Monetary Policy
ECB Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - The euro becomes the sole legal tender in all euro area countries, 28 February.
Bank of Japan Monetary Policy Meeting Decisions
PRESS RELEASE - At the Monetary Policy Meeting held on 28 February, the Bank of Japan decided, by majority vote, to set the following guideline for money market operations for the intermeeting period.
Nobel Laureate Nash is mathematician not economist
LETTER - Letter published in the London Financial Times from Dennis Hesseling, Brussels, Belgium, 4 March. In reply to an article published recently by the newspaper.
Alan Greenspan's stock on the rise
FEATURE - Is Alan Greenspan a monetary genius with unique insight into the US economy? Or is he a central banker with a taste for obscure diction and data who nonetheless follows a simple rule?
Koizumi urged to raise spending and change cabinet
JAPAN - Senior members of Junichiro Koizumi's Liberal Democratic party, emboldened by signs of further erosion in his public popularity, Sunday urged the Japanese prime minister to ditch fiscal restraint and to change cabinet personnel.
Fraga sees room for more interest rate cuts
BRAZIL - Brazilian central bank governor Arminio Fraga said there's room for more cuts in interest rates following the 20 February decision to slash the key Selic lending rate target to 18.75% from 19%.
Niedermayer to stay in CNB post for six-year term
CZECH REPUBLIC - The current vice-governor of the Czech National Bank (CNB) Ludek Niedermayer will be renamed to his post for another six year term.
Reynders says would not rule out top ECB job
BELGIUM - Belgian Finance Minister Didier Reynders said he had never ruled out an interest in taking the job of president of the European Central Bank, Le Soir newspaper reported on Thursday.
No Mersch comment on ECB VP position
GERMANY - Luxembourg's central bank governor, Yves Mersch, is declining comment for the time being on his interest in a potential nomination for the vice-presidency of the European Central Bank.
Fed watching moves into the realm of cyberspace
FEATURE - The Federal Reserve, set up by Congress in 1913 to provide the nation with a safer, more flexible and more stable monetary and financial system, is a quint essentially US institution - forthright, functional and for the most part, effective.
Czech Nat Bank vice-governor reappointed
CZECH REPUBLIC - As expected, President Vaclav Havel has reappointed Ludek Niedermayer, a vice-governor of the Czech National Bank (the central bank), to a second six-year term on the bank's rate-setting board.
Speech by Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan, 28 February
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'Saving for retirement' Greenspan said "The level of saving remains a key ingredient of economic growth, but we need to know whether the source of that saving is sustainable."
Greenspan urges US to save
UK - Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has called savings an important component of the economy and urged a national consensus on balancing savings and risk-taking while preserving productivity.
Speech by K Persson of Sveriges Riksbank, 28 Feb
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'The Riksbank, growth and inflation' Persson said that inflation had exceeded the central banks forecast because it may have over-estimated the economy's production capacity.
Sweden inflation above expectation - Persson
SWEDEN - Swedish inflation is higher than the central bank had expected because it may have over-estimated the economy's production capacity, deputy central bank governor Kristina Persson said on Thursday.
Kidnapped central bank president is released
GUATEMALA - Lizardo Sosa, head of the Guatemalan Central Bank, was released Thursday after family members paid a "minimal" ransom to the kidnappers who grabbed him three days ago, according to the latest official account.
German minister sees early UK use of euro
GERMANY - Hans Eichel, Germany's finance minister, yesterday predicted that Britain would join the euro "in the not too distant future", in comments likely to renew debate on the single currency.
Koizumi criticised for slow pace of reform
JAPAN - A key adviser to Japan's Junichiro Koizumi yesterday criticised the prime minister for lacking concrete plans for structural reform and failing to implement the pledges he made on coming to office in April.
MPC member sees room for interest rate fall
FEATURE - Kate Barker's views go against the consensus in financial markets, however.
Speech by Roger Ferguson, Federal Reserve, 27 Feb
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'A Review of Economic Developments in 2001 and the Economic Outlook' Ferguson said "signs of economic recovery are increasing" and added that U.S. consumer spending had helped the economy to stabilize, noting that low…
Fed's Ferguson sees signs of U.S. recovery
US - Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson said on Wednesday that signs of a U.S. economic recovery were increasing, but that a revival in business investment held the key to the contours of the rebound.
Final day for euro changeover
EUROPE - Two months after it was introduced as a cash currency on 1 January 2002, the euro will finally become the sole legal tender in the 12 countries in the eurozone.
Currencies consigned to history
FEATURE - "A piece of Europe in our hands" is how Romano Prodi, president of the European Commission, greeted the launch of the euro.
Federal Reserve Board Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - The Federal Reserve Board announced on Wednesday that the Consumer Advisory Council will hold its next meeting on Thursday, March 14. The meeting will take place in Dining Room E, Terrace level, in the Board's Martin Building. The session…