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Mutebile wants full BOU independence
The governor of the central bank of Uganda is seeking more autonomy for the bank to protect it from political interference. Appearing before the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), Mutebile called for an amendment to the BOU Statute, according to a…
Solomon Island: pyramid fraud shuts cb and banks
The Solomon Islands has shut major banks including the central bank after threats were made by the organisers of a failed pyramid investment scheme to blow up the banks, says the Sydney Morning Herald
Zeti reappointed Malaysia's cen bank chief: report
Reports on Sunday 11 May from ChannelNewsAsia said that Malaysia's central bank chief Zeti Akhtar Aziz has been reappointed for another three-year term. A spokesman said the King was pleased with Zeti's work in leading Bank Negara which has brought…
New splits over UK euro entry decision
On Sunday 11 May splits emerged over the euro, reports the Financial Times. UK cabinet ministers are sending different signals about whether euro entry is inevitable at some future point and the timing of a referendum.
New Irish financial regulator welcomed
An article in the Irish Times welcomes the development of the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority (IFSRA), saying it makes little sense for financial services activities within a group to be regulated by separate regulators when a failure of…
Germany drops pledge to balance budget
Germany on 11 May conceded defeat in its battle to cut spending and avoid recession by dropping its pledge to balance its budget by 2006 as required under the Stability and Growth Pact, according to a report by EurActiv.
The case for a common Asian currency by 2025
An article in Asahi Shimbun considers the case for a common currency in Asia, saying Asia is a logical candidate to take a leadership role in the reform of global currency markets.
Hoenig calls for more disclosure by banks
Speaking at the Chicago Fed conference Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Thomas Hoenig said banks could make "relevant disclosures" unearthed by supervisors about such issues as credit quality problems or substantial market risks, Reuters reports
Minutes of Riksbank Board meeting, 24 April
Minutes of the Sveriges Riksbank Executive Board meeting on 24 April were published 12 May. The minutes said one of the starting points in the assessment of the inflation picture was that the war would be short. Based on this, the Executive Board…
Moskow at 39th Annual Bank Structure Conference
In a speech at the 39th Annual Conference on Bank Structure and Competition Michael Moskow of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said the conference would discuss the role of boards of directors, changes in financial regulation, accounting standards and…
Duisenberg on accepting Austrian decoration
On accepting an Austrian decoration from Dr Thomas Klestil, the Austrian President, Wim Duisenberg of the European Central Bank said "I should again like to express my sincere gratitude for this high decoration. It strengthens my belief that the cause I …
CentralBankNet Monday Special Feature
SPECIAL FEATURE - The threat of deflation in Europe prompted the European Central Bank to soften its inflation objective and redefine its monetary policy strategy on Thursday. In this weeks CentralBankNet special feature we look at what the ECB has done…
Wim Duisenberg gets award from Austrian president
Decoration for Dr. Willem F. Duisenberg, President of the European Central Bank from the President of Austria, 9 May 2003.
IMF sees need for Japan inflation target
A senior adviser at the IMF's research department said Friday that the Bank of Japan needs to create expectations that deflation can be beaten and should consider introducing an inflation targeting policy.
Minutes show Fed had deflation worries in March
Policymakers expressed concern about deflation at the Federal Reserve's March meeting of the rate setting FOMC minutes released Thursday showed.
Tonga appoints woman as governor of central bank
Tonga has appointed a woman as head of the country's central bank. Siosi Cocker Mafi has worked at the Bank since 1993 and becomes the first woman to govern a central bank in the Pacific Islands.
Iraq central bank appears unlooted
Contrary to many early reports it seems the central bank of Iraq's main vaults have escaped looting and still contain U-S dollars, Iraqi dinars, gold and items from the museum put there for safekeeping.
French central bank employees demonstrate again
Bank of France employees went on strike again Thursday and demonstrated in Paris. The action concerned plans to close a number of the Bank's branches.
ECB Press Conference
At the ECB's post meeting press conference on Thursday Wim Duisenberg said taking due account of new economic and monetary information as well as the latest geopolitical developments, we concluded that the current monetary policy stance remains…
Greenspan on corporate governance
In the speech 'Corporate governance' Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve said the benefits of derivatives, in his judgment, have far exceeded their costs. But they do, unquestionably, pose risk-management challenges to market participants. But those…
Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee
The Federal Reserve on 8 May released the minutes of its FOMC meeting of 18 March. The minutes show policymakers were concerned that "part of the recent weakness" resulted from factors beyond the war and they were anxious that there "was as yet no…
Qatar and Jordan central banks full IFSB members
The Islamic Financial Services Board has approved the applications of Qatar Central Bank and the Central Bank of Jordan to join the IFSB as full members.
Big German banks to pay dearly for Basel II - Buba
Bundesbank council member Edgar Meister has said large German companies will pay heavily under the new Basel II regime as they will have to set aside billions of euros in additional capital to buffer against surprise losses.
ECB to aim for inflation 'close to 2%'
The ECB said Thursday that its Governing Council agreed that in the pursuit of price stability it will aim to maintain inflation rates close to 2% over the medium term. "This clarification underlines the ECB's commitment to provide a sufficient safety…