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Central banks worldwide have struggled over the last two years to find solutions to generationally high levels of inflation, hiking interest rates, and pushing their economies to the brink of recession. <\/p>\n
But according to the man behind a Swiss economy that reined in inflation a year ago, the answer could just come down to bringing a bit of boredom to the job.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Switzerland tamed its inflation beast well ahead of economies like the U.S., the EU, and the U.K., staying around its targeted 2% for the last 12 months.<\/p>\n
Swiss National Bank (SNB) chairman Thomas Jordan suggested that boredom and not getting \u201cnoticed with other activities\u201d could be the reason the country\u2019s economy has managed to escape the worst general levels of inflation in four decades before its competitors.<\/p>\n
Switzerland\u2019s record over the past few years speaks for itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At its worst, Swiss inflation peaked at 3.3%, a fraction of the double-digit price rises that plagued other economies. Inflation in the U.S. remains stubbornly above its target, falling to 3% in June, while in the EU it was at 2.5% in June.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe that the people who are responsible for the national bank should concentrate on their job. They must fulfill their mandate and not get themselves noticed with other activities,\u201d Jordan told Bieler Tagblatt.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s better to be called boring or stubborn than for people to say I\u2019m pursuing the wrong monetary policy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Soon after ending his 12-year tenure, Jordan caveated that he didn\u2019t think his central bank\u2019s work was boring, arguing that perception was a \u201ccliche.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, compared with the noise around inflation, interest rates, and broader fiscal policy outside his borders, Jordan might find solace in that perceived boredom.<\/p>\n
Switzerland, perhaps unfairly, has built a reputation for efficiency that lends itself to perceptions of boredom from onlookers.<\/p>\n
Indeed, Jordan has seldom appeared in the international press during his 12 years in his role, despite massive economic and geopolitical turbulence that has thrust his peers in other regions into the spotlight.<\/p>\n
Former ECB president Mario Draghi was thrust into his role in the midst of a major debt crisis in the Eurozone following the global financial crash of 2007.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Former Bank of England chief, Canadian Mark Carney, was likewise regularly in the news as he navigated the fallout from the U.K.\u2019s vote to leave the EU in 2016.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Earlier this year, even the boss of Sweden\u2019s Central Bank, the Riksbank, made headlines when his organization moved to get the jump<\/a> on the EU and the U.S. with a rare early interest rate cut.\u00a0<\/p>\n Switzerland isn\u2019t part of the Eurozone, meaning it isn\u2019t tied to the European Central Bank\u2019s interest rate setting, which has to consider the inflationary environment in all its 27 member states.<\/p>\n The Swiss Franc has also appreciated<\/a> in the last couple of years, helping reduce the cost of imported goods and services, which is a big driver of inflation elsewhere.\u00a0<\/p>\n This appreciation was significant for fuel imports, which soared in price following Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine and are predominantly traded in the USD and EUR currencies. Switzerland\u2019s low levels of reliance on fossil fuels, instead using hydropower and nuclear energy, further lifted its burden.<\/p>\n In the U.K., another non-Eurozone member, inflation has stayed around the 2% target for the last couple of months, increasing calls for interest rate cuts.<\/p>\n However, there is still an expectation that inflation could tick up again in the second half of the year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Commodity prices, such as fuel and agricultural products, shot up in May, putting pressure on businesses\u2019 input costs, but they have since fallen again.<\/p>\n ECB chief Christine Lagarde has said some of the pressure has been linked to a tight labor market and rising wages meant to offset previously high inflation levels.<\/p>\n As the SNB chief Jordan departs his role to suitably little fanfare, those pressures seem set to continue to escape his country\u2019s \u201cboring\u201d economy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nRecommended Newsletter: <\/strong>CEO Daily provides key context for the news leaders need to know from across the world of business. Every weekday morning, more than 125,000 readers trust CEO Daily for insights about\u2013and from inside\u2013the C-suite. Subscribe Now<\/a>.<\/div>\n