As dedicated followers of fashion, European central bankers have also been following the intellectual trends set by others. When inflation targeting was in vogue in the 1990s, the European Central Bank adopted the new regime and became a paid-up subscriber to the economic theory that lay behind it. Inflation targeting turned out to be a stunning success, for about a decade. That ended at about the time a series of crises descended on Europe. The last time the core rate of inflation in the eurozone was above 2 per cent was in 2008.
作為熱心追逐時尚的人，歐洲央行(ECB)官員們還緊緊追隨其他央行設(shè)定的理念潮流。當(dāng)1990年代流行通脹目標(biāo)制(inflation targeting)時，歐洲央行采取了這種新制度，并成為其背后經(jīng)濟理論的堅定追隨者。此后約10年期間，通脹目標(biāo)制取得了驚人的成功。當(dāng)一系列危機降臨歐洲時，這一成功結(jié)束了。上一次歐元區(qū)的核心通脹率高于2%還是在2008年。