Central Banks
Greek central bank sees eurozone CPI below 2 pct
GREECE - Greece's central bank expects a gradual recovery of economic activity in the eurozone this year with consumer inflation falling below 2.0 percent, governor Lucas Papademos said on Tuesday.
BOJ board voted 8-1 to keep policy unchanged 8 Feb
JAPAN - The Bank of Japan's policy board, at a Feb. 8 meeting, voted 8-1 to keep the bank's monetary policy stance unchanged, the BOJ said Tuesday.
Electronic signatures allowed for bank payment
VIETNAM - The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) will announce regulations over the pattern and content of electronic documents to be used for payment services among banks next month, deputy governor Nguyen Van Giau said.
TFB calls for easing of credit card rules
THAILAND - TFB calls for easing of credit card rules Thai Farmers Bank Plc (TFB) is calling on the Bank of Thailand (BOT) to ease existing regulations on issuance of credit cards, Manager Daily said on 25 March.
Pakistan work to establish modern financial system
FEATURE - As Afghanistan rebuilds, industrialized nations around the world are paying close attention to attempts by neighboring Pakistan to modernize its financial system, reports Nikkei Weekly.
Russia's new central banker in TV interview
FEATURE - Bank deposits in Russia should be at least partially guaranteed by the state. In return, the banks should submit to tighter supervision and higher standards, which will increase public confidence in Russia's banks, the new chairman of Russia's…
Monetary policy in a virtual economy, 27 March
FEATURE - The Reserve Bank launches a web-based monetary policy computer simulation game today whereby the player fights inflation by controlling interest rates in a virtual economy. You play the Governor of the central bank and failure to keep inflation…
NZ central bank launches monetary policy game
NEW ZEALAND - The Reserve Bank of New Zealand Wednesday launched a Web-based simulation game that tests players' skills at controlling consumer price inflation.
Polish MPC leaves rates steady despite pressure
POLAND - The National Bank of Poland (NBP) defied political pressure on Wednesday by leaving interest rates unchanged, matching market expectations but risking a run-in with the government over how to revive the economy, report Reuters.
Speech by A Santomero of Philadelphia Fed, 21 Mar
SPEECH - The early stages of the U.S. economic recovery are going "extremely well," but the outlook for consumer and business demand critical to sustaining the recovery remains uncertain, Santomero said on Thursday.
European Central Bank Consultation Announcement
ANNOUNCEMENT - Consultation on electronic money systems security objectives, 19 March 2002.
Reserve Bank of New Zealand discussion papers
RESEARCH - Monetary policy and inflation forecasting with and without the output gap by Weshah Razzak, March 2002.
Speech by Sushil Wadhwani, Bank of England, 25 Mar
SPEECH - Wadnwani, known as an arch-dove for his views on interest rates has played down the danger of debt in Britain. Speaking to local business leaders in the north of England he also suggested that house prices might not be overvalued. The speech was…
Speech by Sirkka Hamalainen of the ECB, 26 Mar
SPEECH - Hamalainen gave a speech on Tuesday titled 'Implementing monetary policy in the euro area'. In the speech she said that short term deviations in the euro zone inflation rate from the bank's two percent inflation ceiling were perfectly acceptable.
BOK introduce financial asset based currency gauge
SOUTH KOREA - The central bank on Tuesday introduced more accurate measures of the nation's money supply based on financial assets, which provides an exact picture of liquidity in circulation reported The Korea Times.
Dollar falls, Fed's McDonough says it's overvalued
US - The dollar slid more than half a cent against the euro and more than 2/3 of a yen Tuesday after New York Federal Reserve President William McDonough said the dollar may be "a little" overvalued.
ECB gold reserves - EUR55M
GERMANY - The Eurosystem's net reserves in gold and gold receivables declined EUR55 million to EUR126.8 billion in the week ended 22 March, the European Central Bank said Tuesday.
McTeer says U.S. Fed has time to move on policy
CZECH REPUBLIC - Robert McTeer, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, on Tuesday said the U.S. Federal Reserve has some time for policy adjustments but added that members of the rate setting FOMC remain open-minded on the issue.
U.S. late credit card payments rose in Q4
US - Late payments on credit card bills edged up in the final quarter of last year but fewer people were overdue on other types of consumer loans despite weak economic growth, a banking trade association said on Tuesday.
China links bank cashpoints to meet WTO challenge
CHINA - China launched an electronic network on Tuesday to link the cash machines of major banks for the first time, hoping the customer-friendly service will help Chinese banks fend off fierce foreign competition.
Central bank free to sell exchange swaps
BRAZIL - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) discloses today a memorandum revising its accord with Brazil.
Minutes of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting
MINUTES - Bank of Japan Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes from the 7 and 8 February, released 26 March.
MPC over-estimates inflation threat, research says
UK - The Bank of England's monetary policy committee has consistently over-estimated the threat of higher inflation, according to research to be presented today at the Royal Economic Society's annual conference.
Poll gives full marks to swift action of Fed
US - The US economy is highly unlikely to slip back into recession, but its recovery had far more to do with lower interest rates than tax cuts, according to a survey of leading economists issued yesterday.