José Elías Gallegos successfully defends his thesis

On Friday 10 June, José successfully defended his thesis "Essays on Macroeconomics".

José at the defense

What is your thesis about? What are the most important findings, or were there any results that surprised you?

- My thesis studies different financial and informational frictions in the economy, and how they affect the transmission of monetary policy. In terms of results, I find a very strong relationship between inequality and the power of monetary policy, and evidence of significant information frictions and their consequences for the macroeconomy. I would say that I am surprised by the super strong finding on financial frictions, and with the consistence of the predictions of the information frictions setup and the data.

Overview of José

What are your plans for the near future? Any particular research agenda you will embark on?

- I am moving to the Bank of Spain, where I will be in charge of researching on (1) the role of imperfect expectations on monetary and fiscal policy and (2) exploring the consequences of the input-output network in the macroeconomy. The first strand is a bit of a continuation of what I have worked on until now, while the second implies leaving my comfort zone. However, I could not be more excited about (2). I have already started looking into it!

Finally, how do you feel now that you have successfully defended your thesis? 

- I am delighted. I cannot believe that I am graduating. What a wonderful journey this has been. I would repeat it again and again.

Gaetano Gaballo (HEC Paris and Banque de France) did a great job as opponent and we are very grateful for his time and his insight, and for also making the defense a joy to be a part of!

Click here to download and read José's thesis in full