Central Banks
Interview with former governor - Iraq central bank
INTERVIEW - Salah al-Shaikhly was a Governor of the Iraqi Central Bank in the early 1970s. In an interview published by Reuters on Wednesday March 19, he told how Saddam Hussein's regime had ruined the Iraqi economy running up a debt of US$ 112bn. He…
MPC voted 8 to 1 to keep UK rates on hold
Minutes of the Bank of England's last meeting of its interest rate setting MPC showed that the Committee saw growth slightly below trend in the short term. The Committee also felt exchange rate depreciation was likely to put upward pressure on inflation…
ECB's Solans on economic policy
In the speech 'Economic policy: complementary and reinforcing dimensions' Eugenio Domingo Solans of the ECB said more focus should be placed on structural micro-economic reforms that can increase the production potential of the European economy. He…
Swedish central bank cuts rates again
The Sveriges Riksbank trimmed interest rates further on Tuesday March 18, blaming continued uncertainty and the threat of war, according to a Reuters report.
ECB's Solans: Inflation pressure not a major worry
After cutting interest rates recently to stimulate the sluggish eurozone economy, executive board member Eugenio Domingo Solans has said inflation is not a major concern at the moment and the ECB sees "very modest" growth this yea, according to a Dow…
US plans post war change to Iraq's central bank
The US Treasury is making plans for the running of Iraq's economy after a US led war on the Gulf state ends, according to The New York Times. The plans include the rebuilding of the Iraqi central bank and the establishment of a new currency.
Report says Gretta Duisenberg's son in drugs case
A report from Expatica in the Netherlands says that Gretta Duisenberg's son is accused of possessing and trading in drugs.
New BoJ chief signals more aggressive policy
In testimony on Tuesday March 18 the new governor of the Bank of Japan, Toshihiko Fukui, pledged to cushion Japanese economy from any war shocks and said the BoJ would consider broadening the range of assets it buys as part of its controversial scheme,…
Heikensten on Swedish monetary policy
SPEECH - In the speech 'Introduction on monetary policy' Lars Heikensten of the Swedish central bank said an important circumstance that affected the Riksbank's decision to lower interest rates on Monday was that the unease and uncertainty in the global…
Sound economic policies pay off, Dodge says
The best way to promote sustained economic growth is to stick to an economic policy framework that has proven its worth, Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge said on Tuesday March 18. In a speech to the Italian Bankers Association, he reiterated the…
Sveriges Riksbank Inflation Report, No.1, 2003
REPORT - Sweden's central bank has published its Inflation Report for the First Quarter 2003. In the report the Riksbank said this year inflation has risen more than anticipated, partly due to rising oil prices. The report says that the recovery slowed…
Basel Committee comment on Share-based Payment
Basel Committee Comments on IASB Exposure Draft ED2 Share-based Payment, 18 March.
Good times - so far - for Meirelles in Brazil
Henrique Meirelles, who took over as governor of the Central Bank of Brazil in January, discusses with the Financial Times the changes from his time on Wall Street to spearheading monetary reform in Brazil. Though the monetary policy medicine appears to…
Kohler sees a short war, but worried by US deficit
Horst Kohler, managing director of the IMF, said he expects a US-led war in Iraq to be short and to have limited impact on the world economy, but is worried about the size of the deficit, according to a Reuters report.
Plenty monetary policy measures in reserve
Central banks have plenty of monetary policy ammunition left, says Stephen Cecchetti in the Financial Times. Even when rates hit zero central banks can make use of "contingency plans" involving unorthodox monetary operations.
Fed should hold
The uncertainty over the impending war in Iraq and the Fed's diminishing policy options mean that, despite weak data, a wait-and-see is the strategy for the open market committee, which meets tomorrow, argues the FT's editorial.
Pakistan economy stable, says State Bank governor
Stressing the stabilty of the exchange rate and liquidity in the market, the The governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, Ishrat Hussain, said war would not require an immediate response from the central bank. Higher oil prices have, however, led the…
Koizumi hands Fukui policy wishlist
The Japanese prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, handed a list of five requests to the new governor of the Bank of Japan, Toshihiko Fukui, on Friday 14 March according to a report by Kyodo news agency. These included having deflation under control by 2005…
Uruguay: central bank reserves plummet
Following another fall in forex reserves at the Central Bank of Uruguay and a downgrade in its sovereign rating, default concerns over the Uruguayan currency are rising.
Egypt: 6-month BOP surplus of 152.7m dollars
The governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has presented a report to the country's president in which he said that the balance of payments realized a surplus of 152.7m dollars during the first six months of the current fiscal year compared to a…
Gold may sustain highs over 2003
Research from Macquarie Research Equities argues that gold will maintain its strength throughout 2003, supported not only be war fears, but wider geopolitical worries.
Korea's central bank props up markets
Following another corporate accounting scandal, the Bank of Korea has intervened to in Korean money markets, according to a BBC news report.
Wellink on women in the financial sector
In a speech on 'The position of women in the financial sector' Nout Wellink of the Nederlandsche Bank said promoting opportunities for women in the financial sector is very important, as we are responsible for bringing out the best in our human capital,…
Fririksson on the current monetary situation
SPEECH - In a speech on 'Monetary policy and the current monetary situation' Ingimundur Fririksson of the Central Bank of Iceland said the central bank adopted an inflation target as the main pillar of its monetary policy, abandoning the fixed exchange…