Central Banks
Nigerian central bank welcomes drop in depletion of foreign reserves
Communique says reserves accumulation must improve to provide buffer for fiscal operations, in part by greater domestic production of foodstuffs
IMF calls on Fed to formally explain policy normalisation strategy
IMF stresses need for 'greater clarity' on how Fed intends to exit accommodative policy stance; warns use of Fed funds rate could 'pose challenge' amid balance sheet reduction
Bank of England 'edges closer' to rate rise
Mark Carney notes ‘quickest job creation on record' since he took office last July amid confusing labour data; market practitioners say likelihood of a rate hike this year is rising
Cœuré spells out difficulties of global monetary policy co-ordination
European Central Bank’s Benoît Cœuré says he is 'not convinced' the existing approach to co-ordination should be overhauled; rejects feasibility of a 'global planner'
Bulgarian governor offers to step down
Ivan Iskrov says he will resign ‘immediately’ if parliament sets a date for picking his successor; attacks politicians for using the central bank as a ‘plaything’ in their election campaigns
Shirai calls for mechanisms to manage policy conflict
BoJ policy board member says monetary and macro-prudential policies are not necessarily complementary; some Japanese officials view reverse repos as a macro-pru tool
Ireland names new chief economist
Gabriel Fagan leaves ECB to join Central Bank of Ireland; succeeds Lars Frisell, who now lectures in the IMF Africa Training Institute in Mauritius
RBA deputy hints at renminbi clearing bank and RQFII quota
Philip Lowe reveals that Australia should get a designated clearing bank ‘in the coming months’ and hopes to obtain a quota for investment in mainland China shortly after
Philippines should divert reserves to form a SWF, says BSP’s Medalla
Senior Central Bank of the Philippines official calls for excess reserves to be siphoned off into a new sovereign wealth fund
‘Shadow' Fed funds rate suggests Fed should have loosened more following crisis
Kansas City Fed study says Fed should have been more active in early stage of ‘Great Recession' but also notes policy became ‘considerably' more accommodative over time
IMF staff note: Structural reforms 'more desirable' than nominal wage cuts in Europe
International Monetary Fund staff note says ‘many reforms’ are still needed in deficit countries; highlights benefits of greater fiscal integration in longer term
IMF paper finds macro-prudential polices can help prevent liquidity traps
Researchers find that debt limits and insurance requirements can help prevent economic agents from accumulating excessive leverage and triggering liquidity traps
RBA governor questions impact of QE on risk-taking in real economy
Glenn Stevens says it is ‘hard to read’ whether the effects of QE are filtering through to the real economy; business capital spending remains low in many major economies
Sri Lanka seeks return of money offered at Indian shrines
Sri Lankan central bank seeks to repatriate estimated 20 tonnes of coins offered as part of religious worship in India
Tanzania hits financial inclusion target early due to mobile surge
Benno Ndulu says the number of adults with access to financial services has doubled in five years; describes mobile phones as ‘critical link’ between the unbanked and the formal system
The reorientation of central bank policy objectives
In this sponsored feature, Peter Warburton and Joanna Davies discuss how the policy challenges for central banks have been transformed in the aftermath of the global financial crisis
UK parliamentary report calls currency union with independent Scotland a ‘dead parrot'
There will be ‘no currency union of any kind - no ifs, no buts, no fudges, no deals', says chair of Scottish Affairs committee
SNB strikes deal to invest in Chinese bond market
Thomas Jordan and Zhou Xiaochuan establish new swap line in deal, which also permits the SNB to invest up to $2.4 billion in renminbi-denominated assets
French paper warns buffers ‘may not be sufficient’ to avoid credit crunch
Banque de France working paper finds an increase in market pressure to hold more capital can ‘limit the ability of banks to expand credit’ and trigger a crisis
Opinion: Carney’s dismissal of using monetary policy to resist rising asset prices is 'vacuous'
It is vital that politically independent central banks should work within a political vacuum, rather than adjusting their monetary policy reasoning to avoid subsequent political controversy
BoJ board members fear structural problems behind sluggish exports
A ‘few’ members of the policy board are concerned that competitiveness issues are to blame for slow growth in Japanese exports
IMF paper attempts to pin down output gap
Members of the Fund's European department build new models incorporating financial frictions to estimate the output gap in the US during the Great Moderation and beyond