News
Fed minutes point to moderate easing
The latest Federal Reserve minutes suggest that the period of rapid monetary policy easing that started in late January may be over and could be replaced by a return to a more conventional, gradualist approach.
UK opposition calls for new central bank powers
Giving central banks the power to vary the capital banks hold over the economic cycle could help prevent asset price collapses, argued George Osborne, the Conservative shadow chancellor.
Thailand leaves rates on hold
The Bank of Thailand has kept rates at 3.25% for the sixth straight vote.
Politicians ask Fed to clarify Bear deal
A high-ranking American politician has issued a strongly worded request for more details about the arrangement the Federal Reserve struck with BlackRock, an asset management firm, to manage a $29 billion portfolio of assets from Bear Stearns following…
ADIA hires ex-banker as communications chief
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has hired former Morgan Stanley corporate communications executive Euart Glendinning as its first global head of corporate affairs.
Indonesia's Boediono gets the nod
Boediono, Indonesia's economics minister, will become governor of the country's central bank in May after a parliamentary committee approved his appointment.
Tokyo nominates Shirakawa for governor
The leadership crisis at the Bank of Japan looks resolved after the government nominated Masaaki Shirakawa, the current acting governor, for the role on Monday night.
New Indonesian governor wants tighter regulation
Boediono, the prospective head the Bank of Indonesia, called on 7 April for tighter regulation of the central bank after a series of corruption scandals.
IMF chief calls for public intervention in credit
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said on 6 April that he thinks the need for "public intervention" in the credit crisis is becoming more evident.
UK chancellor wants action on market crisis
Alistair Darling, the UK chancellor, has called on his G7 counterparts to formulate a "clear and detailed plan of action" to combat the turmoil in world markets.
Greenspan hits back
Alan Greenspan, a former chairman of the Federal Reserve, has said that the blame for the subprime crisis lies with the investment community rather than himself, as has often been argued.
Crisis not over yet, says Netherlands' Wellink
Nout Wellink, the president of the Netherlands Central Bank, said the financial crisis is far from over, the US looks almost certain to go into recession and the rest of the world will suffer the consequences.
Help at hand for Kenya's bond market
The Central Bank of Kenya is working with International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and other stakeholders to help the development of the country's bond market and increase long-term financing options for projects in…
Shirakawa gets DPJ blessing, poised to lead BoJ
Masaaki Shirakawa, the acting governor of the Bank of Japan, looks likely to get the job formally after a senior opposition official indicated he would back his appointment.
Sovereign wealth funds being "unfairly treated"
Jesse Wang, vice president and chief risk officer of China Investment Corporation (CIC), has said that sovereign wealth funds are not receiving fair treatment in international markets.
Sri Lanka's sovereign rating lowered
Sri Lanka's sovereign rating was lowered by Fitch Ratings one notch to B-plus on 3 April, because of rising inflation, a worsening trade balance and a rising fiscal deficit.
India's inflation surge may mean rate rise
India's key inflation rate rose to a three-year high, said the government on 4 April, raising the possibility of a rate rise being imposed by the Reserve Bank of India.
New UK coinage meets lukewarm reception
New coin and banknote designs are almost inevitably greeted with criticism and the first new coin designs for 40 years from the UK's Royal Mint, unveiled on 3 April, were no exception. Historians, designers and MPs have already criticised them.
Bernanke voices US growth concerns
Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, warned that the country's economy was unlikely to grow much, if at all, this year, and "might even contract slightly".
Lenders expect further credit cutbacks: BoE poll
The Bank of England's quarterly survey of credit conditions, published on 3 April, showed that lenders had reduced the supply of secured credit to households over the three months to mid-March.
Tokyo wants new governor by next week
Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party wants a new central bank governor in place by next week in time for the meeting in Washington of G7 finance ministers, Nobutaka Machimura, Japan's cabinet secretary, said on 3 April.
New members of Bank of Korea's MPC
Lee Myung-bak, the president of South Korea, has appointed three professors as new members of the Bank of Korea's Monetary Policy Committee.
Iceland's Fridriksson dismisses stability concerns
In an effort to reassure investors, Ingimundur Fridriksson, a board member at the Central Bank of Iceland, has denied that the country's banks and economy are unstable.
We had no choice, Bernanke tells lawmakers
The Federal Reserve had no choice but to intervene and put taxpayers' money at risk earlier this month by backing a fire sale of the assets of Bear Stearns, a leading American investment bank, its chairman said on Wednesday in testimony before US…