Central Banks
Greenspan: US economy is picking up
US - The US economy seems finally to be climbing out of recession, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan said.
The Inflation Forecast and the Loss Function
RESEARCH - A new paper by Lars E.O Svensson, Princeton University, CEPR and NBER, December 2001.
BIS research papers
RESEARCH - Research from the BIS 'Comparing monetary policy operating procedures across the United States, Japan and the euro area', Monetary and Economic Department, Bank for International Settlements, December 2001.
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee Minutes
MINUTES - Minutes of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee Meeting held on 9 and 10 January 2002. Release date 23 January 2002.
Speech by Dr Bimal Jalan, Reserve Bank of India
SPEECH - In the speech 'Indian Banking and Finance: Managing New Challenges' Bimal Jalan said that uncertainty over the economic situation was likely to continue for the next six to nine months, but India is likely to show one of the highest rates of…
Speech by Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan
SPEECH - In the speech by Ishrat Hussain he said that the economic policy makers have identified SME as one of the priority drivers of economic growth and employment in the country.
Bank chiefs unanimous on rate freeze
UK - Bank of England gurus in charge of setting interest rates voted unanimously in favour of a rate freeze this month.
Singapore's MAS to issue currency notes, coins
SINGAPORE - The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) will expand its responsibilities to include the issuance of currency notes and coins from March next year, officials said Wednesday.
RBA appoints new assistant governor economic
AUSTRALIA - The Reserve Bank today announced the appointment of Dr Malcolm Edey as assistant governor (economic).
Duisenberg - No need to change ECB team yet
ITALY - European Central Bank Governor Wim Duisenberg said in remarks published on Wednesday it was unlikely he would complete his full term as the head of the bank but said the management team should not be changed yet.
Speech by Eddie George, Bank of England Governor
SPEECH - In the speech George said that while an increasingly global economy served to boost living standards worldwide the fact that many poorer nations had unequal access to free markets meant more must be done to help them through the careful…
Speech by Christopher Allsopp of Bank of England
SPEECH - Charles Allsopp said in the speech that maintaining a stable rate of economic growth should be given a clearer role in the policy framework of the European Central Bank and that greater symmetry in inflation targetting had worked well in Britain…
Allsopp - ECB should have stable growth aim
UK - Maintaining a stable rate of economic growth should be given a clearer role in the policy framework of the European Central Bank, a senior Bank of England official said on Wednesday.
IMF Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - IMF, World Bank Conclude Joint Poverty Reduction Strategy Conference, 18 January.
Afghan banker picks up pieces of a ruined system
FEATURE - Abdul Qadir Fitrat, possibly the world's youngest central bank governor at 38, has just taken up perhaps the world's most hair-raising central bank challenge - restoring Afghanistan's ruined financial system.
The yen's fundamental weakness
FEATURE - The currency's depreciation stems not from government policy but the state of the economy says Haruhiko Kuroda, Japan's viceminister of finance for international affairs.
Speech by Michael Moskow, President, Chicago Fed
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'Economic Trends 2002' Moskow said that he did not see a near-term threat to the U.S. economy from deflation, although prices for some goods have been declining. "I don't see deflation as a threat to our economy on the near…
Fed's Moskow says sees no U.S. deflation threat
US - Chicago Federal Reserve President Michael Moskow said on Friday that he did not see a near-term threat to the U.S. economy from deflation, although prices for some goods have been declining.
Speech by Jack Guynn President of the Atlanta Fed
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'The Economic Outlook for 2002' Jack Guynn said he was closely watching corporate profits for signals of a turnaround in the U.S. economy.
Speech by John Townend of the Bank of England
SPEECH - In the speech Townend acknowledged that "the sterling exchange rate is clearly overvalued, at least against the euro". But he went on to insist that a fall in its value would create inflationary pressures.
Bank of England official: 'Leave pound alone'
UK - A senior Bank of England official has warned against artificially reducing the value of the pound.
US comments push down on yen
US - Mixed messages from the US administration have helped Japan's currency touch new lows.