Central Banks
Saccomanni sees political not analytical constraints to policy cooperation
Former Bank of Italy deputy says analytical framework for international monetary policy cooperation already exists, but G-20 countries are being held back by politics
Canadian deputy reveals new indicator of inflation expectations
Bank of Canada launches new household survey; Agathe Côté says the 'power of our new tool will truly reveal itself’ after a couple of years, but early indications are ‘promising’
Fed officials grapple with lift-off details
Minutes from January FOMC meeting reveal extensive discussion about the tools at the Fed’s disposal when it wants to raise rates; idea of higher cap for overnight RRPs explored
More reforms needed to tackle CCP risks, warns IMF paper
Significant risks remain despite efforts to improve the resilience of central counterparties, IMF working paper warns; direct access to central bank facilities would help
Serbian central bank sees inflation climbing to target in 2015
General manager Branko Hinić discusses latest forecasts at the launch of the National Bank of Serbia’s latest inflation report; attributes low inflation in 2014 to ‘temporary’ factors
Bank structure affects macro-prudential spillovers, BoE research finds
Working paper finds macro-prudential policies spill across borders more readily to bank branches than subsidiaries, although the change depends on type of lending and type of policy
Carstens picked to head IMFC
Bank of Mexico governor will succeed Tharman Shanmugaratnam as head of the IMF’s International Monetary and Financial Committee
NBER paper finds shareholder protection dampens crises
Stock markets provide emergency source of funding during banking crises, and the shock-absorbing effect is stronger if shareholders are better protected, working paper finds
Turkish MPC could face lawsuit
If convicted central bankers could face jail term over refusal to cut rates, but spokesman says central bank law protects policy-makers from prosecution relating to conduct of their duties
Fed’s Powell sets ‘high bar’ for leaning against credit cycles
Governor Powell says leaning against the cycle through supervisory policy would ‘almost surely interfere’ with traditional function of capital markets
Bank of Canada research underscores need for securitisation reform
Working paper warns asymmetric information impairs market functioning and means risk-sharing is not enough to efficiently allocate securitisations
Banks claim trading book rules will hit hedges
Regulatory measures of risk would leap 133% for some positions, warns ING, as regulators press ahead with plans to limit diversification benefits
Central Bank of Nigeria abandons FX window
Latest attempt to halt the sliding currency sees central bank cease to offer foreign exchange auctions, but interventions continue in the interbank market
ECB publishes first minutes
European Central Bank releases an ‘account’ of the discussion at the governing council meeting in January, which saw it launch quantitative easing in the eurozone
Greek crisis meeting gets go-ahead despite German challenge
A meeting of the Eurogroup will take place Friday after Greece yesterday sought a six-month bailout extension, but Germany has moved quickly to challenge the proposed compromise
Estonian governor tells MPs central banks cannot create long-term growth
Ardo Hansson says QE in the eurozone will help to improve confidence, but reforms are necessary for investors to believe the economy will grow
Outgoing Belgian governor takes ECB role
Luc Coene named as one of four ECB representatives on the SSM supervisory board, a role he will start after stepping down as National Bank of Belgium governor next month
Swift in talks with Fed and ECB on real-time payments
Swift’s Juliette Kennel and Carlo Palmers talk to Central Banking about the company's leap into real-time payments in Australia, and discuss launching similar systems in other countries
BoE’s MPC members diverge on interest rate outlook
Only common ground between committee members is rates likely to rise ‘over the next three years’, as some see the potential for further easing while others want rate hike soon, minutes show
Fed hawk Fisher receives Mexican eagle award
Richard Fisher granted Order of the Aztec Eagle by Mexican president; Agustín Carstens praises the Dallas Fed president’s use of ‘simple and straightforward’ language
Hungarian central bank taking on credit risk from SME loans
Extension to ‘funding for growth’ scheme sees central bank extend another 500 billion forint in cheap funding to banks and take on some of the credit risk from their loans to SMEs
Fed officials see ‘audit’ bill as threat to independence
Charles Plosser is the latest FOMC member to criticise bill that could see monetary policy decisions reviewed; Richard Fisher and Jerome Powell also raise concerns