Central Banks
Snap election spells headache for BoJ
Shinzo Abe calls snap election to bolster support for delaying a planned tax hike, but the move has implications for the Bank of Japan’s quantitative easing programme
Riksbank paper examines impact of systematic bailout guarantees on bank co-ordination
Bailout regime increases expected profits from co-ordination and raises probability of competitors remaining in business, researchers argue
Eurasian central bank cooperation taken up a notch
Armenia and Kyrgyzstan attend ‘advisory council’ on foreign exchange policy for first time; meeting held in wake of Bank of Russia’s decision to let the ruble float
Bundesbank’s Nagel wants Frankfurt clearing house
Executive board member details benefits to German economy from having an RMB clearing bank, and sets out plans to form a clearing house in the future
UK bank reforms may be ‘diluted’, warns parliamentary commission
Former members of the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards warn regulations are at risk of being misinterpreted, diluted by lobbying, or applied incorrectly
BIS paper finds leverage ratio more countercyclical than other capital ratios
Working paper finds evidence the leverage ratio is ‘significantly’ more countercyclical than ratios of capital to risk-weighted assets, although the effect is less powerful during crises
Bank Indonesia raises interest rates in ad hoc meeting after fuel price rise
In an unexpected meeting, the Bank of Indonesia decided to raise the interest rate to 7.75% to tackle inflation, after the government raised fuel prices by more than 30%
Mauritian governor predicts banking overhaul by 2035
Rundheersing Bheenick sees mobile technology taking centre stage in years to come and banks reducing staff as a result; describes inequality as a ‘time bomb’ facing the economy
Draghi says sovereign bond-buying is on the table and under scrutiny
ECB staff preparing plans for various unconventional policies, with sovereign bond-buying very much under consideration, president says; dismisses concerns that low rates defer government action
G-20 summit delivers agreement on TLAC
Leaders approve standard for total loss-absorbing capacity, but consensus on cross-border cooperation remains hazy; Carney looks ahead to next phase of reforms
BIS' Caruana warns a debt trap 'looms large'
BIS general manager laments lack of analytical framework for dealing with ‘interplay' between finance and the real economy
Praet: Covered bond supply ‘dynamised’ by ECB purchases
European Central Bank executive board member Peter Praet identified ‘a number of supply side reactions’ to covered bond purchases, which hit €10.5 billion last week
BoE to challenge orthodoxy with research ‘revolution’
More combative approach to Bank of England’s research will see economists challenge orthodoxy – including the central bank’s own policies – as often as they support it, says Andrew Haldane
RBA strikes clearing deal with PBoC
Australian authorities agree clearing arrangements and RQFII quota with Chinese counterparts; announced in wake of G-20 summit and follows similar Canadian deals
St. Louis Fed’s Bullard doubts zero lower bound
James Bullard says low inflation in the US may justify a ‘somewhat lower-than-normal’ policy rate, but not remaining at the zero lower bound
Argentina enjoys a rare period of ‘currency peace’
Peso sees a recovery in the black market after the central bank cracks down; economists suggest a boost in dollar reserves is the main reason for the appreciation
G-20 Brisbane Summit: What to look for
Leaders of the G-20 countries meet this weekend to try to thrash out a deal on financial stability, growth and employment; Central Banking looks at some of the main issues on the table
Bank of Portugal looks set to audit banks' conduct
Central bank is expected to focus on banks’ governance models during the exercises, in an effort to prevent the issues associated with BES from resurfacing elsewhere
Spain ‘decoupled’ from other eurozone economies, says Banque de France paper
Working paper warns Spanish economy’s convergence with eurozone is ‘sluggish and incomplete’, with the sharpest decoupling beginning a year before the sovereign debt crisis
Dallas Fed president Richard Fisher to step down March 19
Fisher is the second recent dissenter on the FOMC to leave in less than two months; Was required by law to step down before April 30
Serbian central bank cuts key rate with inflation stuck below target
National Bank of Serbia ‘trims’ key rate to 8% with inflation hovering around 2%; also lowers foreign exchange reserve requirements in an effort to get banks lending
Plosser: central bankers should take ‘great care' in changing view on neutral interest rate
Distinguishing transitory from permanent changes in growth and real interest rates is a ‘tricky task', says Philadelphia Fed president and FOMC member
Payments technology progressing in ‘leaps and bounds,' says Canada deputy
Carolyn Wilkins says Bank of Canada is keeping a close eye on risks posed by new forms of electronic money and modernising its oversight framework for payments