Central Banks
Magazine gives 'A Grade' to BOK chief
The US financial market monthly Global Finance has rated BOK Governor Park Seung as part of the highest "A group" of heads of global central banks, according to a report by Chosun Digital. A press release from the Bank of Korea said Federal Reserve…
Botswana head voted central banker of the year
Bank of Botswana Governor Linah Mohohlo has been voted central bank governor of the year for sub-Saharan Africa by Euromoney magazine, reports Sapa. Mohohlo received the award after a poll by international investors, bankers and representatives of…
Fed's Santomero sees economy picking up steam
Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Anthony Santomero said on Thursday 2 October "Employment gains will be slow in coming, and we still have some way to go before we reach our goal of maximum sustainable growth", according to Reuters. He also said the…
FATF intensifies anti-terrorist financing campaign
At the Plenary of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in Stockholm, the thirty-three member body convened on 3 October to set global standards in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.
Bernanke says slow US job growth a concern
Governor Ben Bernanke of the Federal Reserve said on Thursday 2 October that the US economy appeared poised for steady growth through 2004 but weak employment prospects were worrying, Reuters reports. Bernanke said he saw no reason for concern that the…
Bank of Korea - Annual Report 2002
The Bank of Korea has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2002. During 2002, the Korean economy showed a favorable performance with its growth rate rising sharply, prices stabilizing within their target range, and the current account…
Bean on Inflation Targeting: The UK Experience
In the speech 'Inflation Targeting: The UK Experience' given on 1 October Charles Bean of the Bank of England said it was "extraordinarily difficult" to know how much to raise interest rates, if at all, to prevent a bubble in the housing market and an…
Fed's Gramlich on Maintaining Price Stability
In the speech 'Maintaining Price Stability' given on 1 October Edward Gramlich of the Federal Reserve said on inflation targeting, "To me the verdict on theoretical grounds alone has always been a close call. I can see the advantages of transparency and…
Address by Jurgen Stark to the CEPR/ESI conference
In his opening address to the CEPR/ESI conference on 'The Euro Area as an Economic Entity' given on 12 September Jurgen Stark of the Bundesbank said he considered such meetings especially valuable because academics should increasingly confront themselves…
RBA Payments System Board Annual Report 2003
The Reserve Bank of Australia Payments System Board has published its Annual Report for 2003. The Board has used two main techniques to assess the efficiency of the Australian payments system, the Annual Report says. The first has been to look at the…
Reserve Bank of New Zealand - Annual Report 2003
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has published its Annual Report for 2003. For the currency function the year was a period of consolidation, Governor Alan Bollard said in his statement, making sure the system works well and embedding the new polymer notes…
Tanzania central bank chief told: Pay fine or jail
The High Court in Dar es Salaam has given Tanzania's central bank governor Daudi Balali seven days to pay a fine or face a four month jail sentence, a report from Xinhua News said. Delivering the ruling Judge Salum Massati said that on 4 June 2001, a…
ECB keeps rates steady at 2 pct as expected
The European Central Bank held interest rates steady at 2 percent at its Thursday meeting, Reuters reported. Wim Duisenberg's last Governing Council meeting was held in Lisbon.
BOJ's Iwata repeats price stability target call
Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Kazumasa Iwata said Wednesday "I think a rise in the CPI of around 1-2 percent would mean prices have stabilised", Reuters reported. Iwata's proposals have been rejected by the other eight members of the BOJ's Policy Board,…
Fed's McTeer sees long spell of low U.S. rates
Dallas Fed President Robert McTeer said Wednesday that there is enough slack in the US economy "for interest rates to be on the historically low side for the foreseeable future". Earlier, McTeer told reporters he saw the U.S. economy moving ahead at a…
Bank of Thailand in policy rethink
The Bank of Thailand is reviewing its foreign-exchange policies with the aim of maintaining trade competitiveness, the Bangkok Post reported. Deputy governor Thirachai Phuvanat-Naranubala said the export sector was now polarised with industrial exports…
China's forex reserves rise to a record $365 bn
China's foreign exchange reserves hit a record at the end of August, a Reuters report said. The People's Bank of China said on Monday that reserves increased a monthly $8.2 billion to $364.7 billion in August, down from a $10 billion average monthly rise…
BoE's Chief Economist Bean cautious on rate rise
The Bank of England's chief economist Charles Bean said in a speech Wednesday there were good reasons for the long-term level of house prices in the UK to be higher, including low interest rates, an increase in the numbers of people living alone, and…
Jenkins on Monetary Policy and Managing Change
In a speech on 'Monetary Policy and Managing Change' given on 30 September Paul Jenkins of the Bank of Canada reviewed the contribution that Canadian monetary policy makes in helping Canadians adapt to change. He also discusses the rationale for…
Fukui sees lights of hope for the Japanese economy
In a speech to the National Securities Industry Convention given on 18 September, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said the Japanese economy as well as the financial system is still burdened with a number of difficulties. Nevertheless, lights of hope…
Bank of Japan - Annual Review 2003
The Bank of Japan has published its Annual Review 2003. In the foreword to the Review Governor Toshihiko Fukui said the Bank will continue to do its utmost to meet the challenges currently facing the economy and to secure its future economic prospects…
Scotland to host 'Real Madrid' of economics
The Fraser of Allander Institute, based at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow is to host a series of lectures titled "Renewing Scotland", according to The Scoteman. The speakers, dubbed the "Real Madrid" of economists, will include William Baumol, an…
Fed's Moskow says factory slump is part structural
Speaking on Tuesday 30 September, Chicago Fed chief Michael Moskow said it was hard to distinguish how much of the downturn in manufacturing was due to the business cycle, and how much to structural changes, according to Reuters. But he said he was…
Atlanta Fed's Guynn-U.S. recovery gaining steam
The recovery is more tangible now and a lot less academic, Atlanta Fed President Jack Guynn has said. He told a Commerce Club lunch on Tuesday 30 September that the pick up in U.S. economic growth is helping to restore optimism about the future strength…