such as pandemics and global trade policy. “It is important that the public understands how we apply our concept to the current circumstances in order to ensure price stability,” said Schlegel.
Collective decision
However, the SNB will not provide details on individual votes in future. The governing board of the central bank – like the Federal Council and the cantonal governments – is a collegial authority. The deliberations and the interest rate decision will therefore be presented collectively.
This is because it is important that the monetary authorities can discuss the interest rate decision openly. Publication should not prevent individuals from expressing their opinions freely. Each member of the executive board contributes their own views, after which a joint decision should be made and defended as one.
It is true that transparency strengthens the credibility of the SNB and “enables the public to understand our actions”, says Schlegel. However, more transparency is “not always better”.
International standard
By publishing a summary of its meetings, the SNB is following an international trend. “It has become standard practice for central banks to report on their monetary policy discussions,” said Schlegel.
Both the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank (ECB) publish the minutes of their interest rate meetings. The SNB’s next monetary policy assessment is on September 25.
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