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Macroeconomic Policy Perspectives: The Macroeconomic Causes and Consequences of Inflation

Annual conference and initiative of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, the University of Chicago, and Stanford University

October 16 – 17, 2025
University of Chicago’s Becker Friedman Institute for Economics

Macroeconomic Policy Perspectives: The Macroeconomic Causes and Consequences of Inflation

Wordmark for Macroeconomic Policy Perspectives

The 2025 Macroeconomic Policy Perspectives conference, hosted by the Becker Friedman Institute at the University of Chicago in collaboration with the Journal of Political Economy Macroeconomics (JPE Macro) and in partnership with the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis and Stanford University, will be held October 16–17 in Chicago, Illinois. The event will include the presentation of six to seven papers plus a policy panel with leading experts and policymakers. Papers presented at the conference will undergo a standard peer-review process and, if accepted, will be included in a special volume of JPE Macro. The submissions will be overseen by guest editors Veronica Guerrieri and Anil Kashyap.

The global economy recently experienced significant inflationary pressures that have exposed vulnerabilities in economic systems worldwide. Policymakers around the world have responded with numerous actions that aim to reduce inflation while sustaining economic growth. The resurgence of inflation has raised important questions about the transmission of monetary and fiscal policies, as well as the broader economic structures that influence price stability. This conference brings together researchers from around the world to discuss recent work on the macroeconomic causes and consequences of inflation.

This conference is by invitation only. If you have any questions, please contact bfi-events@uchicago.edu.

For complete event details and latest agenda updates, see the event page on the University of Chicago’s website.

Event Details

University of Chicago’s Becker Friedman Institute for Economics

Event Agenda

Thursday, October 16, 2025

10:00⁠–⁠11:00 a.m. CT

Registration

Sixth floor prefunction

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. CT

Inflation vs. Inclusion: Stabilization Policy in the Wake of the Pandemic

Speaker: Gianluca Violante, Princeton University
Discussant: Ester Faia, Goethe University Frankfurt

12:00–1:00 p.m. CT

Lunch

First floor dining room

1:00–2:00 p.m. CT

State Dependence of Monetary Policy During Global Supply Chain Disruptions

Speaker: Jesús Fernández-Villaverde, University of Pennsylvania
Discussant: Sarah Zubairy, Texas A&M University

2:00–2:20 p.m. CT

Break

2:20–3:20 p.m. CT

Bias in the PCE Price Index

Speaker: Munseob Lee, University of California, San Diego
Discussant: Matthew Shapiro, University of Michigan

3:20–3:40 p.m. CT

Break

3:40–4:40 p.m. CT

Post–Pandemic Price Flexibility in the U.S.: Evidence and Implications for Price Setting Models

Speaker: Daniel Villar, Federal Reserve Board
Discussant: Christina Patterson, University of Chicago

4:40–5:00 p.m. CT

Break

 

5:00–6:00 p.m. CT

Heaven or Earth? The Evolving Role of Global Shocks for Domestic Monetary Policy

Speaker: Kristin Forbes, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Discussant: Benoit Mojon, Bank of International Settlements

7:00 p.m. CT

Conference dinner

By invitation only

Sessions include 35 minutes for presenters, 15 minutes for discussants, and 10 minutes for Q&A.

Friday, October 17, 2025

8:20⁠–⁠8:50 a.m. CT

Breakfast

8:50–9:50 a.m. CT

Policy Panel

Panelists:
Donald Kohn, Brookings Institution
Lucrezia Reichlin, London Business School
Mark Watson, Princeton University

Moderator: Nellie Liang, Brookings Institution

9:50–10:10 a.m. CT

Break

10:10 a.m.–11:10 a.m. CT

Conquest Lost and Regained: American Inflation in the 2020s

Speaker: Noah Williams, University of Miami
Discussant: Fernando Alvarez, University of Chicago

11:10–11:30 a.m. CT

Break

11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. CT

We Think That They Think: Political Affiliation and Higher-Order Beliefs

Speaker: Rupal Kamdar, Indiana University, Bloomington
Discussant: George-Marios Angeletos, Northwestern University

12:30–1:30 p.m. CT

Lunch

First floor dining room

1:30 p.m. CT

Conference concludes

Sessions include 35 minutes for presenters, 15 minutes for discussants, and 10 minutes for Q&A.