Central Banks
Weidmann: Risk of self-reinforcing deflation ‘very low’
Bundesbank president says there was ‘no immediate need’ for QE in the eurozone, while impact of lower oil prices on HICP could be ‘short-lived’
Growth of finance sucks skill from real economy, BIS paper warns
Financial growth crowds out real growth by drawing skilled labour away from other industries, with R&D hit particularly hard, a working paper by Stephen Cecchetti and Enisse Kharroubi finds
House committee calls on Fed to change leverage ratio
Segregated initial margin should be allowed to reduce exposure in cleared trades, says House Agriculture Committee in letter to Fed chair, Janet Yellen
Kalyalya replaces Gondwe as Bank of Zambia governor
Former deputy governor Denny Kalyalya replaces Michael Gondwe at the helm of the central bank, after new president decides he wants a change at the top
Cyprus central bank reviewing operational model
Central bank is commissioning a detailed study into its organisational structure to ensure it is ‘fit-for-purpose’, in light of concerns it has not ‘adequately evolved’ with the times
IMF paper tackles puzzle of asset bubbles in efficient markets
Working paper suggests business risk for asset managers creates institutional herding and ‘rational bubble-riding’, with implications for the design of macro-prudential policies
BIS paper asks why bank and central bank rates diverged post-crisis
Authors argue direct comparison of commercial and central bank interest rates is misleading; the relationship between the two has remained stable but funding costs have risen
BoE could ease with deflation looming
Record low inflation may turn negative in the spring, inflation report shows; Mark Carney says rate cuts and QE remain options but BoE still expects next move to be a rate hike
Dutch paper finds global banking system has adopted ‘a more regional focus’
Researchers say global banking has not become more fragmented, but has undergone some ‘important transformations’ since the crisis
RBA’s Debelle exerts pressure over FX benchmarks
Guy Debelle warns the likelihood of a ‘regulatory response’ on forex benchmarks will ‘substantially increase’ if FSB-approved recommendations are not met
Riksbank goes negative and launches QE
Swedish central bank announces unprecedented measures to ‘safeguard' inflation expectations; rates ‘far from lower bound' says Ingves
Justin Lin: Multiple reserve currency system ‘less stable' than one based on dollar
Former World Bank chief economist tells Central Banking Journal competing reserve currencies would not address overriding challenge of global monetary system
Dallas Fed’s Fisher calls for FOMC reform
Richard Fisher unveils a range of proposals aimed at reducing the power of the New York Fed and Board of Governors in monetary policy decisions
Central banks in CEE take different views on inflation drop
Institutions in Romania and Hungary forecast a quick return to target, while those in Poland and the Czech Republic sound a more cautious note about the inflation outlook
Japan at a turning point but liquidity risks loom, say panellists
Panel at Japan Securities Summit including BoJ’s Takehiro Sato believes Japan’s ‘certain, coordinated and creative’ policy mix will deliver the first turnaround in 20 years
Carney: Expectations of Fed tightening could trigger ‘sharp adjustment’ in financial markets
FSB chairman says the ‘ongoing disconnect’ between risk-taking in financial markets and the real economy ‘poses the threat of sharp adjustments’
BoE’s Furse warns liquidity has become ‘more fragile’ in some markets
Post-crisis measures have increased bank resilience, but have also ‘altered the economic model’ for capital markets intermediation
Canadian economy may have more slack than headline figures suggest, says senior deputy
Bank of Canada's Carolyn Wilkins says measures of labour market slack show ‘greater unused capacity' than broader indicators
Venezuela fleshes out details of new floating exchange rate
Venezuela’s central bank will introduce a new free-float exchange rate, allowing people and companies to freely buy and sell dollars; economists say it will lead to depreciation
People: Sejko confirmed as Albania governor; Vietnam names deputy
Gent Sejko confirmed in post after being nominated in December; Nguyen Kim Anh becomes sixth deputy governor at State Bank of Vietnam; and more
Kyrgyz central bank throws open library to public
Demand for rare books from scholars and students leads National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic to open its library to the public
Cyprus central bank governor sees confidence returning
Chrystalla Georghadji says historically large investments in the Cypriot banking sector are a reflection of the international community’s growing confidence in the country