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Welteke says risks to economic growth are high
Bundesbank chief Ernst Welteke implied the ECB may be close to easing interest rates. Speaking in Stockholm he said that the euro zone economy had risks on the downside and that low growth posed more of a threat than inflation.
George moves to allay fears on public finances
Edward George agrees with Mervyn King that the UK housing market is set for a dramatic slowdown in price rises. He joins the stability and growth pact debate effectively criticising it by raising concerns about spending cuts and tax increases when the…
JGBs higher as BoJ leaves policy unchanged
The Bank of Japan said Tuesday it would maintain current policy for money market operations. The vote was unanimous. Although the BoJ is under political pressure to ease further it was felt by many that they are waiting to see what impact their recent…
BOJ minutes reveal wariness over stock-buying plan
As the Bank of Japan prepares to implement its new stock buying policy minutes to the Bank of Japan meeting 17-18 September show some board members expressed skepticism over the plan. The minutes have not yet been published but were obtained by a news…
Bank of Slovenia - Annual Report 2001
ANNUAL REPORT - The Bank of Slovenia has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2001. The report says the main feature of the past year has been the slowdown in the economy around the globe with domestic demand modest also. Large financial…
Greenspan speaks at book launch
SPEECH - Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan spoke at the launch of a new book by Allan Meltzer. He described the book, History of the Federal Reserve Volume I as an indispensable input for monetary economists and economic historians alike. Drafts of the book…
Dodge on promoting Canada's economic welfare
SPEECH - In the speech 'Promoting Canada's Economic and Financial Welfare' David Dodge of the Bank of Canada said Canada's inflation target, which aims to keep the rate at the mid point of a 1-3 per cent range, has firmly anchored expectations at the 2…
New financial regulator chief named in Ireland
IRELAND - The new Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority has appointed Liam O'Reilly, a member of the ECB Banking Supervision Committee, as its chief executive.
Uzbek council formed to liberalise banking
UZBEKISTAN - Following a September visit from the IMF during which liberalization of the economy was discussed, Uzbek President Islam Karimov has moved to reform the banking system through a National Banking Council.
'Effective micro-finance system needed' in India
INDIA - The Reserve Bank of India has said it plans to put in place a 'more vibrant' micro-finance delivery environment by encouraging complementary and competitive models of micro-finance.
Gov't raising Philippine inflation target for 2003
PHILIPPINES - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has convinced the Development Budget Coordination Committee to adjust upward the inflation target for 2003 to a range of 4.5 to 5.5 percent from the original target of 4-5 percent.
Who Will Be the Next Fed Chairman?
US - Speculation grows as to Alan Greenspans possible successor. A recently compiled list of candidates suggests a Harvard University professor, Martin Feldstein, is a strong contender.
German coins make their mark in the eurozone
GERMANY - Though recent surveys suggest many Germans want their old marks back, it looks like German minted euro coins are poised to flood across borders. Because a third of all euro coins are produced with German national images on the reverse some…
French drive for securities regulator
FRANCE - The debate over whether Europe should have a single securities regulator continues as Paris based Eurofi, which has close links with the French government, plans to publish proposals based on a poll of financial services companies.
Bank of Japan to begin share buying plan next week
JAPAN - Japan's shock move to purchase equities in a bid to solve the banks bad loans crisis will begin next week. Last week Japan's FSA brought further concern suggesting that the problem could have been underestimated by as much as Y13,000bn.
Bundesbank chief gives backing to EU growth pact
GERMANY - Bundesbank president Ernst Welteke, who sits on the ECB's interest rate setting council, throws his support behind the stability and growth pact which was labelled "stupid" by Romano Prodi recently. "The increasingly open attacks on the pact…
Swedes to hold euro referendum
SWEDEN - Sweden gets the go ahead for a euro referendum from the government but as we reported last week deputy governor of the Swedish Central Bank, Eva Srejber, thinks 2006 is a realistic timetable for Sweden to enter EMU. Swedish trade unionists…
Domingo Solans on the euro as a driving force
SPEECH - Eugenio Domingo Solans of the European Central Bank said five years is a very short period of time in the normal life of a central bank. He compared the ECB to the Banco de San Carlos, the forerunner of the Bank of Spain created in 1782…
Britain held back by isolation from euro
LETTER - Letter published in the Financial Times, 18 November by Simon Buckby, Campaign Director, Britain in Europe. He says Britain's label of the 'reluctant European' has cost it dear and membership of the euro will be the first step in repairing the…
Deutsche Bundesbank Monthly Report, October 2002
REPORT - Germany's central bank, on 14 November published its Monthly Report for October 2002. The Bundesbank said in its monthly report that gross domestic product grew by just 0.25 percent between July and September, compared to 0.3 percent expansion…
CentralBankNet Monday Special Feature
SPECIAL FEATURE - Mervyn King caused a stir last week saying "I have no wish to go into the pulpit" and lecture people about house prices. But with UK property values at dangerously high levels and the catastrophic consequences for the UK economy if, in…
Indian banks cautioned on risks in e-banking
INDIA - The Reserve Bank of India has cautioned Indian banks about the inherent risk factors that accompany the introduction of high-tech electronic delivery system in the banking sector.
Russian gov't agrees to currency control removal
RUSSIA - Russia's government agreed in principle Thursday on a draft of a law that would abolish almost all currency controls by 2007.
Korea - Inflationary pressures likely to mount
KOREA - Consumer-price inflation will likely accelerate in coming months due to wage hikes and the recent rise in international oil prices, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Thursday.