Central Banks
Sri Lanka’s Mahendran cleared of direct involvement in bond scandal
Governor not directly involved with irregularities in treasury bond auction, but tighter supervision of central bank operations is needed, committee finds
Kuroda calls for deeper understanding of expectations
Bank of Japan governor wants increased awareness of the mechanism through which inflation expectations are formed to help the design of monetary policy
‘Unbanked’ numbers fall 20%, World Bank study finds
First update to the Global Findex database finds 700 million adults worldwide became new account holders since 2011, but two billion remain without access to basic financial services
PBoC steps up support with reserve ratio cuts
People’s Bank of China cuts the ratio for the second time this year, with observers pointing to pressure on the monetary base from foreign exchange outflows as a motivating factor
Mexican deputy tells EMs to assume US rate hike coming ‘sooner rather than later’
Javier Guzmán Calafell advises emerging markets to prepare ‘as fast as possible for a worst-case scenario’ in anticipation of the Federal Reserve tightening policy later this year
Carstens-led IMFC urges policy-makers ‘to attenuate’ spillovers and spillbacks
Fund calls for ‘careful calibration’ of policy normalisation; endorses use of capital controls as a last resort
Europe/US policy divergence ‘good news’ for monetary system, says top central banker
Spill-overs should not be a factor in monetary policy decisions; precedents for European and US policy to diverge, says top-level European central banker
Growth in banknote circulation drops in Namibia after ATM mandate
Annual report shows central bank mandated banks to re-calibrate their ATMs to better balance the dispense of banknotes to the market, lowering the rate of banknote issuance
Praet says onus on governments to ensure permanent recovery
Accommodative monetary policy is ’playing a key role’ in helping return inflation to target, argues Peter Praet, member of the ECB executive board
Nothing magical about targeting 2%, Bernanke says
Former Fed chair calls for further research on ‘alternative intermediate targets’ for monetary policy during IMF panel; will work with hedge fund Citadel as adviser on range of topics
Portuguese paper analyses crisis impact on union agreements
Bank of Portugal working paper evaluates changes in union agreements since the crisis, finding they have reduced due to ‘downward nominal wage rigidity in deflationary times’
BoE challenged US Treasury on G-Sii status of Berkshire Hathaway
UK regulator asked for clarity on Berkshire's place in provisional list of systemically important firms
IMF projections may be ‘too pro-cyclical’ warns Vergara
Central Bank of Chile president questions whether a drop in productivity has occurred recently, suggesting potential growth was actually ‘lower than previously thought all along’
Caribbean countries should use fiscal policy to fight exchange market pressure
Report from economists of several Caribbean central banks lays out the path for fiscal sustainability in the region; recommends using exchange market pressure as trigger for fiscal correction
Fed presidents still divided on timing of rate hike
Heads of the Federal Reserve Banks in Atlanta, Boston and Cleveland offer different takes on current economic conditions; all united in desire for more data
Constâncio fleshes out wider macro-prudential vision
Vice-president at the European Central Bank wants toolkit to extend to a wider range of financial entities, including asset managers, as risks emerge elsewhere in the system
Bank of Portugal was ‘overly cautious’ intervening in BES
A more assertive attitude from the Bank of Portugal could have resulted in the ‘possible mitigation of impacts’ arising from the BES case, finds parliamentary committee
Lagarde calls for ‘new multilateralism’ and pledges to move ahead on reform programme
Global policy agenda for coming year says the integration of key emerging market economies would ‘generate positive global spillovers and stability gains’
IMF: China at risk of ‘disinflationary feedback loop'
Oversupply of real estate pushes down inflation, pressuring real interest rates and straining bloated balance sheets, Fund warns in flagship report
Research department split at Central Bank of Malta
Annual report reveals separation of economic forecasts and quantitative research into separate departments, as governor looks to boost capacity