Central Banks
Zimbabwe's Gono on unorthodox challenges
In an interview published on Thursday March 10, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr Gideon Gono said the country is going through a turnaround that demands unorthodox ways of dealing with unorthodox challenges. The job is not one of making friends with…
Election to Danmarks Nationalbank's Board
Denmark's Folketinget (Parliament) has elected Mr Svend Erik Hovmand to the Board of Directors of Danmarks Nationalbank until 31 March 2006.
Bini Smaghi formally proposed to ECB board
Eurozone finance ministers on Tuesday 8 March formally proposed Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a senior Italian economics official, as the next member of the European Central Bank's executive board.
Issing: ECB will act on money supply if necessary
European Central Bank chief economist Otmar Issing said in an interview that high liquidity in the eurozone has not yet proved a sufficient reason for the ECB to raise interest rates, but it will act if money supply growth starts to fuel inflation.
Report says share of China's dollar reserves fell
Investment bank Lehman Brothers said in a report this week that China reduced the share of its foreign reserves held in US dollar assets last year.
EU's Almunia says Slovakia on track to adopt euro
EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said Thursday on a one-day visit to Slovakia that it was on target to meet its aim of adopting the euro single currency in 2009.
India discussing foreign reserve diversification
Reserve Bank of India governor Yaga Venugopal Reddy told reporters on Friday that diversification of the central bank's reserves was being discussed.
Liebscher warns on stability pact reform
Plans to reform the European Union stability and growth pact could lead to a loss of confidence in the euro, the governor of the Austrian central bank said Friday.
T and T's Williams on the state of the economy
In a speech on 'The state of the Trinidad and Tobago economy' given on 21 February, Ewart Williams of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago said the economy is strong and the economic prospects are excellent. However, the economy faces several…
Asian central banks' dilemma
Diversification away from dollar denominated foreign exchange reserves is a natural reaction for Asian central banks, this article says. But because of the size of their holdings, any sudden move to sell a substantial part of these holdings could cause a…
ECB Monthly Bulletin, March 2005
The European Central Bank published its March 2005 Monthly Bulletin on Thursday 10 March, saying that recent weakness in euro zone economic growth is likely to prove short-lived.
Federal Reserve Board - Beige Book, March 2005
The Federal Reserve published its March 2005 Beige Book survey on Wednesday 9 March. The report said steady consumer spending and continued factory output boosted the US economy in February.
RBNZ Monetary Policy Statement, March 2005
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand increased interest rates by 25 basis points to 6.75 per cent on Thursday 10 March. Speaking at the release of the March 2005 Monetary Policy Statement, RBNZ Governor Alan Bollard said with the economy remaining very strong…
Koizumi: Japan must consider diversifying reserves
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said on Thursday 11 March that his country "in general" needs to consider diversifying its foreign currency reserves, the world's largest.
Garganas calls for sharp fall in deficit and debt
Bank of Greece Governor Nicholas Garganas told a parliamentary committee on Wednesday 9 March that Greece's economy does not face a crisis, but the government must try to lower budget deficits and public debt even sooner than mandated by the European…
Fed's Moskow says rates have room to rise
Chicago Fed President Michael Moskow said on Wednesday the Federal Reserve can continue raising interest rates at a measured pace, but with less slack in the U.S. economy, it must be vigilant on inflation.
CNB's Tuma on central bank forecasting
In the speech 'Forecasting and its role as an information source in the decision-making of the central bank' given on 18 February Zdenik Tuma of the Czech National Bank discusses the role market forecasts can play as an information source in the decision…
Sweden's Rosenberg on economic activity, inflation
In a speech given on 24 February Irma Rosenberg of the Sveriges Riksbank said even though there has been some uncertainty over economic activity it has in fact continued to develop strongly.
IMF's Rato on the Palestinian National Authority
In a speech given on 1 March, Rodrigo de Rato of the International Monetary Fund predicted the Palestinian Authority's economic plan would lead to growth.
Basel Accord and credit slowdown in Latin America
The IMF Working Paper 'Did the Basel Accord cause a credit slowdown in Latin America?' tests whether the adoption of the Basel Accord by Latin American and Caribbean countries was responsible for the serious slowdowns in credit growth experienced by…
Fed's Bernanke on the economic outlook
In the speech 'The economic outlook' given on 8 March Ben Bernanke of the Federal Reserve said the US economy was off to a solid start this year and that core inflation should stay in a zone that allows the Fed to raise interest rates at a "measured"…
ECB's Mersch against pact dilution
European Central Bank council member Yves Mersch has criticised larger European governments for trying to relax the budget-deficit rules underpinning the euro.