Reserves
Donald Kohn: a life in central banking
The outgoing vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Board has spent 40 years at the central bank. He tells Blair Baker about the significant evolution in policymaking he has witnessed and, latterly, overseen.
Bear bailout vehicle turns first paper profit
Federal Reserve balance sheet data shows Bear Stearns’ assets held in Maiden Lane vehicle made a paper profit for first time since its inception
Argentina dips into central bank profit to finance expenditure
Central Bank of Argentina transfers $760m from last year’s profits to government to find expenditure; government unwilling to tap bond markets until yields come down sufficiently
Argentina lets non-banks into debt sale
Argentine central bank throws open note auction to companies, allowing them to circumvent secondary markets; move linked to rapid expansion of money supply
Swiss National Bank set to post half-year loss of $3.8 billion
SNB forecasts exchange-rate losses of more than Sfr14 billion on the back of the euro’s decline; gold gains and FX positions pare losses
Irish central bank sees profits more than double
Central Bank of Ireland 2009 Annual Report shows profits rose past the $1 billion mark last year
National Bank of Austria - Annual Report (2009)
National Bank of Austria’s 2009 Annual Report shows massive gains in reserves due to rise in gold prices
Gold should form an essential part of central banks’ liquidity portfolio
The credit crisis has highlighted that in times of turmoil, gold is one of the few assets that remains liquid, says Natalie Dempster, director of government affairs at the World Gold Council
IMF: reserve managers’ ‘procyclical’ strategies exacerbated crisis
IMF says behaviour of reserve managers compounded pressures on financial stability; highlights potential conflict between investment strategies and stability mandates
BIS sceptical on reserves role for SDR
Trying to create global currency from accounting unit would not solve problems highlighted by the crisis
Central banks’ holdings of US agency debt rise on dollar demand
Fed data show official-sector holdings of US agency securities rose for a 12th straight week; auction for seven-year US Treasury bills displayed growing demand for dollar denominated assets
Gold to put in sparkling performance: asset managers
Central bank reserve managers from around the world say gold will do better than any other reserve asset in 2010; metal’s importance to soar over near future
Accounting change behind Saudi gold surge
Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency’s gold reserves more than double due to accounting adjustment; European central banks keep to agreement while Russia, Philippines buy
Foreign holdings of US Treasuries slide after two weeks of gains
Data show holdings of US Treasuries by foreign central banks with accounts at the Federal Reserve declined this week, cancelling out two week of gains
Surge in foreign holdings of US Treasuries and agencies ends two-week slide
Data show holdings of US Treasuries and agency securities by foreign central banks with accounts at the Federal Reserve increased $18.2 billion on the back of two weeks of declines
China denies reviewing eurozone bond holdings
State Administration of Foreign Exchange dismisses reports that it is appraising euro asset holdings; follows surge in T-bill purchases last week
Foreign holdings of US Treasuries fall for second straight week
Data show holdings of US Treasuries by foreign central banks with accounts at the Federal Reserve declined for a second successive week; use of swap lines lower than expected
China sought safety in US Treasuries as eurozone markets unsettled investors
Treasury data out on Monday show China and Japan heavily increased their holdings in US Treasuries in March
Official-sector balance sheets after the crisis
In the third of Central Banking’s web seminar series, Daniel Gros, Ken Wattret and Tim Young discussed how official sector balance sheets have changed, the new challenges policymakers face and how to overcome them
The case for reserve currency competition
A competitive market for reserve currencies would help remove global imbalances, says Ousmène Mandeng
A future for the SDR?
Richard Cooper looks at whether the SDR could substitute for the dollar as a global reserve currency
SNB records $1.3bn profit for first quarter
The Swiss National Bank’s has reported a quarterly net profit of Sfr1.5 billion for the first three months of the year
Senate okays disputed Argentine reserve transfer
Lawmakers in Argentina's upper house approve president’s decree to transfer $4.4 billion of central bank reserves to bond repayment fund
Reddy: Fiji has recovered
Reserve Bank of Fiji Governor Sada Reddy says country has made progress with balance of payments challenges