Financial Stability
ADB economist moots idea of common currency in Asia
Principal economist at Asian Development Bank says common currency possible in ‘long run’; panellists outline possibilities for greater Asian economic integration
World Gold Council says disinflation may support gold demand
Statistical commentary argues gold price may increase due to disinflation; says current economic environment ‘supportive’ of gold demand
Central bankers discuss cooperation in times of crisis
Fed’s Duke and ECB’s Cœuré offer thoughts on pros and cons of central banks working together during periods of economic turmoil; both take the chance to defend their institution’s actions
UK Treasury proposes payments regulation overhaul
Government sets out options for changes to payments regulation in UK; favours creation of new ‘Payments Strategy Board’ to monitor industry and make recommendations
Central Bank of Barbados challenges rating downgrade
S&P lowers Barbados’s sovereign credit rating triggering angry response from central bank; says it is ‘manifestly’ not the case that debt risk has increased
BoE reports mixed credit conditions
Bank of England’s quarterly ‘Trends in Lending’ shows lending to UK businesses contracted but consumer credit flows rose over the second quarter of 2012
Spanish governor admits central bank’s failings
Luis Linde addresses past errors made by the Bank of Spain with regard to supervision of the financial system; says hindsight would mean a different approach to counter-cyclical provisioning
Eurozone crisis at 'critical' stage, says IMF
International Monetary Fund stresses need for completion of monetary union and sets out three vital common elements to create banking union; ECB’s Asmussen echoes thoughts on vital need for union
BIS paper argues financial systems can grow too large
Working paper examines impact of size of financial systems on productivity growth; finds size of financial sector initially boosts productivity but beyond certain threshold has negative effect
Bernanke blames Europe and fiscal cliff for stalling recovery
Chairman of the Federal Reserve says two main risks to economic improvement in the US are eurozone woes and looming fiscal cliff; urges lawmakers to act promptly
Bank of Israel unveils proposals to increase banking competition
Interim report sets out numerous measures to increase competition in Israel’s banking sector; says banking suffers from high concentration and low efficiency
NY Fed failed to share Libor low-balling fears with BoE, says King
Governor of the Bank of England says NY Fed did not pass on anecdotal evidence of Barclays’ manipulation of Libor submissions; says recommendations for reform were not a warning of trouble
Del Missier renews pressure on BoE over Libor scandal
Former chief operating officer of Barclays Bank says he was told instruction to submit lower Libor rates came from Bank of England; directly contradicts Bob Diamond’s testimony
IMF calls for policy action to counter looming downside risks
Latest World Economic Outlook and Global Financial Stability Report say further action is necessary by policy-makers in Europe, the US and emerging markets, as downside risks 'loom large'
ECB reports drop in seized counterfeit euro banknotes
Number of fake euro banknotes withdrawn from circulation falls to 251,000; lowest amount of fake notes found since 2003
RBI official highlights problematic international regulations
Reserve Bank of India executive director examines impact of converging banking regulation on India; suggests global rules may have positive spillovers, but must be tailored to domestic economy
ECB paper analyses risk-sharing in emerging markets
Working paper finds evidence of pro-cyclicality of capital gains on domestic stock markets; argues countries can hedge against risk by encouraging foreign investment
Geithner emails to King bring BBA into focus over Libor
Communications between the then president of the NY Fed and the governor of the BoE show 2008 concerns over Libor system; British Bankers' Association was asked to look at recommendations for change
Italian governor reviews uncertain outlook as Moody’s downgrades
Bank of Italy governor Ignazio Visco says banks have made progress in strengthening finances but warns of numerous downside risks; Moody’s downgrades Italy’s government bond rating
Singapore commemorates independence with heart-shaped coin
Monetary Authority of Singapore launches Singapore 47 Years of Independence commemorative coins; series includes the first-ever heart-shaped coin for the country
IMF paper assesses macro-prudential models in Latin America
Working paper evaluates two major Latin American policy models, one of institutional separation and one of integration; suggests areas for improvement in both models
Central Bank of Ireland paper weighs crisis impact on SME financing
Research technical paper assesses effect of economic, financial and debt crises in Europe on small and medium-sized enterprises’ access to credit; discusses impact of private debt overhang
ECB paper models policy interaction
Working paper examines the benefits of co-ordinating monetary and macro-prudential policies; finds separation of regimes can damage macroeconomic stability
Eurosytem and Mediterranean central bankers gather in Morocco
Central bankers meet to discuss economic and financial developments, monetary policy implementation and macro-prudential policies and financial stability