Central Banks
IMF's Dawson announces plans to leave Fund
Thomas Dawson, the director of the International Monetary Fund's External Relations Department, told a press briefing on Thursday 23 June that he intends to leave the Fund in the next six or eight months.
RBI's Reddy says trade gap manageable
Reserve Bank of India governor YV Reddy said on Thursday 23 June that the widening trade deficit is sustainable because it is underpinned by buoyant export of services and remittances from overseas migrant workers.
Import prices no longer falling says BoE's Lambert
Bank of England MPC member Richard Lambert said on Thursday 23 June that there are signs that import prices, which have helped to keep inflation down, are falling.
ECB member says central banks won't sway ECB
ECB Executive Board member Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo said late on Thursday 23 June that although rate cuts are back on the agenda at major central banks, it would not influence the European Central Bank's monetary policy.
ECB policy not enough to spur growth says Garganas
Bank of Greece governor Nicholas Garganas said on Friday 24 June that European Central Bank monetary policy has performed well but is not enough to spark growth.
Muto says BOJ will maintain target range
Bank of Japan deputy governor Toshiro Muto said Thursday 23 June the central bank will maintain the current account balance target in a range of 30 trillion to 35 trillion yen.
Canada paper on central bank credibility
The Bank of Canada Working Paper "Endogenous central bank credibility in a small forward-looking model of the U.S. economy" considers linkages between inflation and the economy's cyclical position, which are thought to be strongly affected by the…
Cleveland's Pianalto: Our future in manufacturing
In the speech 'Our future in manufacturing' given on 16 June, Sandra Pianalto of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland said the fundamentals of the US economy are strong and the expansion should continue.
Fed's Olson on regulatory relief
In testimony on 'Regulatory relief' given on 21 June, Mark Olson of the Federal Reserve said that Congress should give the Federal Reserve more flexibility in setting reserve requirements and allow it to pay interest on balances held by depository…
BoE's King on the UK economy
In his Mansion House speech given on 22 June, Mervyn King of the Bank of England said there are both upside and downside risks to the outlook for UK inflation and policymakers will react promptly to whichever one materialises.
Top China economist calls for yuan appreciation
The Chinese government should actively move on its yuan exchange rate adjustment and appreciate the value of the currency by 5-10%, the Beijing Morning Post reported, citing Zhang Shuguang of the Chinese Academy of Social Science.
Greenspan warns against trade sanctions on China
Fed chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress in testimony on Thursday 23 June that no credible evidence exists that a move by China to revamp its exchange rate system would benefit US manufacturing or jobs.
Venezuela approves central bank reform law
Venezuelan lawmakers gave initial approval late Tuesday 21 June to a bill that would allow President Hugo Chavez to access up to $5 billion in reserves held by the central bank.
BOT denies spending $3-4bn on intervention
Bank of Thailand governor M.R. Pridiyathorn Devakula has conceded the central bank had intervened in the market to support the baht, but denied it had spent up to US$3-4 billion on intervention.
Discussion topics from Central Banking conference
Central Banking Publications hosted the first conference on Sovereign Asset and Debt Management on June 20-21, where over 20 speakers and 100 participants discussed trends and challenges in how countries manage their national balance sheet.
HKMA Quarterly Bulletin, June 2005
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has published the June 2005 issue of its Quarterly Bulletin. This issue contains the regular Half-Yearly Monetary and Financial Stability Report, which analyses recent external and domestic influences on Hong Kong's…
Bundesbank's Weber on the IMF
In closing remarks to the Joint IMF-Bundesbank Symposium given on 8 June, Axel Weber of the Deutsche Bundesbank said the IMF is an indispensable engine to improve the functioning and stability of the international monetary system.
Norway's Gjedrem on inflation targeting
In the speech 'Experiences with inflation targeting in Norway and other countries' given on 7 June, Svein Gjedrem of Norges Bank said in light of the experiences of different countries in the last 10-15 years, he is confident that flexible inflation…
Bank of England MPC Minutes, 8 & 9 June
The minutes from the 8 and 9 June meeting of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee published on Wednesday 22 June showed policy makers voted 7- 2 to keep interest rates unchanged this month, with Charles Bean and Marian Bell preferring a 0.25%…
ECB's Mersch says rates 'perfectly appropriate'
European Central Bank council member Yves Mersch said current interest rates are correct and that Italian calls to leave the euro would be a recipe for turmoil.
Eurozone hampered by lack of reform, not rates
Bank of France governor Christian Noyer said it is not the level of European Central Bank interest rates which is hampering eurozone growth, but rather it is the lack of structural reform.
Official says pressure on yuan won't bring change
China said it would not bow to political and speculative pressures to adjust the value of its currency, as US officials prepared to testify about the impact of China's fixed exchange rate on the US economy.
Euro dip not caused by EU rejection says Liebscher
The euro hasn't been affected by the crisis facing the European Union following the rejection of its proposed constitution, the governor of Austria's Central Bank said on Tuesday 21 June.
RBA to open emergency back-up office
The Reserve Bank of Australia is to get a $38 million back-up office complex in an outer Sydney suburb in case an emergency shuts its city head office.