Central Banks
'Capitalism is not working'
Former US Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill's recent book "The Price of Loyalty" contains various quotes attributed to Alan Greenspan. Although his comments on President Bush got much publicity recently, what the Fed maestro had to say was largely…
Gerashchenko's appeal fails
Russia's Supreme Court rejected an appeal from former central bank chairman Viktor Gerashchenko on Friday 6 February over refusal by the Central Electoral Commission to register him a candidate in the upcoming presidential election.
BOK governor to attend BIS meeting
Bank of Korea Governor Park Seung plans to leave for Hong Kong on Sunday 8 February to attend the Asian Central Bank Governors' Meeting held by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
Malaysia's Zeti: ringgit peg 'not misaligned'
Malaysia's central bank governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz said on Friday 6 February that the 3.80 to the US dollar ringgit peg is appropriate and that the Malaysian currency is "not misaligned".
CBK 'made history' by posting Sh7 bn loss
The Central Bank of Kenya made a Sh7 billion loss in 1993, described by a witness on Thursday 5 February as abnormal because it was uncharacteristic of a central bank to make losses.
Waring begins RNBZ role
With a Christmas delivery of bulk reports and background material, Professor Marilyn Waring has unofficially started her appointment to the board of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, reported Massey University's 'Massey News'.
Fed's changes to payments system risk statement
The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday 5 February announced that, beginning in July 2006, it will require Reserve Banks to release interest and redemption payments on securities issued by government-sponsored enterprises and international organizations.
Sveriges Riksbank lowers repo rate by 0.25%
At its meeting on Thursday, 5 February, the Executive Board of the Swedish central bank decided to lower the repo rate from 2.75 to 2.50 per cent.
Focus on central banks
This article looks at some key events this week in the world of central banking. Ben Bernanke's comments on inflation ruffled some feathers, the author says, with the suggestion that deflation fears had receded substantially. The ECB's latest press…
Argentina's Lavagna to meet IMF's Koehler
Argentine Economy Minister Roberto Lavagna will meet IMF Managing Director Horst Koehler in Miami on Monday 9 February to discuss the second review of a $13.3 billion loan deal, an economy ministry source said on Thursday.
G7 ministers prepare for meeting
Finance ministers of the rich G7 nations are converging on Florida for a weekend meeting that analysts say will produce little concensus.
Bies on enterprise-wide compliance programs
In a speech on 'Enterprise-wide Compliance Programs' given on 4 February, Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve warned that it is too soon to assume corporate scandals and profit restatements were a thing of the past in U.S. and global business…
Bank of England raises rates to 4%
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted on Thursday 5 February to raise the Bank's repo rate by 0.25 percentage points. In a statement the MPC highlighted the 'more broadly based' world economic recovery but judged the change was need to…
IMF officials to meet Iraqi finance chiefs
Iraq's finance minister and central bank governor are to meet officials at the International Monetary Fund after attending a Group of Seven meeting in Boca Raton, Florida.
Report says Belgium set to propose ECB candidate
According to a report in a Belgian local daily on Thursday 5 February, Peter Praet, a central bank director, is set to be put forward as a replacement to a retiring ECB board member.
Schroeder suggests gold reserves used to fund R&D
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was quoted in an interview on Thursday 5 February as suggesting that Bundesbank gold reserves could be used to finance research and development projects.
BOJ says recovery on track, but yen concerns
Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui said on Thursday 5 February that the Japanese economy probably performed strongly in the last quarter of 2003, but he highlighted the risk posed by a strong yen following the BOJ's decision to keep monetary policy…
ECB press conference with questions and answers
At the ECB's press conference on Thursday 5 February, after leaving eurozone interest rates on hold, Jean-Claude Trichet said he saw no need to amend the European Stability and Growth Pact and that the bank would not rush into any decision that impacted…
Chicago Fed's Moskow on the economic outlook
In a speech on 'Economic outlook' given on 3 February, Michael Moskow of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said that worries that inflation is on the rise are premature, and it will take some time for pressure on resources to emerge.
RBA holds rates unchanged
The Reserve Bank of Australia left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday 4 February, pausing after two increases in November and December.
Trichet: The euro - five years on
In a speech on 'The euro - five years on' given on 2 February, Jean-Claude Trichet of the ECB said the Eurozone today already represents four-fifth of the number of EU countries. He added that UK entry is very warmly welcomed by all of us but depends on…
Bulgaria plans to restrict central bank powers
Bulgaria's Parliament has passed amendments, at a first reading, to the state budget law concerning the powers of the governor of the Bulgarian National Bank.
Putin discusses Russian economy with Ignatiev
Russian central bank president Sergei Ignatiev has held a working meeting with president Vladimir Putin to discuss the economy and exchange rate situation.