Monetary Policy
Bush sees no credibility problem for Bernanke
US President George Bush said in an interview on Friday 5 May that new Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke did not have a credibility problem.
Comment: Weber reveals his monetary policy stance
Axel Weber set out his thinking on the role of monetary policy and interest rates in three recent speeches. This article explores his views.
Comment: Unravelling the RBA hike
The Reserve Bank of Australia has joined the world's leading central banks in tightening mode. Last week's rate rise was largely unexpected and opinion is split over how far the central bank will go in hiking rates this year.
Issing to leave ECB but monetarism lives on
Otmar Issing's legacy is set to continue, despite his retirement from the European Central Bank at the end of the month, according to this article published Friday 5 May.
Comment: Trichet sounds his warning
After having made it clear that an interest rate increase was highly unlikely, the ECB's monetary policy meeting this week was all about how to signal future rate hikes pencilled in for later this year. Jean-Claude Trichet's message yesterday, 3 May, was…
ECB signals June rate rise
At the ECB's post-meeting press conference, after holding eurozone interest rates unchanged, on Thursday 4 May Jean-Claude Trichet said the Governing Council will exercise strong vigilance in order to ensure that risks to price stability over the medium…
RBA raises interest rates 0.25%
The Reserve Bank of Australia raised interest rates to a 5-year high of 5.75% on Wednesday 3 May. "The Board judged at its May meeting that inflationary risks had increased sufficiently to warrant an increase in the cash rate," RBA governor Ian…
Comment: Global impacts of US monetary policy
A recent ECB working paper finds that emerging markets stock markets returns can be reduced by more than 10% in response to a 100 basis point increase in US monetary policy rates. On average global equity markets fall by 3.8%.
A world out of balance
America’s deficits may not herald disaster says Angel Ubide, but should lead to questioning national monetary policy frameworks.
A few thoughts on the global situation
Policymakers around the world must act to restore order to the global economy says Jacques de Larosière.
Bernanke delivers 'There may come a time' speech
According to this article published on Friday 28 April , Fed chairman Ben Bernanke has given his version of Greenspan's "there may come a time" speech, suggesting the Fed could pause in its campaign to raise rates.
Bank of Canada Monetary Policy Report, Apr 2006
The Bank of Canada released its April 2006 Monetary Policy Report on 27 April. The latest report says the Canadian economy continues to grow at a solid pace, supported by robust global growth, firm commodity prices, and strong domestic demand.
RBNZ leaves OCR unchanged at 7.25 per cent
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced on Thursday 27 April that the Official Cash Rate (OCR) will remain at 7.25 per cent.
ECB to weigh rate options - Gonzalez-Paramo
ECB executive board member Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo said on Tuesday 25 April that the euro zone central bank will debate raising interest rates at its meeting next week, but nothing was fixed.
Bank of Canada raises interest rates
The Bank of Canada on Tuesday 25 April announced that it is raising its target for the overnight rate by one-quarter of one percentage point to 4 per cent.
ECB talk of normalising rates confirms slow pace
This article published on Monday 24 April suggests that a recent shift in ECB rhetoric to talk of normalising interest rates appears to confirm that the central bank has in mind a slow and steady course of rate hikes.
Comment: Transparent monetary policy
The "transparency revolution" in modern monetary policy is little over a decade old. Just recently, some commentators have started to ask whether this development can go too far. Although it certainly could in theory, it probably hasn't yet.
FOMC minutes suggest end to rate rises
According to the minutes of the Federal Reserve's meeting on 27-28 March released on Tuesday 18 April, policy-makers felt that the U.S. central bank was nearly finished raising interest rates, but remained worried about potential inflation risks.
Bank of England voted 7-1 to hold rates
Minutes released on Wednesday 19 April showed that the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted 7 to 1 at its meeting on April 6 to keep interest rates unchanged at 4.5 per cent.
BoJ minutes show govt urged zero rates
The Bank of Japan was urged by the government to keep interest rates at zero when it ended its ultra-easy monetary policy last month, but the BoJ noted the risks of policy becoming too accommodative, minutes released Friday 14 April showed.
Forget ECB rows and secret pacts, it's the data
According to this article published Wednesday 12 April, although conspiracy theories abound to explain why the European Central Bank has dampened expectations of a May interest rate rise, the answer is simple - hard economic data.
RBI seen taking a hard line on rates
According to this article published Thursday 13 April, the Reserve Bank of India's stand in January makes analysts believe it will keep its own counsel and raise rates again at its annual monetary statement on Tuesday.
Trichet leaves ECB's monetary moves in doubt
According to this article published on Friday 7 April, a burst of candor from European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet has left analysts reassessing the timetable for future ECB monetary policy moves. That reassessment may not have gone far…
Ingves on the inflation target and monetary policy
In the speech 'The inflation target and monetary policy' given on 4 April Stefan Ingves of the Sveriges Riksbank said there has been a gradual development in our reasoning on monetary policy.