ODI Explains: What Quantitative Easing is All About
Quantitative easing, QE, is a monetary policy means to an end – stimulating growth in the economy. It is an extraordinary tool employed by central banks to boost an economy when tempering interest rates yield little or no desirable results. In order to maintain satisfactory economic growth rates, a central bank may decide to raise or lower interest rates. Lowering interest rates tends to lower savings and encourage consumption spending and investment spending. In the event that a lowered or close-to-zero interest rate does not rouse aggregate demand as expected, a central bank may decide to ‘pump’ money directly into the financial system; this is what QE is about. Ordinarily, a central bank may adjust interest rates to put a check on inflation. For instance, when corporates scale back on investment due to uncertainties about the future, a central bank can reduce its lending rates. A reduction in the rate at which banks and other financial institutions may lend from the centr