Central Banks
Ilan Goldfajn chosen to succeed Tombini as Brazilian governor
Former deputy picked to succeed Tombini at a time of economic contraction and high inflation; Fraga, a former governor, believes he is an “excellent” choice
RBA minutes reveal discussion around rate cut
No real change in economic activity or unemployment rate, minutes show; committee 'persuaded' monetary easing would improve prospects for inflation and growth
Bank of Canada review explores inflation target renewal
Four articles consider various elements of the central bank’s inflation targeting framework; one charts growing influence of nominal wage rigidity on average wage growth
Mexican deputy Sánchez takes stock of easy policy in advanced economies
Manuel Sánchez explains how extraordinary monetary accommodation may be generating costs; tells audience in Mexico central bank policy co-ordination is a challenge
To play the counterfeiter
The Reproduction Research Centre in Copenhagen helps central banks to counterfeit colour-shifting technology and machine-readable codes on banknotes in a bid to reduce fraud
Banks’ debt maturity needs extension – but not too much, paper argues
Eurozone banks’ debt securities need slightly longer maturity periods, but extensions envisaged under Basel III may be excessive, a Bank of Italy paper argues
Czech central bank anticipates near-zero inflation in coming months
Czech central bank says monetary policy should have been easier; anticipates inflation falling towards zero in coming months but rising by end of 2016
BoE’s Weale: t-distribution may outperform normal
Representing monetary policy committee’s judgements using the t-distribution implies GDP outcomes are skewed to the downside and inflation to the upside
RBI moves to curb concentrated credit risk
Central bank hopes new prudential measures will reduce banks’ “very high” exposures to large corporations and encourage firms to turn to capital markets for funding
Philippines announces new rate corridor
Central bank will introduce new lending and deposit facilities in June, with interest rates set either side of a lower policy rate
Now banks face bail-in, should we rethink deposit insurance?
David Mayes argues deposit insurance schemes forged during crisis may impose unnecessary costs in more normal times
IMF’s Rennhack outlines challenges facing LatAm economies
Robert Rennhack sees terms of trade driving real exchange rates; tells audience in Mexico region as a whole is in recession
Mester favours ‘error band’ around FOMC projections
Cleveland Fed president Loretta Mester would like to some kind of “error band” introduced around FOMC projections, to reflect the uncertainty the committee is grappling with
Traditional banks played leading role in creating US credit boom, paper finds
Traditional banks played a larger role than ‘shadow’ banks in originating US loans in the lead-up to the financial crisis, paper published by Deutsche Bundesbank says
Building a fast, flexible and free DSGE model
A team at the New York Fed is part way through translating its DSGE model into Julia, a fast, open-source mathematical programming language
Germany needs structural surplus, Weidmann says
Bundesbank president counters arguments Germans are saving too much; says treatment of eurozone sovereigns must change, at odds with Bank of Italy governor
Meltzer criticises Burns and Bernanke over Fed independence
Allan Meltzer criticises the former Fed chairs for giving independence away; wants to incorporate a rule into policy-making, while Peter Conti-Brown favours governance reforms
Namibian central bank wary of household debt increase
Namibia has higher household debt levels than regional peers, according to some measures, the central bank’s latest financial stability report notes
IMF issues stark warning to UK on EU exit
Bank of England could find itself battling market dislocation and “substantial” economic slowdown if UK votes to leave EU, IMF warns; Christine Lagarde dismisses accusations of political meddling
EBA sees stability risk in Commission ratings proposal
European Banking Authority criticises Commission’s proposals on use of credit ratings’ agencies judgements by regulators; amendments would ‘increase risk to financial stability’, it says
Spanish paper explores low TFP growth during expansion
Working paper notes total factor productivity fell between 1995 and 2007 despite solid growth rates in the economy; highlights misallocation of production factors within industry
Tombini remains amid Brazilian presidential overhaul
Central Bank of Brazil governor remains in post; new finance minister to keep him on for a transition period, analyst suggests, but new appointment could follow
Fed board gets financial stability division
The office of financial policy and research, established in 2010 to co-ordinate work across the board, is reclassified as a financial stability division; Fed cites “growth in responsibilities and staffing”