Central Banks
Bank of Canada will only lend renminbi as ‘last resort’
The central bank’s financial markets chief says it is up to banks to manage their renminbi liquidity needs, including in ‘stressed circumstances’
Jordan laments ‘significantly overvalued’ franc
Some of the ‘overshooting’ that occurred in the wake of the SNB’s decision to withdraw its currency cap has been corrected, but Jordan argues the franc is still too strong
People: New deputies in Angola as defence expert gets top Israel IT job
Two new deputy governors for National Bank of Angola; University of Chicago professor joins Slovak central bank board; defence expert takes on top IT job at Bank of Israel
Bundesbank says German recovery is faster than expected
Monthly report highlights ‘remarkable’ rebound of German economy, leading forecasts to be revised upwards; oil and euro depreciation behind the boost
IMF paper finds weak link between Islamic banking and financial inclusion
Empirical link between Islamic banking and financial inclusion ‘tentative and relatively weak’; researchers suggests ways financial inclusion could be better served by sharia-compliant banks
Central Asian currencies under threat as Azerbaijan abandons peg
The Central Bank of Azerbaijan’s decision to drop its dollar peg and move to target a basket could have knock-on effects throughout the region, where currencies are already under pressure
BIS paper finds stabilisation policy can impact long-run growth
Use of short-run interest rates has implications for long-run growth due to their effect on credit and liquidity supply, BIS working paper finds
Riksbank unveils new series of notes and coins
Majority of Sweden’s banknotes and coins to be updated by the end of 2016; new 20 krona note to be introduced and two krona coin to re-enter circulation
Poll: Should inflation targets be scrapped?
As advanced economies battle low inflation and interest rates remain constrained by the ZLB, should central banks rethink monetary policy orthodoxy?
Latest round of Greek bailout talks collapses
Discussions over extending Greece’s bailout collapsed late last night after the country's finance chief Yanis Varoufakis rejected a plan by the Eurogroup to continue with the current programme
Minneapolis Fed research criticises China's 'quid pro quo' policy
Staff report finds ‘significant impact’ on innovation and welfare from China’s continued policy of exchanging market access for technology – good for China, but not for advanced economies
Bahrain governor launches campaign for women bankers
Rasheed Al Maraj gives his backing to an initiative designed to promote gender equality in Bahrain’s financial sector; country has a patchy record when it comes to women’s rights
Banque de France paper tackles ‘elasticity of poverty’
Researchers examine the extent to which growth in different sectors translates into a reduction in poverty for countries in Africa; commodity-driven economies particularly bad for the poor
Macro-prudential policies can ‘tame’ the financial sector, says ECB's Constâncio
Monetary policy should be used to control the price of goods and services not asset prices; macro-prudential policies can address financial imbalances in spite of dearth of shadow banking tools
Australia opts for ‘tactile’ notes to assist the visually impaired
Australia follows Canada in offering tactile features on polymer banknotes despite apparent rejection of the idea by the Bank of England
MAS takes first steps towards crowdfunding regulations
Proposed regulations aim to strike a balance between encouraging a valuable source of finance for small businesses and managing the high risks associated with securities-based crowdfunding
IMF too sluggish to be global lender of last resort, say Allen and Moessner
The IMF’s response to the financial crisis was too weak and too late, leaving the Federal Reserve to pick up the slack, William Allen and Richhild Moessner argue in the Central Banking Journal
A more effective strategy for the Fed
The Fed should adopt a Taylor-rule approach to ensure policy adjustments are only made due to changing macroeconomic fundamentals. This would mean it should raise rates and alter its communications
The RMB and the SDR review 2015
Yide Qiao and Jiafei Ge present a case for the renminbi joining the ranks of the US dollar, euro, sterling and yen in the IMF’s SDR basket, when the constituents are reviewed later this year
Central banks are on the losing side of government pacts
Quantitative easing by the ECB and the Bank of Japan brought market cheer. But, absent meaningful structural reform, is miring central banks deeper into an ever-more dangerous policy cycle.
Justin Lin on China, economic growth and the international monetary system
Former World Bank chief economist on why a multiple currency system could increase monetary instability, China should be wary of full capital reform and infrastructure investment will boost growth
Reviving the faltering euro economy
There are three options to address Europe’s core problem: real differences in production costs. None of them involve asset purchases by the European Central Bank, writes Allan Meltzer
Evaluating the IMF’s performance in the financial crisis
The results of the IMF’s Independent Evaluation Office investigation into the Fund’s handling of the global financial crisis are deeply flawed.