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Mboweni calls for clarity on SARB's duties on rand
Tito Mboweni has called for the South African Reserve Bank's constitution to be changed so that the central bank's objectives can be clarified, according to a report by Business Day. Mboweni insisted that the bank's primary objective was to achieve price…
Greece to mint 2 euro coin to help fund Olympics
Bank of Greece governor Nicholas Garganas announced on Monday 29 September that Greece will issue a commemorative 2 euro coin, according to a reporrt by Associated Press. Proceeds from the sale of coins will be used to help fund the 2004 Olympics which…
IMF: Bank of Israel independence will help growth
IMF first deputy managing director Anne Krueger expressed great interest in the proposed changes in the Bank of Israel Law last week in a meeting with Governor David Klein, according to a report by Globes Online. She said that, based on the IMF's…
South Korea relaxes rules on credit cards
In a move designed to boost the recession-hit economy, South Korea relaxed credit card rules on Tuesday 30 September, according to AFP, allowing firms to extend the maturity of loans while putting off next year's deadline to bring their cash advances…
PBOC clarifies policy role and responsibilities
The People's Bank of China spelled out its monetary policy role and gave a detailed description of its responsibilities in a fourteen point statement posted on its web site on Tuesday 30 September and reported by China Daily. The statement specified its…
Eurozone inflation remains above 2.0pc
Provisional figures for eurozone inflation released on Tuesday 30 September showed that the rate remained above the ECB's target at 2.1%, according to BizWorld. Ireland had the highest rate of inflation in August, at 3.9pc, followed by Greece and Spain…
EU sees more signs of economic recovery
The EU's third quarter economic report released on Tuesday 30 September expressed optimism in the euro zone economy but warned of risks to the recovery, reports Associated Press. "Recent data have begun to send out encouraging signals suggesting that the…
Warning issued over UK money laundering directive
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants warned the UK Treasury on Monday 29 September, according to the Financial Times, that the new money laundering directive, due to come into force in January, may swamp the National Criminal Intelligence…
Philadelphia Fed Business Review, 3rd Quarter 2003
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia has published its regular Business Review for the Third Quarter 2003. In the first article President Santomero examines whether inflation targeting makes sense for the U.S. Other articles examine changes in the…
HKMA and Insurance Authority sign MoU
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Insurance Authority (IA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) which aims to enhance the co-operation, exchange of information and mutual assistance between the two authorities.
Fed Res Bank of San Francisco - Annual Report 2002
The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2002. The Annual Report said the District refocused its payments business strategy to streamline operations, gain efficiencies, and control costs by realigning…
Gjedrem on developments in the Norwegian economy
In a speech on 'Developments in the Norwegian economy and banks' given on 25 September Svein Gjedrem of Norges Bank said the two-track economy, with high household income growth and problems in the corporate sector, is also reflected in developments in…
BoJ's Muto on the Battle against Deflation
In the speech 'Battle against Deflation' given on 26 September Toshiro Muto of the Bank of Japan said exchange rate stability remains an important goal for Japan, in the wake of the G7 statement. He added that Japan was ready to act in the event of…
Heikensten on the Swedish economy, monetary policy
In a speech on 'The Swedish economy and monetary policy' given on 29 September Lars Heikensten of the Sveriges Riksbank said the outlook for economic activity and inflation has not changed much since August. For Sweden, it seems likely that the economy…
Central banks: What to achieve & how to get there
This article in the Independent newspaper says that underneath it all, central bankers are ordinary folk, and they, too, face difficulties in achieving what they want. At the Bank of England, the Monetary Policy Committee's life has been relatively short…
Fake euro coins hit Belgium
The National Bank of Belgium has found its first fake euro coins, according to Expatica News. The coins were discovered when a batch was returned to the central bank as stock. The fake one and two euros were described by the Treasury as of very high…
France facing heavy fines over budget excesses
EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Pedro Solbes said on Monday 29 September that unless France changed its budget plans for 2004 by next week it faced heavy fines. according to Ireland Online."We are considering a specific set of recommendations to France,…
Greenspan says education needed to combat fraud
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Friday 26 September that the financial marketplace has grown increasingly complex since four decades ago, when all Americans needed to know was how to write a check and open a savings account, according to…
Politician calls for Bank of Canada investigation
An opposition politician in Canada has called for a full investigation by the government into the role Bank of Canada governor David Dodge may have played in a financial scandal which emerged while Dodge was deputy minister for health, Reuters reports.
Tito Mboweni addresses threats to inflation target
South African Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni said on Friday 26 September, according to Finance 24, that the SARB still had much to do to conquer inflation expectations in the country, which at between 8% and 9% were currently far higher than the…
Economist Franco Modigliani dies aged 85
Franco Modigliani, winner of the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1985, has died aged 85, according to the Financial Times. Modigliani made major contributions to macroeconomics - particularly the "life-cycle" savings hypothesis and taught at MIT from 1962…
Boston Fed's Minehan: recovery should be sustained
In her first detailed comments on the economy since March, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Cathy Minehan said, according to Reuters, that consumer spending seems to be on pace to grow by 4 percent this quarter, and business spending should…
Report says Korean bank notes last longer
A report produced by the Bank of Korea says Korean bank notes are more durable than paper money from the USA, Canada and Britain, according to a report by Digital Chosun. The average durability of a W10,000 note was 54 months, much longer than the 18…
Persson: Swedish economy after the EMU referendum
Deputy Governor of the Sveriges Riksbank Kristina Persson gave a speech on 29 September at the Business Economists club in Sundsvall under the heading "The Swedish economy after the EMU referendum". She said in the longer term, her personal conviction is…