Central Banks
George says France, Germany right to flout pact
Lord George, the former Bank of England governor, has hit out at the European Central Bank in an interview to be published this week, saying that its recent actions are damaging confidence in the eurozone's monetary policy.
Oil to affect growth not inflation says Eichel
German Finance Minister Hans Eichel said the increase in oil prices will have a stronger effect on economic growth in Germany than on the country's inflation rate.
Greenspan says risk management benefits the US
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said in a speech on Tuesday 5 October that better management of banking risk and new rules on capital could strengthen the banking system and contribute more to economic growth.
Riksbank issues coins to mark Palace anniversary
The Sveriges Riksbank is issuing two commemorative coins on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the Royal Palace in Stockholm; a 200-krona coin in silver and a 2,000-krona coin in gold.
Rising tide of computer crime
UK banks have lost £4.5m to internet fraud in the last year. The majority of this fraud is thought to be carried out by organized criminal gangs in Eastern Europe. CentralBankNet reports on this growing phenomenon.
Communique' of the Ministers and Governors of G10
The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the countries of the Group of Ten met in Washington, D.C. on 3 October. John Snow, Secretary of the Treasury of the United States and current Chairman of the Group of Ten, presided.
Greenspan: The man who does the opposite
This article looks at what it says is the recurring pattern in Alan Greenspan's life of saying the opposite of what he is thinking/doing. Giving the example of his obscure but now famous essay, "Gold and Economic Freedom" published in 1966 it asks why he…
BOJ to maintain easy money policy, Fukui says
Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui told G7 finance ministers and central bankers that Japan's potential economic growth is increasing and the bank will keep easing monetary policy to overcome deflation.
Iraq cb chief says debt relief needed to tap oil
Iraq's central bank chief said on Sunday 3 October that the country cannot fully exploit its huge oil reserves without "huge" debt relief.
PBOC dep gov sees move on yuan
On Sunday 3 October, People's Bank of China deputy governor Li Ruogu spoke about the development on the Chinese economy, stressing the U.S. efforts for yuan convertibility.
France's Noyer calls for budget discipline
Addressing officials at the annual International Monetary Fund/World Bank autumn meeting, Bank of France Governor Christian Noyer said the world economy had returned to a growth path and urged countries to tighten their public finances.
UK seeks stability for gold in IMF revaluation
Any revaluation of International Monetary Fund (IMF) gold reserves would have to be done in a way which would preserve gold market stability, British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown said on Monday 4 October.
ECB in dispute over new HQ
Local politicians said Friday that the ECB is currently in dispute with the municipal authorities of Frankfurt over the design of the central bank's new headquarters.
Fed's Bies on developments in financial markets
In a speech on 'Developments in Financial Markets and Financial Management' given on 30 September, Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve said both the household and business sectors appeared to be in good shape.
IMF urges China to float yuan now
IMF managing director Rodrigo de Rato said on Wednesday 29 September that it would be to China's advantage to uncouple the yuan from the dollar. This article looks at the chances of China making some concession on the currency question at Friday's G7…
Bank of Canada Working Paper on Taylor Rules
In this Working Paper from the Bank of Canada the authors compute welfare-maximizing Taylor rules in a dynamic general-equilibrium model of a small open economy. They find that the welfare gains from moving to the optimal Taylor rule are larger than…
Death of Vanhala, former governor of Finnish cb
Matti Vanhala, former governor of the Bank of Finland, died on Wednesday 29 September from cancer, the bank said in a statement. He was 58.
China agrees 'steady' move on exchange rate
The US won a commitment from China at the G7 meeting in Washington on Friday that it would move 'firmly and steadily' to a flexible, market-based currency.
Minutes show Fed banks favoured hike by August
All of the 12 Federal Reserve regional banks had expressed support for raising short-term interest rates in August, minutes of the Fed's discount rate meetings released on Thursday 30 September showed.
BOE's Bell: Spending revisions meet expectations
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Marian Bell said a decision by the statistics office to revise down figures for consumer spending in the second quarter matched the Bank's own expectations.
Bulgaria plans 2009 euro introduction
Governor of the National Bank of Bulgaria Ivan Iskrov has announced that the BNB is ready to print euro banknotes and coins.
Fukui, Greenspan discuss Japan, US economies
Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan and Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan discussed the global economy on Thursday 30 September, as well as the economic situations of the US and Japan, Kyodo News reported a BOJ source as saying.