Finance and Economics Discussion Series

A Study of U.S. Monetary Policy Implementation: Demand for Reserves on a Period Average Basis

Ruth Judson and Elizabeth Klee
2009-22

Abstract: This paper provides new estimates of banks' demand for excess reserve balances on a period average basis. Consistent with theoretical work, we find that the demand for excess depends critically on uncertainty of flows in and out of reserve accounts. We also document the variability of demand for excess reserve balances by institution size, evaluate different models for forecasting demand for excess on a period average basis, and report the forecasting performance of each of these models. Finally, we present analysis of the period of financial turmoil seen over the year since August, 2007.

Keywords: Monetary policy implementation, reserve demand