Central Banks
NBP warns ECB-Fed mismatch may impair policy-making
Polish central bank says divergence of European and US monetary policy is likely to create problems for policy-makers elsewhere, especially in small, open economies
Balance sheet saw ‘substantial’ growth in past year, says RBA’s Stevens
Combined impact of replenished capital and new financial market operations has seen balance sheet swell, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s annual report for 2014
Dombret calls on German banks to ‘embrace new risk culture’
Bundesbank executive board member sets out four criteria for assessing the ‘soundness’ of banks’ risk culture, including the ‘tone from the top’
Banque de France ‘significantly’ improves research output
External review of central bank research finds ‘significant rise in quantity and quality’ in past six years; suggests improvements in communication with policy-makers
Bank of Mexico will run new oil fund
Central bank will be responsible for receiving, managing and distributing all income, excepting taxes, of the country’s oil and gas operations; will invest over ‘wider horizon’ than with past fund
BoE's Fisher underlines need for co-ordination between top committees
PRA deputy head says choices of one committee ‘will affect the choices of the others' and a common understanding of the economy is vital
European economists analyse global value chains
Bank of Portugal working paper analyses the global value chains in the eurozone and underlines the core role of Germany in production linkages
Linde points to growing ‘dynamism’ in Spanish economy
Bank of Spain governor expects 2% annual GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2014 and throughout 2015, but insists there are risks to Spanish recovery
FSB urges central banks to ‘take note’ of Iosco FX benchmark principles
Final report on FX rate benchmarks encourages central banks to heed Iosco recommendations; suggests changes to benchmark methodology to improve incentives
IMF flags up uneven application of shadow banking regulations
Report finds ‘indications of increased market and liquidity risk' in sector; China ‘stands out and warrants particular monitoring'
Norges Bank's Olsen defends ‘leaning against the wind' policy
Noting historically high household indebtedness, Norwegian governor says central bank cannot rely on assumption that new regulations will eliminate risk of financial stress
Summers calls on Fed and US Treasury to 'fully' coordinate debt management
Paper published today finds Treasury purchases of long-term bonds offset ‘about a third’ of QE benefits to US economy post-crisis; Fed governor dismisses controversial proposal
BoJ paper studies factors holding workers back from switching industries
Researchers find that differences in required tasks aggravate earnings gaps and encourage workers not to move, creating frictions in the Japanese labour market
Argentina central bank staff strike over pay
More than 80% of employees are on strike, according to a workers' union; central bank says the demonstration has not affected their activities
Rajan turns attention to 2016 inflation target
Reserve Bank of India holds key rates as headline inflation drops to 7.8%; Rajan says policy will be set to achieve 6% target by January 2016 from this point onwards
Focus on risk culture is ‘remaking’ the banking system
Patricia Jackson highlights ‘big shift’ in banking as firms implement more rigorous risk frameworks; BoE’s Andrew Bailey sets out the PRA’s approach
IMF warns of new asset bubbles caused by ‘expansionary policies' post-crisis
Report finds global imbalances are shrinking, and concludes this is driven by structural reduction in demand rather than ‘expenditure switching' to domestic products
Bundesbank unveils new card clearing infrastructure
Bundesbank and EBA Clearing launch new XML-based infrastructure for card clearing; payments chief says it allows banks to ‘leverage’ their Sepa investments
Paper finds evidence of multiplier effect in food trade policy
IMF working paper studies the relationship between trade policy and food prices and finds evidence of a multiplier effect in its data sample
Portuguese research examines decline in allocative efficiency
Bank of Portugal working paper finds service sector the ‘main driver’ of decline in allocative efficiency between 1996 and 2011, which the authors say nearly halved GDP growth
US senator calls for hearings into NY Fed supervision
Elizabeth Warren says ‘disturbing issues' raised by former employee's secret recordings of colleagues; New York Fed ‘categorically rejects allegations'
Brazil central bank director vows quick response to inflation
The monetary policy committee of the central bank will evaluate whether the interest rate needs to be raised to battle inflation, says director, and will act quickly if necessary