News
Brazil sticks to 5.5 % inflation target
Brazil's central bank continues to target inflation of 5.5 per cent this year despite the rising cost of oil and market expectations that consumer prices will rise, the bank's president said on Wednesday 26 May .
Exchanging views on central banking issues
At the opening on Tuesday 25 May of the Joint Eurosystem, Bank of Russia Seminar in Helsinki the participants were welcomed by Matti Louekoski, Acting Governor of the Bank of Finland. He stressed that the Russian Federation has been enjoying rapid…
Norway holds interest rate unchanged
Norway's central bank, Norges Bank, kept its key interest rate unchanged at their Wednesday meeting at 1.75 percent. Norges Bank maintained its outlook of easing bias suggesting they still believe that the next rate movement will more likely be a cut…
Conference on e-money to convene in Iran
The secretariat of the Supreme Council for Information Dissemination and the Export Development Bank of Iran (EDBI) will convene the first conference on e-money in Iran next month.
Bundesbank's Weber to discuss deficit with Eichel
Bundesbank President Axel Weber said he will meet with German Finance Minister Hans Eichel on Friday to discuss ways to avoid violating European Union budget rules for a fourth straight year in 2005.
Liebscher slams Stability Pact spoilers
European Central Bank governing council member Klaus Liebscher said Wednesday that euro zone states must respect the terms of the Stability and Growth Pact.
IMF opens training centre in China
On Wednesday the International Monetary Fund inaugurated a training center jointly built with China in Dalian, a port city in northeast China's Liaoning Province. Attendees included Robert Mundell, the former Nobel prize winner.
China economists call for yuan basket peg
A group of leading Chinese economists, including a member of the People's Bank of China's influential monetary policy committee, has called for China to remove its long-standing yuan peg to the U.S. dollar and fix the yuan to a basket of currencies.
Third ECB central banking conference dates
The European Central Bank announced on Monday 24 May that it will hold its 3rd Central Banking Conference on 21st and 22nd October 2004 in Frankfurt, on "The New EU member states: convergence and stability".
Bank of Japan's MP Meeting Minutes, April 04
The Bank of Japan released the minutes from its 8 and 9 April Monetary Policy Meeting on 25 May. Some Policy Board members said domestic long-term interest rates needed close monitoring and cited the risk of long-term interest rates rising before there…
Trichet says ECB must not overreact on data
ECB chief Jean-Claude Trichet said on Monday 24 May that the central bank generally had to show 'sang-froid' and moderation in its reaction to economic developments. In a speech delivered in French he said the stability and growth pact does not need to…
ECB 'wrong' for letting euro strengthen-Berlusconi
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has criticised the European Central Bank for allowing the euro to strengthen too much against the dollar, hurting eurozone exporters and boosting inflation.
Helsinki seminar on ESCB cooperation begins
Finland hosted the opening of a three-day seminar devoted to mechanisms of cooperation between the Russian Central Bank and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) on Tuesday 24 May. Participants at the seminar will include the chairman of the…
Bundesbank calm over oil price surge
Bundesbank president Axel Weber said on Tuesday 25 May that he was not overly worried about surging oil prices, and he indicated that a cut in interest rates by the ECB to help boost eurozone growth was not likely for the time being.
CBN launches efficient document management system
Towards addressing the problems of storage, archival and retrieval of vital documents, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday 24 May launched the Integrated Document Management Solution (IDMS), a filing system designed to achieve efficient document…
Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey, May 2004
According to the firms surveyed for the Philadelphia Fed's Business Outlook Survey, May 2004 activity in the region's manufacturing sector continues to expand. Indicators for employment and prices received were up from their April readings, the survey…
Mundell: Chinese economy not overheated
China's economy was not overheated in a wide sense, said Nobel Prize Laureate Robert Mundell on Sunday 22 May in Urumqi. According to him, a floating exchange rate system is not suitable for China, and giving up the fixed exchange rate system will have a…
G7 urge OPEC to raise oil output
The Group of Seven top economic powers on Sunday 22 May, called on all oil-producing nations to safeguard the world economy from soaring energy costs by raising production.
Previous G7 forex statement still valid-Koch-Weser
German deputy finance minister Caio Koch-Weser said the Group of Seven's stance on foreign exchange rates expressed at a meeting in Washington in April is still valid, even though the statement issued after G7 finance officials' meeting on Sunday 22 May…
Tanigaki tells G7 Japan is working on debt
Japanese Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki said that he told Group of Seven nations and Russia that Japan will try harder to control the expansion of its public debt.
PBOC chief calls for risk exchange to price NPLs
China's central bank chief, Zhou Xiaochuan, is urging the establishment of a risk exchange market that would price banks' nonperforming loans and allow for their sale to entities willing to assume risk in exchange for the opportunity of high profits.
Russian Duma to consider central bank reshuffle
Russian lawmakers are to consider reshuffling the board of directors of the Russian Central Bank, the State Duma Council has announced.
Greenspan gets the nod for new Fed term
President Bush finally renominated Alan Greenspan to another term as Federal Reserve chairman this week. Greenspan expressed his honour at the renomination. If he holds the chair until June 2006, Greenspan will be the longest-serving chairman in the Fed…
MAS chairman's dual role to stay
Singapore's Second Finance Minister Lim Hng Kiang said this week that there is no immediate need to change the status quo for Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lee Hsien Loong's concurrent role as the Monetary Authority of Singapore's chairman.