Financial Stability
Moody’s alters sovereign debt ratings of nine EU countries
Austria, France and the UK see outlooks on Aaa ratings changed to negative; Spain and five other countries’ ratings are downgraded
BoE’s King explains continuing high inflation
Mervyn King writes to chancellor of the exchequer explaining why inflation remains above target; despite 0.6% drop in rate since December, governor must offer reasons for missed target
Japan 'clarifies' monetary policy stance amid criticism
Bank of Japan again increases size of asset purchase programme and sets an inflation target; follows political pressure that Japan is sending the message deflation is acceptable
Boston Fed investigates effects of credit scores on payment choice
Discussion paper finds evidence to back anecdotes that debit card use is negatively impacted by poor credit scores
Riksbank submits proposal to transfer allocation of profit to Treasury
Swedish central bank plans to transfer Skr7.5 billion to Treasury; full plan to be revealed at end of March
UK banks miss 'Project Merlin' lending targets
Results of 'Project Merlin' show bank net lending fell in 2011; major banks missed targets for lending to smaller businesses
Japanese public offers opinions on economic conditions
Bank of Japan publishes results from most recent public opinion survey; many expect to see economic conditions worsen in next 12 months
Central Bank of Ireland reveals enforcement priorities
Irish central bank tells financial service providers what it will focus on in terms of enforcement actions in 2011; warns reactive enforcement will also occur outside of set priorities
Solomon Islands warns of counterfeits and announces new coins
Solomon Islands public warned about counterfeit banknotes in circulation; central bank also announces new coins to be issued
New South African banknotes will portray image of Mandela
First democratically elected president of South Africa honoured in currency redesign; new notes expected by the end of 2012
Central banks find novel uses for old banknotes
Central Bank of Ireland makes old notes into artwork; National Bank of Hungary offers the decommissioned banknotes to charities to burn for heating purposes
Shirakawa warns against renewed risk of spillover effects from Europe
Bank of Japan governor Masaaki Shirakawa says Asian banks should pay careful attention to deleveraging by European financial institutions; calls for further efforts to develop corporate bond markets in the region
EBA makes first assessment of banks’ capital plans
European Banking Authority receives recapitalisation plans from majority of banks highlighted in capital shortfall assessment; confirms no EU-wide stress test until 2013
Stock markets react strongly to news about Greek bailouts, says Netherlands Bank paper
Netherlands Bank study says news about Greek bailouts rather than Greek fundamentals have a significant effect on bank stock prices
Brazil deputy governor positive about economic future
Aldo Mendes says Brazil is prepared to face global economic deterioration; expects to see final growth figure of 3% for 2011 announced soon
SNB announces year-long delay on new banknotes
Problems with suppliers mean the new Swiss banknotes will not enter circulation until the end of 2013 at the earliest; latest hiccup in long process of renewing the currency
Canada’s Macklem supports greater autonomy for FSB
Bank of Canada senior deputy governor, Tiff Macklem, says expansion of resources at Financial Stability Board will enable it to better co-ordinate, monitor and assess financial reforms
Emerging markets benefited from solid balance sheets, says BIS paper
Bank for International Settlements study says Latin American and Asian countries experienced more sustainable levels of credit growth due to healthy balance sheets pre-crisis
EPC outlines new models for mobile payments
European Payments Council requests feedback on new model for contactless and remote mobile payments in Europe; focuses on the preferred type of secure-elements technology used in mobile phones
Malaysia and China extend currency swap arrangement
People's Bank of China and Bank Negara Malaysia renew and expand currency swap arrangement, designed to facilitate greater bilateral trade and investment
Norges Bank announces end date for public to exchange old banknotes
Norwegians have until November 2012 to exchange old series of banknotes before they are rendered worthless, 11 years after new currency series was introduced
Rapid credit growth in Asia driven by domestic factors, says IMF paper
International Monetary Fund study says domestic monetary policy can play a pivotal role in managing credit growth in emerging Asian markets
IMF can help with access to safe assets and global liquidity, says ECB’s Cœuré
European Central Bank executive board member Benoît Cœuré says IMF can help address the shortage of safe assets and global liquidity by borrowing and lending global excess reserves
Lithuanian central bank completes euro credit migration to Sepa
Bank of Lithuania says government institutions holding accounts with central bank will now be able to initiate and receive payments in euros through Sepa credit payments scheme