We examine the effect of monetary policy on household spending when households are indebted and interest rates on outstanding loans are linked to short-term interest rates. Using administrative data on balance sheets and consumption expenditure of Swedish households, we reveal the cash-flow transmission channel of monetary policy. On average, indebted households reduce consumption spending by an additional 0.23–0.55 percentage points in response to a one-percentage-point increase in the policy rate, relative to a household with no debt. We show that these responses are driven by households that have some or a large share of their debt in contracts where interest rates vary with short-term interest rates, such as adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), which implies that monetary policy shocks are quickly passed through to interest expenses.

We study the effect of monetary policy on spending when households hold debt with variable interest rates. When interest rates on outstanding loans vary with the short-term market interest rate, monetary policy has a direct and immediate effect on households' expenses and disposable income. If households are borrowing constrained, they will respond to a shock to disposable income by adjusting their spending. As a result, a monetary policy-induced interest rate change leads to a larger change in consumption than what is predicted by the elasticity of intertemporal substitution. We examine this cash-flow channel of monetary policy using administrative data on Swedish households. We estimate a strong and statistically significant response in spending to changes in interest expenses. More specifically, we estimate a marginal propensity to consume (including durable consumption) that is around unity or even higher in response to monetary-policy induced changes in interest expenses. For example, highly indebted households with adjustable rate mortgages reduce consumption growth by several percentage points more in response to a one percentage point increase in the household interest rate than households with little debt or fixed rate mortgages. Our findings imply that monetary policy will have a stronger effect on real economic activity when households are highly indebted and have adjustable rate mortgages.

We examine the cash-flow channel of monetary policy, i.e. the effect of monetary policy on spending when households hold debt linked to short-term rates such as adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs). Using registry-based data on Swedish households, we estimate substantial heterogeneity in consumption responses to a change in monetary policy through the cash-flow channel. Our findings imply that monetary policy has a stronger effect on real economic activity when households are highly indebted and have ARMs. For homeowners with a debtto-income ratio of around 3 and ARMs, the estimated response is equivalent to a marginal propensity to consume of 0.5. JEL classification: D14, E21, E52, G11

We study a Danish reform in 2002 that lowered the ex-ante probability of refugees receiving permanent residency by prolonging the period before they were eligible to apply for such residency. Adherence to the new rules was determined by the date of the asylum application, and the reform was implemented retroactively. Using registry-based micro data, we study the effects on labor-market outcomes and investments in education. While proponents of temporary protection regimes argue that stronger incentives to qualify for residency based on labor-market attachment will speed up the labor-market integration, we find no evidence of positive effects on labor-market outcomes.