The Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland Gabriel Makhlouf has spoken at University of Galway today about inflation and the labour market as part of the University’s ‘Thinking Beyond; series.
The event gave insights into the causes of the current period of high inflation in Ireland and what it means for monetary policy.
A Q&A session was held after Governor Makhlouf’s address, with Alan Ahearne, Professor of Economics at University of Galway and Adviser to Micheál Martin.
Gabriel Makhlouf was appointed Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland in 2019, and is Chair of the Central Bank Commission, a member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank, the European Systemic Risk Board, and is Ireland’s Alternate Governor at the International Monetary Fund.
Prior to joining the Central Bank, he was Secretary to the New Zealand Treasury and the NZ Government’s chief economic and financial adviser.
Mr Makhlouf also led reviews of New Zealand’s three macroeconomic pillars (monetary, financial stability and fiscal policy) and the development of a new framework for the development of economic and public policy focused on intergenerational wellbeing.
In addition, Governor Makhlouf was New Zealand’s Alternate Governor at the World Bank, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Asian Development Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. He was also co-chair of the Trans-Tasman Banking Council.
Governor Makhlouf also addressed students of University of Galway’s Economics Society during his visit.
Governor Makhlouf said he welcomed the opportunity to visit the University as part of its ‘Thinking Beyond’ series.
“It is always a pleasure to meet with students and discuss these important issues, and I look forward to welcoming some of them as colleagues in the future,” he said.
“If I were to sum up post-pandemic labour market dynamics in one word, it would be resilient. The slowdown in growth this year has yet to show up in employment levels, with wage growth continuing to be strong, reflecting the combined effects of a tight labour market and catch up to inflation.
“We will continue to closely monitor wage developments as a potential source of future inflation. The outlook for wage growth will depend in large part on how labour demand develops. Forward-looking indicators indicate that some of the strong momentum we saw during 2022/23 may begin to ease in the coming months.”
