Central Banks
Bank of Namibia cuts growth forecast, but expects rebound
Namibia to grow 4.4% in 2016, central bank projects; improvements expected in 2017, alongside recovery in diamond mining sector
Dutch paper explores information content of asset prices for inflation
Working paper finds high asset prices can be an indicator of either high or low inflation, though more commonly the former; considers information content of range of financial variables
Report sees progress following UK market review but job ‘far from done’
Implementation report notes good progress, suggests responsibility must now fall to market participants; authors note ‘Brexit’ may delay some reforms
European banks’ structure helps drive dollar-denominated debt issuance – paper
Bank of Spain paper examines the most prolific dollar-denominated debt issuers among European banks, finding issuance is driven by range of factors, including desire to hedge
Singapore’s GIC warns of lower returns in coming years
High valuation of asset prices and modest growth outlook points to lower returns in coming decade or two, GIC says; 20-year annualised real rate of return fell last fiscal year
Fed holds as near-term risks ‘diminish’
FOMC says near-term risks to US outlook have diminished, while economic activity is expanding at a “moderate pace”; keeps policy unchanged, but statement sees increasing odds of a hike this year
Conflict of interest prompts managerial change at Bank of Jamaica
Deputy governor will leave the central bank after completing her term; Bank of Jamaica to now have three deputy governors
Viñals leaves IMF to chair Standard Chartered
Lagarde praises Viñals for “sharp intellect” and “analytical rigour” during seven years of service at the fund; he will join Standard Chartered Bank as chairman of the board
Malta’s deputy governor to remain in post, central bank confirms
Alfred Mifsud will continue as one of the Central Bank of Malta’s two deputy governors; allegations of corruption, denied by Mifsud, are ‘outside bank’s remit or competence’, spokesman says
Irish central bank warns of ‘negative and material’ impact from Brexit
Quarterly bulletin discusses channels through which UK vote to leave EU will affect Ireland; economy expected to grow by 4.9% this year and 3.7% next
Bank of Israel aims to boost construction credit with new regulation
Banking supervision department proposes reclassifying credit risk in wake of financial institution’s efforts to insure against it; suggests it would free up $2.6bn of finance
Sarb to embark on ‘customised’ leadership development, deputy says
Mminele emphasises importance of leadership in addressing economic challenges; central bank to launch new leadership development programme ‘customised’ for each management level
Governments should look beyond criticism and protect central bank independence – Rajan
Governor of the RBI says institutions are used to criticism in line of work, but should still have ability to adopt whichever policies are needed
MAS adds cloud computing to guidelines on outsourcing risk management
Cloud services officially acknowledged in latest outsourcing guidelines as more financial institutions adopt the practice; despite improved security, banks should still be aware of the risks
Helicopters bearing gifts
As QE and negative rates run out of room, helicopter money could be a last resort for overstretched central banks. But its detractors say the cost of its use could be very high
Sri Lanka invites bids to mint 970 million coins
Central bank calling for four denominations of coin to be minted by end-March 2019; looking for mints with experience of supplying foreign countries with circulation coins
Turkish governor says monetary policy will be simplified at ‘reasonable’ time
Turkish governor emphasises need to address “structural” causes of inflation and says effects of recent coup attempt should prove “short-lived"
Bank of Italy paper aims to improve on EC current account model
Research offers a new model of external adjustment; the EC’s model tends to mis-state cyclically adjusted current account balances of large eurozone economies, researchers argue
IMF paper examines impact of debt restructurings on growth
Growth usually declines after debt restructurings, but it can boost performance if the country exits a default spell, the authors find
UK MPs urge separation of Financial Conduct Authority functions
Parliamentary committee suggests enforcement is separated from the FCA in a report on HBOS failure; the authority says this would inhibit its ability to act as a regulator
Jamaica’s monthly inflation turns positive
It increases to 0.2%, but annual inflation slides to 2.1%; Bank of Jamaica still confident that inflation will fall within the target range for 2016/17
Irish central bankers take first look at effectiveness of macroprudential housing policies
Ireland’s central bank publishes examination of its first full year of operating macroprudential measures affecting the housing market; compares data on borrowers subject and free from limits