Monetarist Theory

The monetarist theory is an economic concept which contends that changes in the money supply are the most significant determinants of the rate of economic growth and the behavior of the business cycle. The competing theory, in stark contrast, is Keynesian Economics. When monetarist theory works in practice, central banks, which control the levers of monetary policy, can exert much power over economic growth rates.

According to monetarist theory, if a nation's supply of money increases, economic activity will increase; the reverse is also true. Monetarist theory is governed by a simple formula, MV = PQ, where M is the money supply, V is the velocity (number of times per year the average dollar is spent), P is the price of goods and services and Q is the quantity of goods and services. Assuming constant V, when M is increased, either P, Q or both P and Q rise. General price levels tend to rise more than the production of goods and services when the economy is closer to full employment. When there is slack in the economy, Q will increase at a faster rate than P under monetarist theory. In the U.S., the Federal Reserve Board ("Fed") sets monetary policy without government interference. The Federal Reserve operates on a monetarist theory that focuses on maintaining stable prices (low inflation), promoting full employment and achieving steady GDP growth.

In the U.S. it is the job of the Fed to control the money supply. The Fed has three main levers: reserve ratio, discount rate and open market operations. The reserve ratio is the percentage of reserves a bank is required to hold against deposits. A decrease in the ratio enables banks to lend more, thereby increasing the supply of money. The discount rate is the interest rate that the Fed charges commercial banks that need to borrow additional reserves. A drop in the discount rate will encourage banks to borrow more from the Fed and therefore lend more to its customers. Open market operations consist of buying and selling government securities. Buying securities from large banks increases the supply of money while selling securities contracts money supply in the economy.