Journal Article
Treasury Debt and Inflation Tax
Abstract: We calculate the implicit inflation tax borne by households due to their holdings of U.S. Treasury debt. Nominal assets lose value due to unexpected inflation. We calculate unexpected changes in current and future inflation and document households’ holdings of Treasury debt across the wealth distribution, accounting for direct and indirect holdings through financial intermediaries. Combining these two pieces of information, we calculate the implied inflation tax across household wealth groups over the past four decades.
Keywords: United States Treasury debt; inflation; implicit inflation tax;
JEL Classification: E31; E44; E62;
https://doi.org/10.20955/r.2024.09
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Bibliographic Information
Provider: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Part of Series: Review
Publication Date: 2024-10-08
Volume: 106
Issue: 9
Pages: 1-11