Central Banks
Balcerowicz: Maastricht convergence opportunity
INTERVIEW - Summary of an interview with Leszek Balcerowicz, governor of the National Bank of Poland and chief of its Monetary Policy Council. The interview was published in a recent issue of Gazeta Wyborcza.
Gulf asks ECB to study benefits of GCC currency
OMAN - Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have entrusted the European Central Bank (ECB) to conduct a study on the modalities to be followed while integrating the economies of member countries and to switch over to a common currency, said the…
Kozlov - legal protection would boost confidence
RUSSIA - Russia's Central Bank has come out for greater legal protection of deals involving derivative securities on the national securities market and for introducing Russian depository receipts.
Japan's Koizumi vows 'bold' action on economy
JAPAN - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi vowed Friday to take "bold" action to pull Japan's economy out of its slump and stressed the importance of dialogue to resolve concerns over North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
Fed's McTeer says U.S. recovery so far jobless
US - Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert McTeer said on Thursday the U.S. economic recovery had so far been jobless, but the unemployment rate here still has stayed well below Europe's.
Through the looking glass into deflation
SPEECH - DeAnne Julius, a former member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, assesses the risk of global deflation as quite high in her keynote speech at The Banker Awards 2002 dinner.
US Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill - Time to go?
ARTICLE - Just what a fragile global economy doesn't need is a loose cannon as a US Treasury Secretary. Yet after a succession of gaffes that have sunk markets and offended presidents, Paul O'Neill remains unrepentant. Now is the time for him to resign…
Ferguson on financial stability, central bank role
SPEECH - In the speech 'Should Financial Stability Be an Explicit Central Bank Objective?' made on 17 September and published on 16 October, Roger Ferguson of the Federal Reserve said that financial stability is and always will be of vital interest to…
Bank of Japan Stock Purchase Guidelines
GUIDELINES - At a regular board meeting held 11 October, the Policy Board of the Bank of Japan approved basic guidelines on the purchase of stocks held by commercial banks.
Bank of Japan Stock Purchase
REPORT - The Outline of the Stock Purchasing Plan, 11 October.
Bank of Japan report on non-performing loans
REPORT - Japan's Non-Performing Loan Problem, 11 October.
ECB Monthly Bulletin, October 2002
REPORT - The European Central Bank published its October 2002 Monthly Bulletin on 17 October. In the bulletin the ECB states that although liquidity is currently ample, there is a low risk of this translating into inflationary pressures in the near…
Why the euro numbers do not add up
UK - Baffled voters waiting to be persuaded by the economic evidence how they should vote in a referendum on the euro have been left in a state of even deeper confusion this week.
Former RBI head proposed for slot on board
INDIA - Former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Mr S. Venkitaramanan's name has been proposed for appointment as a director of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) at the ensuing annual general meeting (AGM) of the company.
ECB source not aware of Duisenberg G7 rate comment
UK - A European Central Bank (ECB) source told Reuters on Thursday that he was not aware of ECB President Win Duisenberg's having told international financial leaders the central bank was ready to cut interest rates.
EU's Prodi calls deficit reduction accord 'stupid'
FRANCE - European Commission President Romano Prodi called Europe's budget-deficit limits "stupid" and "rigid," sowing fresh divisions over how to save the European economy from recession.
Malta 'will have the euro once conditions are met'
MALTA - The Minister for Economic Services Josef Bonnici said Malta stands to benefit from the adoption of the single European currency, the euro, and that Malta will join the Eurozone once the conditions are met.
Fed member warns on inside analysis
US - Evaluations of public policy should be handled independently of the agency responsible for the policy, a member of the Federal Reserve Board said Wednesday at Western Michigan University.
Greece's Garganas hosts central bankers at club
GREECE - Bank of Greece Governor Nicholas Garganas is chairing a session of the Central Bank Governors' Club - which includes his counterparts of 16 Balkan, Black Sea and Central Asian nations - in the seaside resort of Nafplion on Friday.
Afghan c bank clarifies operations on new currency
AFGHANISTAN - Administrative Vice President of Afghan National Bank, Ghulam Ghouse Hadawi pledged on Wednesday that all old Afghani notes would be exchanged in the end despite mass complains about the slow distribution of the new currency.
Brazil's markets slide as c bank warns of turmoil
BRAZIL - Brazil's battered financial markets fell sharply on Wednesday as the Central Bank warned that the country's imminent government transition would be more turbulent than expected.
Ignore the ghost of deflation past
ARTICLE - Financial market crystal ball gazers are focusing on the danger of a double-dip world recession.
Economists get the idea
ARTICLE - Two Nobel prizewinners have worked out why people do not always think rationally. John is interested in politics, he likes to participate in debates and is eager to appear in the media. Is John a salesman or is he a member of parliament?
Wim Duisenberg on the prospects for EU enlargement
SPEECH - In the speech 'Perspectives on EU enlargement' made on 14 October Wim Duisenberg of the ECB said the prospect of EU accession has triggered reform in these countries with macroeconomic stability achieved through structural reforms. However,…