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Italian banks' merger breakthrough
Two of Italy's biggest banks are to merge to form Europe's 10th largest bank with a market value of €55bn ($80bn).
Hungary raises interest rates
The Hungarian central bank surprised markets with a half-point rate hike on Monday.
Iran unafraid of sanctions
Iran will be prepared for the economic consequences of UN sanctions, the governor of the country's central bank, Ebrahim Sheibani, said on Friday.
Swedish deputy on currency unions
In a speech in to celebrate the Bank of Uganda's 40th anniversary, the first deputy governor of Sveriges Riksbank talks about how countries should prepare themselves for joining a monetary union.
Chilean cb's study of sovereign debt in Americas
This paper contains the first comprehensive database on sovereign debt systematically compiled to ensure comparability for all countries in the Americas, the authors claim.
The euro as an invoice currency
A new ECB working paper investigates the determinants of currency invoicing in international trade.
Macfarlane says world can cope with oil shocks
The world economy is surprisingly good at absorbing price pressures from rising oil prices, said Ian Macfarlane, the outgoing governor of Australia's central bank.
Governor Hou criticises politicians' pay rise
The governor of the central bank of the Solomon Islands, Rick Hou, has criticised the timing of a recent pay rise awarded to local politicians.
Value in money laundering doubles in China
The amount of money involved in money laundering in China has more than doubled in 2005 from RMB4bn ($500m) to RMB10bn ($1.25bn), the central bank said on Thursday 24 August.
Czech central bank holds rates
Thursday's meeting of the Czech National Bank's governing board ended with rates being held at 2.25%, a spokeswoman said.
Japan's inflation lower than expected
Japanese core CPI for July showed a smaller than expected rise in inflation of 0.2% year on year.
Thai central bank wins appeal against ex-governor
A recent decision by Thailand's Supreme Administrative Court clears the way for the central bank to press for damages against former governor, Rerngchai Marakanond.
South African Reserve Bank releases annual report
According to the Reserve Bank's 2006 Annual Economic Report released on Wednesday 23 August, South Africa's current account deficit widened to a seasonally adjusted and annualised R98.9-billion in the first half of 2006 from R58.7-billion in the first…
Chicago Fed on home ownership
The Chicago Fed has published and article explaining recent high levels of residential investment and rates of home ownership.
Bank of Ghana governor on fraud
Paul Acquah, governor of the Bank of Ghana urged investigators to review operations in the light of the increasingly sophisticated methods involved in financial crime.
Bangladesh Bank acts on corruption
Bangladesh's central bank has taken action against seven of its officials for allegedly siphoning off money and defaulting on loan repayments.
Remittances on the rise in the Philippines
Money sent home by Filipinos working abroad rose 18% to $1.1bn in June compared to the same month last year.
Botswana's productivity "embarrassingly low"
Research at the Bank of Botswana, suggests the country's competitiveness and productivity is "embarrassingly low", said the governor, Linah Mohohlo.
Russia raises reserve requirements
Russia's central bank has increased minimum required reserves on foreign bank deposits from 2% to 3.5% in an effort to combat inflation.
Korea changes inflation target measure
Korea will target a new measure of inflation for 2007-2009, the central bank has said.
How to face natural disasters
A report on the effects of Hurricane Katrina considers the lessons learned from managing a catastrophic event, including dealing with a sudden fall in the availability of cash and when electronic systems fail.
Transparency in bond markets
This technical paper's conclusions suggest caution is needed in creating an extremely homogeneous and transparent trading environment for sovereign bonds.
How Australia hedges
This paper from Australia's central bank examines foreign exchange hedging behaviour in the country since it adopted a floating exchange rate regime.
Is financial globalisation worth it?
A paper from the IMF reviews the recent empirical literature on financial globalisation and finds qualified support for the view that developing countries can benefit from financial globalisation.