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Sweden to set course for decision on euro entry
Sweden looks set to name a date for a referendum on entry to the euro. Swedish central bank deputy governor Lars Heikensten recently said in a speech that the most likely date for a referendum would be Autumn 2003. In an interview Swedish PM Goran…
Paraguay central bank chief Raul Vera resigns
Paraguay's central bank president has resigned. The decision came on Wednesday and will weaken the government of President Luis Gonzalez Macchi as it struggles to end the country's economic crisis.
Reserve Management in an Era of Low Returns
RESEARCH - Although central banks have traditionally conducted their reserves management in a conservative and risk-averse way, the very low interest rates we see now have caused central banks, like other fixed income investors, to search for higher…
Heikensten on the krona, Sweden and EMU
SPEECH - In the speech 'The krona, Sweden and EMU' Lars Heikensten of the Sveriges Riksbank said the most likely time for a referendum to Sweden's entry to the euro would be Autumn 2003. If Sweden was to enter ERM2 Heikensten said, the decision on the…
William Poole - From Professor to Policymaker
SPEECH - In the speech 'From Professor to Policymaker: Emerging from the Shadow' William Poole of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis said his years of teaching and writing as a university professor have helped him to develop effective communication…
Chicago Fed Letter, December 2002 Special Issue
REPORT - The latest Chicago Fed Letter is titled 'Financial market and regulatory behaviour over the business cycle'. It asks the questions, should regulation and supervision be used to smooth out the business cycle? and how do financial firms respond to…
Brazil c bank raises key interest rate to 22 pct
After a sharp increase in rates by three percent, which we reported just last month, the Banco Central Do Brasil has again raised interest rates. This time a more modest rise of one point was signalled by the central bank. Inflation is a concern with…
Serb payment reform to prompt new bank mergers
Yugoslavia will shift responsibility for payment systems in January 2003 to commercial banks and away from the state controlled central bank. The move towards a more competitive payment systems market is likely to prove a testing time for Serbia and…
Greenspan on Int'l Financial Risk Management
SPEECH - In the speech 'International Financial Risk Management' Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve said episodes such as September 11 indicate that the ability of economies to absorb unexpected shocks has increased over the past two decades. He also…
Sveriges Riksbank press release
PRESS RELEASE - Governor Urban Backstrom participated on Tuesday in a seminar. The theme was "A decade since the krona fell" and Mr Backstrom presented conclusions that can be drawn from the change of stabilisation policy regime that the krona's fall…
Greenspan - Fed has monetary tools left if needed
Alan Greenspan said on Tuesday that war worries were "a very large hurdle" hindering the recovery but that once these concerns were out of the way the economy should rebound. He also called on Germany and Japan to increase efforts to deregulate their…
BOJ downgrades economy view, first time in a year
The Bank of Japan's monthly report comes a day after it resisted pressure to further stimulate the lethargic economy at the Banks monetary policy meeting. The report said inflation remained on a downward trend and that with exports and output flat there…
Bank of England voted 7-2 to hold rates
The Bank of England seem to be moving away from an easing bias, minutes published Wednesday show. The previous record showed three committee members wanted a quarter point rate cut but this time Kate Barker shifted back with the majority in favour of…
King on The Inflation Target 10 Years on
SPEECH - In the speech 'The Inflation Target 10 Years on' Mervyn King of the Bank of England said the Monetary Policy Committee could not target asset prices directly but spent a lot of time questioning how such changes should affect policy. He believes…
Bank of England Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - In a speech at the London School of Economics 19 November, Mervyn King, Deputy Governor, Bank of England, explains in detail why price stability is desirable and sets out the benefits it has brought to the UK - The Inflation Target 10…
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee Minutes
MINUTES - Minutes of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee Meeting released on 20 November for the meeting of 6 and 7 November 2002. The nine MPC members voted on a proposal to maintain the repo rate at 4.0%. Seven voted in favour of this with…
Reserve Bank of New Zealand Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - The Reserve Bank has decided to leave the Official Cash Rate unchanged at 5.75 per cent. In addition, the Bank's projections show no change in short-term interest rates over the period ahead - reflecting the Bank's sense that the risks…
Mervyn King at the LSE
The irrepressible Mervyn King, deputy governor of the Bank of England, was in ebullient mood Tuesday night at the London School of Economics as he lauded the achievements of the Bank's ten years of inflation targetting. Nick Carver of Central Banking was…
US Economists' group criticises Fed rate cut
The Federal Reserves recent aggressive rate cut of half a point surprised most. It did nothing to improve sentiment in the markets with the dollar falling on the news as the US economy appeared to be in worse shape than was thought. Now the Shadow Open…
The Inflation Targeting Framework in Norway
RESEARCH - This IMF working paper assesses the institutional and technical design of Norway's inflation targeting framework which was adopted in early 2001, as well as its potential implications for the practical implementation of monetary policy against…
Bank of Japan Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - Bank of Japan, Monetary Policy Meeting held 19 November.
Eurozone inflation edges higher
The eurozone inflation rate rose a further point to 2.3 percent it was revealed on Monday. The ECB is not considered to be worried about inflation at the moment with Ernst Welteke recently saying the bank expected inflation would head downwards.
How to strengthen naira, by Nigeria's Sanusi
The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CNB), Dr. Joseph Sanusi, said Monday, that the only way to strengthen the naira at the foreign exchange market was to increase productivity of locally made goods.
Redefine the Bank of Canada
ARTICLE - An extract from former governor of the Bank of Canada John Crow's new book 'Making Money' has Crow on monetary policy. He says it's time for the federal government to clarify responsibility.