Central Banks
Brazil central bank workers end month long strike
Brazil's central bank employees resumed work this week after a one month strike which delayed the release of important macroeconomic data.
Iceland's Oddsson waives pension rights
David Oddsson, former prime minister and new governor of the Central Bank of Iceland, has declined to take up a retirement pension for his 13 years as prime minister and one year as foreign minister.
Interview with PBOC's Xiang Junbo
In a recent interview People's Bank of China deputy governor, Xiang Junbo, said the central bank has been undergoing institutional changes. The establishment of the PBOC Shanghai Head Office is an important step to improve the central bank system and to…
Bernanke steps into Greenspan's shoes
Although Ben Bernanke was nominated as Fed chairman this week, he has shown in the past that he isn't a fan of the conservative dress code favoured by central bankers. Bernanke surprised George W Bush by wearing a pair of tan socks with a dark suit to a…
Central bankers welcome Fed nominee
Following Ben Bernanke's nomination to succeed Alan Greenspan as chairman of the Federal Reserve, central bankers were out in force this week to welcome the move.
Interview with RBI governor YV Reddy
In an interview published on Wednesday 26 October, Reserve Bank of India governor Yaga Venugopal Reddy said baby steps are the fashion of the day. Nowadays, in monetary policy, no one takes big steps.
Interview with Ben Bernanke
In an interview published on Tuesday 25 October, but conducted before his nomination to the Fed, Ben Bernanke said that there was so far little reason to fear that the sharp rise in energy prices would feed through into wider inflation.
IMF Paper on international reserves
The IMF Working Paper "International reserves: Precautionary vs. mercantilist views, theory, and evidence" compares the importance of precautionary and mercantilist motives in the hoarding of international reserves by developing countries.
Legal aspects of European System of Central Banks
The European Central Bank published a book on Wednesday 26 October . The book contains a collection of articles on the European Union and the ESCB, the Eurosystem, monetary law, central bank independence and central bank statutes as well as on financial…
RBNZ increases OCR to 7 per cent
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand increased the Official Cash Rate (OCR) by 25 basis points to 7.00 per cent on Thursday. RBNZ governor Alan Bollard said medium term inflation risks remain strong.
SARB Financial Stability Review, September 2005
The South African Reserve Bank has published the September 2005 edition of its Financial Stability Review. In its latest report the SARB said the global financial system remained resilient during the first half of 2005, despite global economic growth…
Rato on IMF's role in global financial stability
In the speech 'The role of the IMF in safeguarding global financial stability' given on 21 October Rodrigo de Rato of the IMF said the last two decades have witnessed tremendous change in the global financial system.
Atlanta Fed's Barron on a viable payments future
In the speech 'Making a commitment to a viable payments future' given on 5 October Patrick Barron of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta said that our payments system is going through a difficult transition. Today, the development of new technology and…
Interview with ECB's Trichet
ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said in an interview with Russian newspaper Izvestia this week that the ECB was committed to maintaining steady prices. "As regards our present position, I said in Athens on 6 October that the present interest rate of 2…
Gordon Brown welcomes Bank of England appointment
Following the appointment this week of Sir John Gieve to succeed Sir Andrew Large as Bank of England Deputy Governor for Financial Stability, UK Chancellor Gordon Brown said Sir John brings a wealth of experience to the job.
CBN to lose over 1,000 staff
About 1,040 staff at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) lost their jobs this week following the implementation of the CBN's "Project Eagles" restructuring and re-engineering exercise.
Ivory Coast to keep BCEAO job
The president of the Ivory Coast said on Tuesday 18 October that his country will not relinquish the governorship of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO).
Book by governor of Barbados cb
Dr Marian Williams, governor of the Central Bank of Barbados, has published her third book. The book contains ideas about the policies and approaches which Barbados and the Caribbean might adopt in the new global environment.
Greenspan: global giant but awkward legacy
According to this article published on Tuesday 18 October, the Fed's sway over world markets was arguably at its peak in 1998. Before both the launch of the euro and the massive reserve accumulation in Asia that has bestowed China and others with…
Russian central banker charged with taking bribe
The Moscow prosecutor's office has indicted the deputy chief of the Federal Tax Service lending institutions department and a Russian central bank official for large-scale bribery, according to Interfax and other reports this week.
Politicians walk out on Fazio testimony
Bank of Italy governor Antonio Fazio faced another snub on Tuesday 18 October when centre-left opposition party members walked out of a parliamentary hearing where he was speaking about Italy's 2006 budget.
Comment: FX interventions
Most central banks have moved away from actual foreign exchange market interventions and now use communication, or verbal intervention, as a policy instrument to influence exchange rates when deemed necessary and desirable.
Bank of Canada Monetary Policy Report, Oct 2005
The Bank of Canada released its October 2005 Monetary Policy Report on 20 October. The latest report says the global and Canadian economies have continued to grow at a solid pace, and the Canadian economy now appears to be operating at full production…