Monetary Policy
Sri Lanka's Mendis on post-disaster rebuilding
In the speech 'Creating a challenging and stimulating work environment' given on 1 January, Sunil Mendis of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka said that with the magnitude of the disaster, there is no question that our nation needs to be rebuilt. Hence, as…
Bank of England MPC Minutes, 12 &13 January
The minutes from the 12 & 13 January meeting of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee published on Wednesday 26 January showed the nine members voted unanimously to hold rates at 4.75 per cent.
Fed's Hoenig says economic outlook bright for US
Kansas City Federal Reserve President Thomas Hoenig said on Tuesday 25 January that the outlook for the US economy is pretty bright and inflation should not be a major issue this year.
EU's Almunia says strong euro not posing problems
EU economic and monetary affairs commissioner Joaquin Almunia told a breakfast briefing held by the European Policy Centre think tank that the strength of the euro is not posing problems for Eurozone countries.
BoJ likely to lower price forecast says Mizuno
Bank of Japan board member Atsushi Mizuno said that the central bank will probably drop its October forecast that consumer prices will have an increase next fiscal year for the first time in eight years.
SF Fed's Yellen on the US economic outlook
In a speech on 'The US economic outlook' given on 20 January, Janet Yellen of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco said US inflation should stay contained this year, while the risks to price stability are well balanced.
Deficit triggers rumbling at Fed
George Bush's longtime honeymoon with the Federal Reserve may be ending, this article suggests. The new element is a rising concern at the Fed about the US budget deficit, which hit $413 billion in 2004; a low and declining national savings rate and…
ECB's Trichet on communication and transparency
In a speech on 'Communication, transparency and the ECB's monetary policy' given on 24 January, Jean-Claude Trichet of the ECB said hinted that a rise in eurozone interest rates was not likely in the immediate future, despite a pick-up in inflation as a…
Bank of Canada, Business Outlook Survey, Winter 05
The Bank of Canada's Winter 2005 Business Outlook Survey reports that businesses remain positive about the economic outlook but less so than in the autumn survey. The appreciation of the Canadian dollar between the survey periods has heightened…
Bank of Canada keeps interest rates unchanged
The Bank of Canada announced on Tuesday 25 January that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 2 1/2 per cent. The bank said the Canadian economy continues to adjust to major global developments.
BIS to hold 75th anniversary exhibition
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) announced on Tuesday 25 January that, as part of its 75th anniversary celebrations, it would hold an exhibition at its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland for two weeks this year.
Japan, Thailand agree bilateral swap arrangement
The Bank of Japan, acting as the agent of the Minister of Finance of Japan, and the Bank of Thailand agreed to reach the second bilateral swap arrangement under the Chiang Mai Initiative of the ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers' Process, the Bank of Japan said…
BOJ deputy says deflation end may be delayed
Deputy Bank of Japan Governor Toshiro Muto has indicated in an interview that the Japanese economy may move out of deflation later than the central bank has forecasted.
Bank of Japan Minutes, 16 & 17 Dec 2004
The Bank of Japan's minutes from its 16 and 17 December Monetary Policy meeting revealed that board members see four negative side-effects of the BoJ's current super-loose credit policy.
Sweden's Bergstrom: Investment v capital export
In a speech given on 18 January, Sveriges Riksbank Deputy Governor Villy Bergstrom said in the long-term, the current declining trend in capital formation in Sweden could threaten the upturn in productivity that has been witnessed, and thereby also…
Euro area balance of payments
In introductory remarks to a press briefing at the launch of a new set of statistics on the geograhical breakdown of the euro area balance of payments and international investment position on Friday 21 January, ECB Executive Board member Jose Manuel…
NY Fed's Geithner at the NAF's 2004 Dinner
In a speech at the National Academy Foundation's 2004 Dinner given on 8 December, Timothy Geithner of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said that improving educational achievement, access to educational opportunity, and the level of public…
Trichet: Stability and growth pact needs improving
European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said that some aspects of the European Union's Stability and Growth Pact need to be improved.
Schroeder sees stability pact agreement in March
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and EU Council President Jean-Claude Juncker met Friday and expressed optimism that an agreement could be reached soon on reform of the stability and growth pact.
BoE's Barker on housing market and wider economy
In a speech on 'The housing market and the wider economy' given on 24 January, Kate Barker of the Bank of England said UK house prices are likely to continue falling, though the effect on consumer spending won't be as big as in the past.
Da Afghanistan Bank appoints first deputy governor
At the proposal of the governor of Da Afghanistan Bank, the central bank, and following the approval by the president Hamed Karzai, Sameollah Ebrahimi has been appointed first deputy governor of the central bank, the BBC Monitoring Service reported…
New directors for Chicago Fed
Two new members of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's board of directors were announced on 10 January, as well as one new member of the bank's Detroit Branch board. In addition, the chairmen of both boards and the Seventh District representative to…
New website speculates on World Bank top job
A new website dedicated to airing speculation on who will succeed James Wolfensohn as the next president of the World Bank is offering the rumours and gossip on who is in the running to take the job.
Venezuela's Chavez nominates Parra as BCV chief
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias has proposed economist Gaston Parra as his choice for the presidency of the Venezuelan Central Bank (BCV).