Czech Republic
Prospective eurozone members fail to meet convergence criteria, ECB says
Seven prospective member countries show greater convergence in their economic indicators but fail to meet requirements for their legal frameworks, ECB report says
Board member appointed as next Czech governor
Rusnok has been on the board since 2014 and is a former interim prime minister; he will serve a term of “at least five years”, from July 1
Czech president names two central bank board members
Czech president Milos Zeman appoints two new members to the central bank’s board; both are former colleagues of rumoured next governor Jiří Rusnok
Czech central bank anticipates near-zero inflation in coming months
Czech central bank says monetary policy should have been easier; anticipates inflation falling towards zero in coming months but rising by end of 2016
Chinese and Czech central bank enlarge MoU to include crisis management
Czech National Bank and China’s banking regulator have deepened their existing memorandum of understanding to include working together on crisis-hit banks, Czech governor says
Singer outlines evolution of Czech reserves
Miroslav Singer tells London audience the Czech National Bank reserve allocation remains 'conservative', despite expanding into equities and new currencies in recent years
Czech Republic chooses not to set target date for euro adoption
Government decision follows central bank and ministry of finance advice; authorities cite need for greater real economic convergence as a ‘main barrier’ to adoption
Researchers find ‘strong evidence’ of ECB policy spillovers to CEE countries
Working paper examines the spillover effects of the ECB’s ‘non-standard’ measures since 2007 on the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Romania
CNB’s Miroslav Singer on transparency, China and Basel III
The governor of the Czech National Bank speaks to Christopher Jeffery about transparency challenges, lifting exchange controls, China's slowdown and flaws in Basel III.
Czech governor casts doubt on Basel III
Miroslav Singer says he is ‘very sceptical’ about the shift from the second Basel accord to the third in an interview with the Central Banking Journal
Czech exchange commitment will ‘probably’ run beyond July 2016
Czech National Bank likely to use exchange rate as a monetary policy tool until July 2016 or later; formal extension and negative interest rates discussed but judged unnecessary
CNB faces strategy dilemma when it comes to ending exchange rate floor
Vice governor Mojmir Hampl says the Czech National Bank faces dilemma when it comes to removing its FX floor as it does not want to shock markets; communication will be key
Czech board expects strong growth showing
Board members at the Czech National Bank caught off guard by strong growth in first quarter, minutes show, but expect stronger-than-forecasted growth for rest of year
Czech vice-governor questions case for joining banking union
Mojmír Hampl considers the pros and cons of the Czech Republic joining the SSM; government adopts a ‘wait-and-see approach’ and will review the issue every 12 months
Czech director: US dollar helps compensate for impact of oil prices on CEE countries
Luboš Komárek discusses the outlook for Central and Eastern European countries, including the favourable outlook for Germany, which is a "crucial trade partner" for many in the region
Czech paper examines link between financial variables and macroeconomy
Financial variables ‘particularly relevant’ in explaining Czech macroeconomic developments in the lead-up to and during downturns, researchers find
Czech National Bank advises against joining ERM II in 2015
Central bank says the government should not set a target date for entry into the eurozone; raises concern over pace of economic convergence and costs of joining
Czech banks ‘resilient’ to adverse shocks
Latest stress tests conducted by the Czech National Bank finds the country’s banking sector is ‘sufficiently resilient’ to shocks, including a ‘sizeable decline’ in economic activity
Czech currency intervention and forex reserves
Michal Skorepa and Mojmír Hampl explain how the Czech National Bank’s activities have directly and indirectly affected the value of the koruna, including the impact of direct interventions in 2013
Czech economy generating ‘noticeable inflationary pressures’
Czech National Bank board members point to ‘rapid’ rise in wages as indicator of inflationary pressures, but remain concerned by price developments in the eurozone
IMF deems Czech exchange rate floor appropriate ‘for now’
Latest staff report commends CNB’s decision to intervene in foreign exchange market; supports the floor but says it should be removed ‘as soon as conditions allow’
Firm-level characteristics affect monetary policy transmission, Czechs find
Working paper finds firm-specific characteristics like size, age, collateral and profit, affect the way in which monetary policy changes are reflected in the external financing decisions of firms
Czech banks could ride out recession plus deflation, central bank says
The Czech financial sector is exposed to bond volatility but banks have sufficient buffers to survive a ‘strong recession accompanied by deflation', financial stability report says
Czech National Bank calls for research on 'priority topics'
Topics include potential improvements to inflation targeting framework and the issues related to euro adoption; Bank of Estonia also launches research award