Central Banks
BoE's forecast confirms loosening stance
The Bank of England's February 2001 inflation report confirmed marketexpectations that UK interest rates were likely to head down over thecourse of 2001. Mervyn King, deputy governor for monetary stability, who presented thereport despite a bout of flu,…
Dollar mood jittery ahead of Greenspan remarks
The dollar's near-term fate hung in the balance on Feb 13, 2000 ahead of potentially market-movingcomments by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan in Congress. Dealers generally expect Greenspan to adopt a cautiously optimistic tone on the U.S…
Japan admits economic going is getting tougher
Japan acknowledged on Feb 13, 2001 it is flirting with recession, but ministers and some economists expressed confidence the steps by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) to calm the money markets would help to put a floor under the economy. Economics Minister Taro…
Israel cbank warns employee unrest disrupt policy
The Bank of Israel cautioned on Feb 13, 2001 that continued labour unrest at the central bank could disrupt monetary policy. The discount rate is maintained through regularly scheduled auctions in which the central bank sells or buys money. If these…
Interview: Jordan's cbank governor Umayy Toukan
The new governor of the Central Bank of Jordan, Umayy Toukan, has given his first exclusive interview since taking up the post earlier in 2001. He was interview by Reuters journalist, Suleiman al-Khalidi, in Amman on Feb 13. In the interview the governor…
Greenspan-Fed may expand debt types in portfolio
The Federal Reserve continues to explore its options for implementing monetary policy as the stock of its preferred instrument, U.S. Treasury debt, declines, Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Feb 13, 2001. Two of the options on the table include debt…
Polish leftist MP wants to change c.bank charter
A senior deputy from the ex-communist SLD social democrats, the party expected to win upcoming parliamentary elections, said the central bank's charter should be changed, a newspaper reported on Feb 13, 2001. Marek Borowski, SLD's deputy speaker of the…
IMF team to review Ecuador's dollarization process
A team from the International Monetary Fund will arrive in Ecuador in the next few days to review the progress of the dollarization process implemented by the country in 2000. The three-member IMF team will stay in Ecuador for about 15 days, analyzing…
G7 to review global economy at Palermo fortress
When the world's leading financial barons meet in Sicily this weekend [Feb 16, 2001] to review their armoury for spurring the global economy, they will do so at a site chosen as a strategic look-out point dating back more than 2,000 years. Finance…
Venezuelan fin min-cbank won't fix interest rates
Venezuelan Finance Minister Jose Rojas reiterated Feb 13, 2001 that the central bank won't fix credit and deposit rates in the banking sector. "The central bank is not going to fix rates," Rojas said in a televised interview. In a nod toward the monetary…
Bank of Canada cuts growth forecast
Canada's central bank said officially for the first time on Feb 13, 2001 that the U.S. economic slowdown may cut Canada's growth rate to below 3 percent, but it remained positive about the country's economic prospects. "Primarily because of the spillover…
Greenspan said the U.S. was not in recession
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Feb 13, 2001 the U.S. economy was not in a recession but may face a rocky transition as it downshifts from super-charged growth rates of the past several years. When asked point-blank in a Senate Banking…
BIS urges vigilance on asset bubbles
It's time for central bankers to get tough on bubbles, according to a top official at the Bank for International Settlements. Overly high stock and property prices should prompt central bankers to take interest rate action in the same way rising wage…
Optimal Degrees of Transparency in Mon Pol-Jensen
"Optimal Degrees of Transparency in Monetary Policymaking" is a new discussion paper by Henrik Jensen published by the Centre for Economic and Policy Research in London. He discusses the advantages and disadvantages of transparency. A good paper for all…
Do Monetary Handcuffs Restrain Leviathan?-A. Rose
A new discussion paper called "Do Monetary Handcuffs Restrain Leviathan? Fiscal Policy in Extreme Exchange Rate Regimes" by Andrew K Rose , Antonio Fatas, has just been published by the Centre for Economic and Policy Research. It looks at case studies of…
IMF-WB-ADB in bailout package for Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has been promised a bailout package from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to help shore up depleted foreign exchange reserves, Central Bank officials said. The officials, who declined to be named,…
RBA upbeat but says U.S. still main risk
Australia's central bank painted a cautious picture of the economy on Feb 12, 2001, saying domestic growth had slowed and much depended on the outlook for the United States. Less than a week after slashing official interest rates by half a percentage…
HKMA Background Brief No.1: HK Linked ER System
Since 1983 the Hong Kong dollar has been linked to the US dollar at the rate of HK$7.8 to one US dollar. The link is maintained through the operation of a strict and robust currency board system. This booklet published by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority…
BIS cbankers expect world economy to pick up
Central bankers meeting in Hong Kong on Feb 12, 2001 agreed that the global economy is now slowing but will return to growth in the second half of 2001, said an official who briefed reporters. Andrew Crockett, general manager of the Bank for…
Kazakh currency expected to devalue 5% in 2001
Kazakhstan's currency, the tenge, will not devalue by more than 5-6% this year, National Bank head Grigory Marchenko told Interfax news agency. He said that Inflation is targeted to drop to 6-8% this year from 9.8% in 2000. The central bank will be able…
Fed's Minehan sees 2001 U.S. growth near 2 pct
Boston Federal Reserve President Cathy Minehan said on Feb 12, 2001 she expects U.S. economic growth to start accelerating again later in 2001, helped by the central bank's January 2001 rate cuts."I expect activity to increase later in the year, and…
Zimbabwe says to lift forex directive on Feb 15
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe said on Feb 12, 2001 a directive to commercial banks to sell all foreign currency from clients' export earnings to the central bank or the state oil company would be lifted on Feb 15. "This directive has been issued as a…
ECB Hamalainen-Eurozone needs structural changes
The euro zone still needs to make further strides in structural changes if it is to see a potential economic growth rate similar to that of the U.S., European Central Bank executive board member Sirkka Haemaelaeinen said on Feb 12, 2001. "Certainly, we…
CNB not to undershoot target again- Frait
The Czech National Bank (CNB) should not undershoot its inflation target in 2001 again and must react in time, said Jan Frait, a member of the CNB Bank board. "There is probably no danger that we undershoot the target once again, otherwise it could be a…