Monetary Policy and Research

The Monetary Policy and Research Department is responsible for the national-level preparatory work that enables the Bank of Finland to participate in formulating the Eurosystem’s single monetary policy, which is aimed at maintaining price stability in the euro area. The Department therefore contributes to the sustainability and stability of the Finnish economy and economic policy. It produces high-quality, independent analyses and forecasts on the Finnish economy, the euro area and key economies outside the euro area, using the latest information. The Department utilises advanced tools and data for analysis of the economy and monetary policy, and it conducts academically significant research in support of maintaining price stability and a sustainable economy. Its areas of specialisation include China and Russia and other emerging economies, which it analyses in the context of the global economy and related trends. The Department’s experts take part actively in discussions of economic issues.

The Head of Monetary Policy and Research is Juha Kilponen.

Email addresses take the format firstname.lastname@bof.fi.

The Monetary Policy and Research department includes the following divisions and units:

Forecasting

The Forecasting division is responsible for macroeconomic forecasts concerning the Finnish economy as well as monitoring the Finnish economy and conducting analysis of domestic economic policy. The Forecasting division also maintains and develops macroeconomic forecasting models and systems.

The Head of the Forecasting division is Meri Obstbaum.

Monetary policy and euro area Economy

The Monetary Policy and Euro Area Economy division is responsible for macroeconomic analysis of the euro area and for participating in the preparatory work for monetary policy decision-making.

The objective of its activities is to produce an up-to-date assessment of the outlook for the euro area, to conduct monetary policy analysis for the needs of domestic discussion and for monetary policy purposes, and to form an overview of developments in the international economy in collaboration with the Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT). It also maintains and develops the analytical tools for this on the basis of a long-term perspective.

The Head of the Monetary Policy and Euro Area Economy division is Markku Lehmus.

The Bank of Finland Institute for emerging Economies (BOFIT)

The Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT) is an internationally high-level research institute specialising in emerging economies and global economic developments. BOFIT monitors and analyses current developments in Russia and China in particular, and conducts long-term academic research. It forms an overview of developments in the international economy in collaboration with the Bank’s Monetary Policy and Euro Area Economy division.  

The Head of Research at BOFIT is Iikka Korhonen.

Research

The Research Unit is an internationally active and recognised unit, whose work emphasises both academic quality criteria and the usability of the research in policy formation. The focus is on researching the interaction between the macro economy and the financial markets and the stability of both. All research economist positions are doctorate level and fixed-term.

The Head of Research is Esa Jokivuolle.