Central Banks
Kazakhstan reports large decline in credit card fraud
National Bank of Kazakhstan says there was a 25.4% decline in credit card fraud cases in 2010
Bank of Korea paper addresses growth implications of rising capital inflows
Bank of Korea study says improved institutional frameworks should be designed to monitor risks from capital inflows
Unconventional debt markets create monetary policy asymmetries: Banque de France paper
Banque de France study says differences in bond market characteristics can lead to asymmetries in monetary policy
Philly Fed paper on economic effects of fiscal uncertainty
Philadelphia Federal Reserve study says fiscal uncertainty can have impact on economy equivalent to monetary tightening
Kocherlakota speaks out against Fed decision
Minneapolis Fed president Narayana Kocherlakota says rising inflation and lower unemployment in economy did not warrant change in Fed language; says measure constitutes monetary easing
Swiss franc falls on euro peg talk
Swiss franc loses 6.7% against the euro and 6.1% against the dollar as markets digest comments by Swiss National Bank vice chairman Thomas Jordan
Norway’s SWF hit by equity slump
Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global reports small gain as fixed-income investments make up for decline in equity portfolio
Bank of Finland hosts art exhibition
Central bank invited public to view pieces from its extensive art collection; members of the BoF's art club act as guides
Chancellor calls UK bond market a ‘safe haven’
Chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne says decline in gilt yields and credit default swaps signal flight to safety of UK bonds
Cyprus edges closer to ‘junk’ rating
Fitch Ratings lowers Cyprus rating to BBB; outlook negative
Denmark reopens temporary collateral facility
National Bank of Denmark expands collateral framework to include shares of 12 listed companies; 20% haircut will be applied to assets
Riksbank increases outreach efforts
The Riksbank is increasing surveillance of funding markets and interbank markets; talks intensify with domestic banks and other central banks
IMF bailouts can raise risk of default: Buba paper
Bundesbank study says IMF loans, on average, increase the probability of default in developing countries
Philly Fed paper on ratings agency failures in subprime market
Philadelphia Federal Reserve study says ratings agencies' AAA-rating of mortgage-backed securities helped spur the subprime mortgage crisis
Financial interlinkages are uniform across Asia region: BoJ paper
Bank of Japan study shows links between Asian nations and global stock markets appear to be homogeneous across countries
Lithuania bucks trend to instead predict higher economic growth
Bank of Lithuania predicts higher economic growth in 2011; Mexico joins UK in lowering forecast
Fed spat over timeline for low rates
Target for federal funds rate kept at 0%-0.25% range until "at least" 2013; three committee members wanted ambiguous wording used on timescale
Bank of Israel looks at post-crisis pension market dynamics
Bank of Israel study says the outlook for investments in Israel’s pension market have become increasingly short-term
Cleveland Fed on merits to indexing loans
A Cleveland Federal Reserve study says indexing loans to aggregate variables can adjust business cycles to more optimal levels