Central Banks
BoE’s Posen causes stir with vote switch
External MPC member abandons pro-QE stance; inflation concerns high among rate-setters, with Paul Tucker taking vocal lead
BoJ’s Nishimura says strengthening growth 'crucial' for Japanese economy
Bank of Japan deputy governor emphasises central bank’s role in achieving growth potential; signals unease at the global economic impacts for future of Japanese economy
IMF working paper examines China’s current account imbalances
IMF working paper concludes that total rebalancing has not occurred in Chinese economy as domestic imbalances increase and external imbalances fall
BIS working paper draws lessons from Asia on price stability
Bank for International Settlements working paper studies price stability in Asia; concludes that monetary policy frameworks have been effective
Draghi outlines importance of statistics at ECB
European Central Bank president discusses expanded role for statistics in helping bank achieve its mandate
India slashes benchmark rate
Reserve Bank of India drops repo rate to 8% in first cut in years; governor references slowing growth and declining inflation in announcing decision
Hoenig joins FDIC board
Former Kansas City Fed president Thomas Hoenig joins the board of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Norway set to shift investment strategy after poor SWF performance
Norway sovereign wealth fund to focus on emerging markets following third-worst performance in history last year
IMF warns of 'full-blown panic' eurozone break-up would cause
Latest IMF World Economic Outlook discusses possibility of a break-up of the eurozone; says disorderly exit of one member country would have untold knock-on effects
Robert Pringle's Viewpoint: The Fed, the euro and the IMF
Caruana and Shirakawa offer timely warning on the limits and dangers of loose monetary policy; more reform required in Europe
Central Bank of Iran reacts to major debit card security breach
Central Bank of Iran urges debit card users to change personal identification codes after hacker publishes security details of millions of accounts on internet
Research discusses elasticity of non-oil tax revenues in Trinidad and Tobago
Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago working paper says future growth of non-oil tax revenue in the country should come from indirect taxes
Bank of Colombia research studies intraday liquidity risk regulation
Colombia central bank working paper finds structural shifts in the intraday liquidity market are the result of evolution rather than market shocks
Sarb working paper discusses rand exchange rate
South African Reserve Bank working paper studies factors that influence the exchange rate of the rand as a free-floating currency
G-30 report emphasises importance of qualitative aspects to supervision
Group of 30 working group on corporate governance says qualitative as well as quantitative measures are required to enhance governance
Reserve managers cling to the dollar but shun the euro, CBP survey finds
Central banks have reduced their euro reserve holdings and looked to diversify into non-traditional currencies due to ongoing eurozone tumult finds annual Central Banking Publications survey
CPSS and Iosco set out central bank responsibilities for FMIs
CPSS and Iosco issue new standards for financial market infrastructures; include core responsibilities for central banks and other supervisory bodies
Bernanke defends Fed’s response to financial crisis
Fed chairman defends actions taken before and during global financial crisis; offers justification for Fed response to struggling systemically important firms
PBoC decision to widen trading band welcomed
Chinese central bank announces “enlarged” floating band of renminbi trading prices against the US dollar; analysts and IMF welcome decision
Bank of Korea to invest in renminbi in 2012
Head of reserve management Heung Sik Choo confirms Bank of Korea will make first investments in Chinese renminbi this year
Sarb investigation finds low-quality proof Krugerrand coins
Investigation into SA Mint Company uncovers low-quality proof Krugerrand coins may have been casted between April 2011 and May 2011; dealers offered chance to return coins
Fed research examines supply-side changes in US housing market
New York Fed staff paper studies impact of supply-side changes to US housing market on the creation of a house price bubble
Prasarn confirms Thai participation in Chinese markets
Bank of Thailand governor hails economic links between China and Thailand as central bank opens first Chinese office
Riksbank research highlights significance of output gap for policy makers
Swedish central bank working paper explores output gap as a tool for measuring economic activity; concludes that policy makers should focus more on output gap in forming monetary policy