Why a central bank that is opaque with its expectations for the economy is preferable to one that is transparent

Central banks publish their economic forecasts, so they are transparent about their expectations for the future path of the economy. This choice is perceived as necessary in order for central banks to be held accountable for their choices. But it can be showed that if central banks have an information advantage over other economic agents as regards the future path of the economy, then , on the contrary , they should be opaque and not disclose their expectations. This is because transparency makes it more difficult to stabilise the economy. If, for example, the central bank expects some inflation and it makes this known, economic agents’ inflation expectations will rise and it will be more difficult to control inflation. There are other areas where the central bank can be transparent or opaque (its internal discussions, objectives, theoretical views, etc.). But when it comes to economic forecasts, opacity leads to greater well-being than transparency.