Demystifying COVID-19 policy actions: The case of inflation control in ASEAN

In this paper, we study the impact of policy actions undertaken by governments and other policy authorities during the COVID-19 pandemic on core inflation in four major economies of ASEAN region namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Utilizing panel fixed effects regression, we find that policy interventions where financial authority and the central governments were the implementing institutions as significantly impacting the inflation. Further, delving into specific policy tools, our study finds evidence of significant impact of regulatory announcement and rules and miscellaneous prudential rules on core inflation. Our investigation is preliminary, but it provides insights into additional understanding of the effectiveness of policy actions in controlling inflation. •financial authority and national governments led policies significantly impact the inflation.•Significant impact of regulatory announcement and rules on core inflation.•Regulatory and rule changes targeting non-financial business has significant impact on core inflation.