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Fed seeks nominations to Consumer Advisory Council
The Federal Reserve Board has announced that it is seeking nominations for appointments to its Consumer Advisory Council. Eleven new members will be appointed to serve three-year terms beginning in January 2005.
Germany draft Weder onto 'Five Wise Men' panel
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's cabinet approved Beatrice Weder di Mauro, a university economist, as the first woman and first foreigner to join the government's council of economic advisers, the so called "Five Wise Men".
Trichet shown red card for speaking English
French deputies walked out of the Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly on Monday 21 June when ECB chief Jean-Claude Trichet began addressing a meeting in English, according to Reuters.
ECB board bypass Frankfurt
Apparently none of the Frankfurt based European Central Bank's board members actually live in Frankfurt, the FT revealed this week.
Bundesbank board don't want new code of conduct
Some board members of the Bundesbank do not want to comply with a new code of conduct for the time being, following the scandal surrounding former president Ernst Welteke, and the latest one reportedly involving public money to build luxury villas for…
Welteke settles for €25,000 fine
Ernst Welteke has agreed to pay 25,000 euros ($30,000)to charity to end a criminal probe into his conduct. Last week we reported his lawyers had rejected a demand of 50,000 euros saying the sum was "much too high".
Fed's Gramlich on reducing budget deficits
In a speechon 'Reducing budget deficits' given on 24 June, Edward Gramlich of the Federal Reserve said the United States must reduce its budget deficits and enforce a tighter fiscal policy to ensure the long-run health of the economy.
Krueger on the IMF at 60: What role for the future
In a speech on 'The IMF at 60: What Role for the Future?' given on 24 June, Anne Krueger of the IMF said if the IMF didn't already exist, it would pretty quickly have to be invented. Though the world is different from that known to the Bretton Woods…
Canada's Dodge calls for global trade rules
Speaking in Paris on Thursday 24 June, Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge urged the adoption of coordinated global trade rules and accounting practices, but said countries still need to plot their own economic course.
IMF urges more flexible yuan policy
Rodrigo Rato, the new International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director, on Thursday 24 June told China's leaders that now would be a good time to make their yuan exchange rate policies more flexible.
Rates not to blame for slow growth: Padoa-Schioppa
The European Central Bank's reluctance to cut interest rates below 2 per cent isn't to blame for slow growth in the 12 nations that share the euro, said Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, an ECB board member, in an interview with newspaper La Stampa.
The Norwegian Banking Crisis
It has been ten years since the Norwegian banking crisis ended. This publication considers the crisis in retrospect and provides a comprehensive, but reasonably compact description in English of the Norwegian banking crisis. It contains six chapters and…
Bank of England Inflation Attitudes Survey, May 04
The Bank of England's May 2004 quarterly Inflation Attitudes Survey was published on 18 June. Asked about the future path of interest rates, 71% expected rates to rise in the next 12 months, up slightly from 69% in the February survey.
BoE's King on asset prices and oil price impact
In his opening statement to the Treasury Committee given on 24 June, Mervyn King of the Bank of England said, when asked if it was the case that the Bank had dropped its gradualist approach: "No ... I don't think we have," adding that in any case the BoE…
Sweden holds interest rates unchanged
At its meeting on Wednesday, 23 June, the Executive Board of the Sveriges Riksbank decided to leave the repo rate unchanged at 2 per cent. The Riksbank said that the recovery in Sweden and abroad is progressing largely as anticipated.
Riksbank investigates premature rate announcement
Sweden's Riksbank said on Thursday 24 June that it was investigating the premature publication of its interest rate decision.
Fed's Kohn on regulatory reform proposals
In testimony 'Regulatory reform proposals' given on 22 June, Donald Kohn of the Federal Reserve said that the Federal Reserve Board strongly supports legislative proposals that would authorise the payment of interest on demand deposits and on balances…
ECB's Padoa-Schioppa on challenges post-FSAP
In a speech on 'Challenges of financial integration in the post-FSAP period' given on 23 June, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa of the ECB said efforts in the post-FSAP period should be devoted to best implementing the new framework. If exploited ambitiously, the…
NY Fed study sees no sign of US housing bubble
The New York Federal Reserve Bank said in a study published on Tuesday that there is no bubble in U.S. home prices despite the price surge in recent years and even if regional prices do fall, that will not pose a threat to the overall economy.
Inflation too low for rate rise says Chile's Corbo
Chilean central bank president Vittorio Corbo has said that the nation's inflation rate is too low to warrant a hike in the bank's benchmark lending rate.
OECD chief economist: Inflation risk 'manageable'
Jean-Phillipe Cotis, chief economist for the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said the current level of oil prices will not pose an inflationary threat to the U.S. and European economies.
IMF chief Rato calls for deficit cuts
On the first part of his first Asian trip, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Rodrigo Rato urged Washington to cut its budget deficit and called on Beijing to "slow down" the Chinese economy to a more sustainable pace.
Fed Reserve Bank of Richmond - Annual Report 2003
The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2003. Academic and central bank economists have devoted considerable attention recently to determining how central banks can best maintain price stability. In the…
Financial stability and macroeconomic models
The pre-release article to the Bank of England's Financial Stability Review "Financial stability and macroeconomic models" says financial instability is commonly perceived to be costly. But how costly? And why?