News
A guide for would-be MPC members
An ability to challenge convention, courage in one's convictions and a thick skin are some of the qualities essential for Monetary Policy Committee members, two external members of the Bank of England's committee have said.
Calls for Bank to retake control of regulation
The leader of Britain's main opposition party wants the Bank of England to regain its role in regulating the overall level of debt in the banking system.
MPC dove slams policy orthodoxy
David Blanchflower, an external member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, has launched a scathing attack on monetary-policy orthodoxy, questioning inflation targeting's intellectual roots and advocating consideration of whether to use…
Fed sets boundaries for stability role
The Federal Reserve sought to clarify its role as a guardian of financial stability on Monday in an attempt to avoid taking what one regional Fed president has labelled "risky" fiscal action.
King details vision for quantitative easing
The Bank of England expects to spend the first £75 billion ($110.5 billion) tranche set aside for quantitative easing, within the next three months, Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank, said on Tuesday.
South Africa cuts by 100 basis points
The South African Reserve Bank chopped 100 basis points off its key rate for the second month in a row on Tuesday.
UK inflation statistic surprises
The British CPI inflation statistic for the year to February, out Tuesday, confounded analysts' expectations of a steep fall, rising by a fifth of a percentage point from the January figure.
Buba to strengthen stability role
The Bundesbank is strengthening its role in financial stability by establishing a new department as part of a significant structural overhaul.
Geithner bailout meets with mixed reviews
The markets loved it. But economists' reaction to US Treasury secretary Tim Geithner's public-private partnership to relieve banks of their toxic assets was more critical.
China's Zhou wants SDRs as global currency
Zhou Xiaochuan, the governor of the People's Bank of China, has urged countries to adopt special drawing rights (SDR) as an international reserve currency as part of a move towards a more stable global monetary order.
Buba names new communications head
Benedikt Fehr, a journalist for a German daily, is to become the new head of the Bundesbank's communications department after Christian Burckhardt, the former head, died tragically last December.
UK rejigs inflation basket
Rose wine, hot rotisserie chicken and internet-based DVD subscriptions are some of the items that have been added to Britain's new inflation basket.
Rules alone will not stop crises: Rajan, White
Raghuram Rajan and William White, two highly-regarded economists, have said that regulation - whether it was tighter, less pro-cyclical or more systemic - would not prevent future crises unless fundamental structural and behavioural changes were made to…
Estonia to meet Maastricht criteria in 2009
Andres Lipstok, the governor of the Bank of Estonia, has said that the country will meet all the Maastricht criteria for euro entry later this year, reports say.
Reforming regulation: how urgent, how effective?
Participants in a conference hosted by the London School of Economics and Deutsche Bank in London on Thursday were split over whether there was substance to regulatory buzzwords such as countercyclical supervision and utility-based banking.
Turkish rates hit record low
The Central Bank of Turkey's decision to lower its benchmark rate by a full percentage point on Thursday took borrowing costs in the country at an all-time low.
Indian inflation near zero
Indian inflation has reached a 20-year low of just 0.44%.
Global economy to shrink by 0.5-1%: IMF
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has again lowered its growth estimates, saying that it now sees a contraction of 0.5% to 1% in global activity.
Bank to begin buying corporate bonds next week
The Bank of England said on Thursday that it would begin buying corporate bonds outright next week.
Iceland's new MPC cuts by 100bp in first decision
The Central Bank of Iceland's Monetary Policy Committee, set up earlier this month, has cut the key policy rate by a full percentage point to 17%.
Fed feedback: bombshell welcomed but some concern
Reaction to the Federal Open Market Committee's decision to buy Treasuries has been broadly positive but some are concerned by the apparent rashness of a decision about which Fed officials had given scant indication.
Morgan Stanley economist new MPC member
Alistair Darling, the chancellor of the exchequer, announced on Thursday that David Miles will replace David Blanchflower as an external member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on 1 June.
Sri Lanka keeps on cutting
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka slashed its policy rate by 175 basis points to 14.75% on Wednesday in an effort to encourage lending and revive economic activity.
Fed to buy Treasuries
The Federal Open Market Committee said on Thursday that it will buy up to $300 billion in Treasuries and an additional $750 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities. It will also invest an additional $100 billion in agency debt.