Central Banks
SARB launch Vision 2010 for payment system
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) on Thursday 20 April launched a document containing strategic guidelines for the national payment system.
Language: Breaking the code of the Fed
This article published on Monday 24 April sets out to decipher the language of the Federal Reserve System, otherwise known as the House of Hints, it says.
Mario Draghi to succeed Roger Ferguson at FSF
Following consultations within the Financial Stability Forum's (FSF) membership, the G7 Finance Ministers and central bank Governors on Monday 24 April confirmed their support for the designation of Mario Draghi as Chairman of the FSF.
Fed's Ferguson warns over shock potential
U.S. Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson on Saturday 22 April cautioned that the tranquillity of financial markets in recent years does not mean that they were not vulnerable to more severe shocks.
Riksbank changes currency allocation
Sweden's Riksbank announced on Friday 21 April that it has reallocated the currency holdings in the bank's foreign currency reserves. The changes include a move away from US dollar holdings in favour of euros.
Interview with Fed's Roger Ferguson
In an interview published on Friday 21 April, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson said if there were a sense that the economy was at great risk, he would not want to leave the Fed.
Reserve diversification
Sweden's central bank is the world's oldest, and according to this article published on Friday 21 April, it is also proving to be among the most proactive in managing its foreign exchange reserves.
Comment: Sweden sheds reserve dollars
The Swedish Riksbank dropped a bit of a bombshell on international currency markets on Friday 21 April by announcing a significant reduction in the share of dollars and yen in its foreign reserves portfolio. Although Sweden has a relatively small…
BoJ overpays on travel expenses
The Bank of Japan has paid overstated amounts of domestic travel expenses claimed by some of its personnel and has been told by the Board of Audit of Japan to correct the problem, Jiji Press reported Thursday 20 April.
MEPs criticise ECB appointment
Following the approval of Jurgen Stark's nomination to the ECB's board by the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee on Wednesday 19 April, some centre-left MEPs have criticised the go-ahead.
Padoa-Schioppa 'serious' candidate for econ min
Romano Prodi, Italy's election winner, said on Friday 21 April that former European Central Bank board member Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa was a "serious" candidate to become his economy minister, but that nothing had been decided yet.
Comment: Transparent monetary policy
The "transparency revolution" in modern monetary policy is little over a decade old. Just recently, some commentators have started to ask whether this development can go too far. Although it certainly could in theory, it probably hasn't yet.
Portrait of Matti Vanhala unveiled
A portrait of the late Governor of the Bank of Finland was unveiled at the Bank recently.
FOMC minutes suggest end to rate rises
According to the minutes of the Federal Reserve's meeting on 27-28 March released on Tuesday 18 April, policy-makers felt that the U.S. central bank was nearly finished raising interest rates, but remained worried about potential inflation risks.
Fed to consolidate payments system committees
The Federal Reserve Board announced on Wednesday 19 April the consolidation of two internal advisory committees on payments system matters.
Bank of England voted 7-1 to hold rates
Minutes released on Wednesday 19 April showed that the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted 7 to 1 at its meeting on April 6 to keep interest rates unchanged at 4.5 per cent.
Ferguson on financial stability & central banking
In the speech 'Thoughts on financial stability and central banking' given on 17 April Roger Ferguson of the Federal Reserve said asset price volatility may have increased in recent years as real economic shocks have moderated, but central banks should…
Italy's Prodi may pick Padoa-Schioppa on economy
Italy's centre-left leader Romano Prodi is expected to pick former European Central Bank board member Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa as economy minister, if Prodi succeeds in forming a government, said La Stampa Saturday in an unsourced report.
Turkey names new central bank governor
Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer approved the government's nominee for central bank governor on Tuesday 18 April after rejecting an earlier candidate, Economy minister Ali Babacan announced.
BoJ minutes show govt urged zero rates
The Bank of Japan was urged by the government to keep interest rates at zero when it ended its ultra-easy monetary policy last month, but the BoJ noted the risks of policy becoming too accommodative, minutes released Friday 14 April showed.
European Parliament backs Stark nomination for ECB
European Central Bank nominee Juergen Stark said on Tuesday 18 April that the euro zone central bank needs to show ``great vigilance'' in curbing inflation.
China short-term gold additions unlikely - GFMS
The People's Bank of China is very unlikely to increase its gold reserves in the short-term but in the medium- to long-term there is "excellent scope" for gold purchases by the central bank, metals consultancy GFMS said on Wednesday12 April.
Forget ECB rows and secret pacts, it's the data
According to this article published Wednesday 12 April, although conspiracy theories abound to explain why the European Central Bank has dampened expectations of a May interest rate rise, the answer is simple - hard economic data.
More hefty gains in gold price ahead?
This article published on Thursday 13 April looks at the possibility of a further strong increase in the gold price. Among the key factors is a belief that central banks are becoming more friendly to gold, it says.