Reserves
China spends US$195b maintaining yuan peg
The People's Bank of China spent 1.61 trillion yuan (US$195 billion) buying foreign currency last year to maintain the yuan's peg with the dollar, a rise of 40 per cent over 2003.
Asian central bankers affecting markets
The dollar's nearlythree-year decline has led many central banks to consider diversifying into other types of money, especially in the face of a more valuable euro. According to this article, the reaction to recent comments from South Korea serves as a…
Should the euro be the reserve currency?
In this article published on Sunday 27 February, Roger Bootle says that although South Korea denied speculation it is considering switching some of its reserves out of dollars and into euros, it would be startling if South Korea, and other countries,…
China to let foreign agencies sell yuan bonds
China will allow global agencies such as the World Bank to sell yuan-denominated bonds for the first time, the People's Bank of China said in a statement on its website.
India's foreign exchange reserves cross $130bn
India's foreign exchange reserves climbed to $132.96 billion in the week ended Feb 18 on large-scale overseas fund inflows into the domestic market, the Reserve Bank of India said on Saturday 26 February.
CGFS announces 4th central bank conference
It was announced on Wednesday 23 February that the European Central Bank in co-operation with the Bank of Japan and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, will host the fourth in a series of joint central bank research conferences on risk…
Foreign reserves, Asia's problem of plenty
The dilemma facing many of emerging Asia's economies over how best to use their massive stock of dollar reserves is hardly new, this article says, but some economists suggest spending central bank reserves on domestic projects, rather than leaving them…
BOK's Park says 'no such plans' on dollar sales
The Bank of Korea has no plans to sell dollars out of the country's foreign reserves and replace them with other currencies, bank chief Park Seung said on Thursday 24 February .
SNB's Hildebrand on the hedge fund industry
In a speech on 'Developments in the Hedge Fund industry' given on 4 February, Philipp Hildebrand of the Swiss National Bank said hedge funds have been an important source of innovation in the asset management industry. They have rendered financial…
BIS's Sleeper: How cbs manage their finances
In a speech 'How central banks manage their finances' given on 18 February, Robert Sleeper of the BIS said the fact that central banks are increasingly taking risks in an attempt to improve the return on their reserves raises the question of whether or…
Colombia to sell $1 billion in foreign reserves
Colombia's central bank will sell the government at least $1 billion in foreign reserves to help prepay debt, according to the Finance Minister, Bloomberg reported.
Rating agency positive on Lebanon reserves
Leading international rating agency Standard & Poor's said on Monday 21 February that Lebanon's central bank foreign currency reserves will not be affected in the short term by the murder of former Premier Rafik Hariri.
Bank of Korea plans to diversify reserves
South Korea's central bank has said it plans to diversify its reserves, which are the world's fourth largest, into a greater variety of currencies. It's reserves have traditionally been held in U.S. Treasuries and agency debt.
News Analysis : The rise of reserve management
Nick Carver looks back on two surveys1 of central bank reserve managers.
How Tokyo will market the yen
Anthony Rowley reports from Tokyo on plans to sell the yen as a reserve currency.
Forex reserves top US$200bn in South Korea
South Korea's foreign exchange reserves passed the US$200-billion mark for the first time, says a report from the Bank of Korea released on Thursday 17 February.
ECB says Eurosystem currency reserves unchanged
The European Central Bank said net foreign currency reserves in the euro system were unchanged at 154.9 bln eur in the week ending Feb 11.
IMF gold sales - Why it will be a non-event
This article considers the idea of the IMF selling off some of its gold reserves and using it to give poor nations debt relief. It says the IMF should instead return the gold to member nations or at least use the gold as a reserve asset as it was meant…
Bank Negara's reserves reach new high
Bank Negara Malaysia's foreign reserves reached a new high of RM264.66 billion (US$69.64 million) in the second half of January, due partly to larger inflow of portfolio funds.
Russia's euro reserves increase
The euro now accounts for one third of Russia's foreign currency reserves, a top official from Russia's central bank said on Tuesday 8 February.
Iraq to earn income on reserves via NY Fed account
The central bank of Iraq is to be allowed to open a deposit with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York which will earn it millions of dollars in vital interest income, US Treasury Under Secretary John Taylor said on Tuesday 8 February.
IMF's gold to help relieve Third World debt?
Gold prices struggled to hold key support in Europe on Monday 7 February following confusion over what the IMF might do with its huge gold reserves to help relieve Third World debt.
BoE's King on the International Monetary System
In a speech on 'The International Monetary System' given on 4 February, Mervyn King of the Bank of England urged members of the Group of Seven industrial nations to agree "on the nature of the risk" and collaborate with China and India to rebalance…
South Africa urged to avoid rand intervention
A senior World Bank economist on Monday 31 January praised the South African Reserve Bank's strategy of cautiously accumulating foreign reserves and said a deliberate weakening of the rand could have negative consequences for the economy.