Central Banks
Irish central bank sells old premises for €67 million
Move to new purpose-built premises due to be completed by end of first quarter
Davos panellists highlight risks posed by strong dollar
At the World Economic Forum, experts underline the risks of a strengthening dollar on not only US monetary policy, but also on emerging markets’ economies
Central Bank of Brazil discussed smaller hike at December meeting
Copom weighed a 50bps cut, but chose to “frontload” monetary easing, given anchored expectations and promising outlook for inflation
BIS paper presents evidence on Uruguayan price setting
Authors develop survey-based measure of firms’ price-setting behaviour, which may prove useful for research on other emerging markets
Riksbank’s Skingsley says payments innovation needs balance
Central banks should use combination of “hands on” and “hands off” approaches, and strike a balance between innovation, stability and growth, deputy says
Review urges BIS to curb dominance of ‘house view’ in research
Panel including UK’s Charlie Bean finds BIS research has at times been “genuinely path-breaking” but should give economists more room to differ from the house view
Eichengreen sees danger in US fiscal stimulus
Veteran economist warns infrastructure spending in the US may prove damaging to both the domestic and global economy, without necessarily fixing secular stagnation
Carney: 250,000 jobs lost by 2018 if BoE had not acted after Brexit vote
BoE governor defends 2016 action by underlining policy trade-off, but warns consumers are "looking through" Brexit-related uncertainties
South Sudan president dismisses bank governor, reports allege
Country’s economy in crisis, but central bank role appears limited, experts say
ECB paper proposes new fiscal-monetary policy mix for eurozone
Researchers suggest non-defaultable Eurobonds issued by new fund
Villeroy de Galhau highlights factors behind slow growth
French governor highlights importance of wage-setting mechanisms
IMF raises projections for US and eurozone growth for 2017
US policy mix still uncertain, but IMF staff do not yet believe changes will trigger an international trade shock; growth projections for emerging economies revised downwards
‘Humiliated’ RBI staff urge Patel to resist ‘unwarranted’ government interference
Reserve Bank of India staff send impassioned letter to governor to protect the central bank’s autonomy; finance ministry objects to claims, stating central bank is fully independent
Policy tensions in China to become ‘more stark’ in 2017 – Menon
MAS head says China's authorities will have to use a fair amount of “policy dexterity” this year to deal with likely US rate rises and volatile international markets
People: RBNZ appoints new CIO; former BoE deputy to chair BBC
Reserve Bank of New Zealand appoints new CIO and head of risk assessment; David Clementi, former Bank of England deputy for financial stability, to head new BBC board; and more
Measurement error a big part of ‘missing growth’ – Philippe Aghion
Statistics fail to capture creative destruction, French academic argues; US researchers say productivity in IT sector points to continued puzzle
Dutch paper looks at sovereign bank interdependencies
Researchers apply correlation between sovereign and bank credit default swaps
Harker optimistic in first speech as FOMC voting member
Inflation target set to be met this year, says Philadelphia Fed governor, noting labour force participation issues need to be addressed with legislative action
ECB minutes show dissent over asset purchases
Some council members expressed “scepticism” over asset purchases; two programme extension options were discussed
Bank of Lithuania plans to cut costs by a fifth
Strategic plan aims at improvements to payments system; bank aims to increase income from investment
Book notes: The Man Who Knew: The Life & Times of Alan Greenspan, by Sebastian Mallaby
An extensive account of Greenspan's life and achievements, but would have benefited from a closer analysis of his relationships with comrades at the Fed
BIS fails to find single cause of sterling ‘flash crash’
Report finds “numerous” factors which amplified the effects of the depreciation, including “inexperience staff” and “fragile” market conditions; lessons must be learned, BIS warns
Bitcoin exchange halts service after PBoC clampdown
BTC123 becomes first exchange in China to halt services due to ongoing investigation by government agencies into virtual currency; cuts rates on wealth products