Swiss National Bank (SNB)
SNB board member speaks on ‘very limited' ethical investment programme
A desire not to move markets informs the SNB's decision not to provide details on its new ethical investment strategy, which will affect a 'very limited' number of companies
SNB expands equity holdings in ethical investment drive
Switzerland’s central bank increases its equity holdings by $18 billion to $77 billion in 2013; refuses to invest in companies that cause 'severe environmental damage'
Turkish central bank award aims to promote research in central banking
Turkey award follows the Carl Menger Prize for Research launched by the Bundesbank, the National Bank of Austria and the Swiss National Bank in January
Swiss upper house rejects initiative that would force SNB to double gold holdings
Proposal that would require central bank to hold at least 20% of total assets in gold is slated for referendum but political establishment is strongly opposed
US foreign investment flows 'significantly' impacted by surprising monetary policy
Both gross and net foreign investment income flows in US and Canada impacted, SNB paper finds; suggests foreign balance sheet channels plays 'increasingly important role' for monetary transmission
Major central banks phase out dollar liquidity operations
ECB, BoE, BoJ and SNB will start scaling back the amount of dollar liquidity they offer to market participants in April in response to waning demand
Swiss National Bank tightens controls on mortgage lending
Switzerland’s Federal Council approves central bank proposal to double the size of the counter-cyclical capital buffer and cool the housing market
Central banks found research prize in honour of Carl Menger
Deutsche Bundesbank, National Bank of Austria and Swiss National Bank announce the creation of a new prize for economic research, named after Austrian economist Carl Menger
SNB's Jordan: 'Transparency can be counterproductive'
Chairman of the Swiss National Bank calls for central banks to take ‘great caution’ before making changes to their communications policy; expresses scepticism over board minutes and forward guidance
SNB loses $16 billion on gold
The Swiss National Bank expects to report a loss of 10 billion dollars for 2013 as heavy valuation losses on its gold holdings outweigh forex gains and StabFund profits
People: Canada deputy retires; Tucker becomes Sir Paul
John Murray's retirement creates a deputy governor vacancy at the Bank of Canada; former Bank of England deputy Paul Tucker is knighted; and more
Swiss paper dissects asset price responses to economic news
Researchers find the relationship between asset prices and economic news is shaped by the prevailing economic conditions – including policy rates and perception of risk
UBS buys back ‘bad bank' from Swiss central bank
Switzerland's biggest bank is reacquiring vehicle set up by the Swiss National Bank in 2008 to relieve it of illiquid assets and save it from potential collapse; Deal earns SNB $3.8 billion in profit
People: Barclays economist returns to BoE; Cleveland steps up search for Pianalto replacement
Bank of England hires Simon Hayes from Barclays to replace Robert Wood in charge of MPC economic forecasts, reporting to Spencer Dale; Cleveland Fed hires search firm to find new president
Leading central banks make emergency swap lines permanent
Six leading central banks are leaving bilateral swap agreements introduced during the financial crisis in place until further notice; US dollar liquidity-providing operations will continue as normal
Swiss researchers sceptical about advanced settlement algorithms
SNB working paper says overhauling the algorithms used in the Swiss Interbank Clearing system would produce an ‘economically irrelevant’ reduction in settlement delay and ‘low’ cost savings
SNB paper tests shock response on individual sectors
Researchers apply dynamic factor model to Swiss economy to examine impact of monetary policy, exchange rates and external demand on different sectors
UBS and Credit Suisse still pose risks to financial stability, SNB vice-chair says
Jean-Pierre Danthine argues Basel III is inadequate and does not rule out possibility of future public bail-outs; warns Switzerland's biggest banks still 'very large by international standards'
SNB chair shrugs off critique of Swiss exchange rate ceiling
Thomas Jordan says Swiss franc peg prompted by 'safe haven' status is neither at odds with long-standing current account surplus nor undermining adjustment of global financial imbalances
Banknotes worth $2m stolen from Swiss printer
Investigation under way into theft of incomplete Sfr1,000 notes that subsequently entered circulation as counterfeits
SNB reiterates commitment to franc price ceiling and zero interest rate
Swiss National Bank is ready to buy unlimited quantities of foreign exchange and take other measures if required to hold the franc down; inflation should turn positive next year, it says
UBS prepares to buy ‘bad bank' assets back from SNB
StabFund effectively cut UBS's exposure to troubled credit markets in the US and Europe by buying up the bank's illiquid securities for $38.7 billion using funds largely borrowed from the central bank
SNB currency action leaves big imprint on Swiss balance of payments
Reserve assets at the SNB increased by Sfr175 billion in 2012 – nearly a fourfold increase from 2011 – reflecting efforts to keep the franc at a sustainable level
SNB researchers find modified Arima model predicts inflation better
Estimating Arima models for individual CPI expenditure items and aggregating the forecasts from these models gives better results than directly applying the Arima method to the total CPI, paper finds