Central Banks
Sri Lanka keeps on cutting
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka slashed its policy rate by 175 basis points to 14.75% on Wednesday in an effort to encourage lending and revive economic activity.
Fed to buy Treasuries
The Federal Open Market Committee said on Thursday that it will buy up to $300 billion in Treasuries and an additional $750 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities. It will also invest an additional $100 billion in agency debt.
King moots Glass-Steagall revival
Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, has called for a debate on whether the global financial crisis has shown that a Glass-Steagall type provision is needed to prevent retail deposits from being used to fund investment-banking activities.
SA shifts to monthly schedule for rate moves
The South African Reserve Bank's rate-setters are will vote once a month for the remainder of the year after the central bank announced it was doubling the frequency of its meetings for 2009.
BoJ pledges up to 1 trn in subordinated loans
The Bank of Japan is to offer its banks subordinated loans worth up to 1 trillion ($10.1 billion) to bolster its banking sector, crippled by the recent slump in equity prices.
How the US can abate anger at bankers' bail-out
Brendan Brown, the chief economist at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities, offers two remedies to temper public outrage at the bail-out of Wall Street.
Serbian governor contradicts Belgrade on EU aid
Radovan Jelasic, the governor of the National Bank of Serbia, has said that central and eastern European states should avoid over-reliance on European Union (EU) aid just hours after it emerged that Belgrade was seeking assistance from Brussels.
Italy's Draghi calls on banks to raise capital
Mario Draghi, the governor of the Bank of Italy, has urged the country's banks to increase their capital ratios to shore up confidence in the financial sector.
Central banks join the flight to quality
The financial turmoil has had a major impact on central banks' reserve-management policies.
South Africa's Mnyande: no time to sit and wait
Strengthening southern Africa's ability to prevent future crises is vital, Monde Mnyande, the chief economist of the South African Reserve Bank, has warned.
Fullani highlights main risks to Albania
The drop-off in remittances and a tightening of financing conditions are the main threats from the global crisis to the Albanian economy, said Adrian Fullani, the governor of the country's central bank.
Bric economies call for greater voice
Brazil, China, Russia and India, the four leading emerging-market economies, have pressed for a greater say in the running of the Bretton Woods institutions.
Stiglitz laments US's "bogus" bailouts
Joseph Stiglitz, the 2001 Nobel Laureate, tells CentralBanking.com why the US administration must set up its own lender and stop pandering to the banks if it is to fix the economy.
Serbia seeks more IMF, EU aid
Serbia is in talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union (EU) to secure more emergency funding to bolster its reserve stockpile and limit the social impact of the crisis.
Policy can make deflationary episodes more costly
The costs of previous deflationary episodes have been exacerbated by inappropriate policy responses, a new paper from the Bank of England posits.
New measures for housing inflation needed
Policymakers lack appropriate measures of inflation for the market in owner-occupied housing services, argues a new paper form the Philadelphia Federal Reserve.
AIG succumbs to political will, names recipients
In a surprise move, American International Group (AIG), a beleaguered insurer, has revealed the recipients of $105.3 billion-worth of federal funds after coming under intense pressure from politicians to do so.
Basel, IADI issue deposit insurance guidelines
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) has issued a set of global guidelines for deposit guarantee systems.
China concerned over Treasury holdings
Wen Jiabao, China's prime minister, has said that the country, which has the biggest stockpile of United States government debt in the world, is "a little worried" about its US Treasury holdings.
De Larosiere, Dodge to lead new global watchdog
Jacques de Larosiere and David Dodge are to head a private-sector-sponsored international monitoring group tasked with assessing risk and fostering stability.
Chile makes mammoth rate cut
The Central Bank of Chile chopped 250 basis points off its key rate on Thursday, saying that it expected inflation to slide speedily.
Canada's Longworth faults VaR
Methodologies based on Value at Risk (VaR) that are too dependent on short historical samples cause procyclicality, said David Longworth, a deputy governor of the Bank of Canada.
BoE's Barker confident on quantitative easing
Increasing the money supply is a significant move that will prop up the economy, said Kate Barker, a member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee.
Switzerland to intervene to halt franc's gain
The Swiss National Bank pledged to curb the appreciation of the Swiss franc against the euro on Thursday and said that there was a risk of deflation over the next three years.