News
Rock repays Bank debt with JPMorgan sale
Northern Rock, the beleaguered British mortgage lender, is to pay back some of its Bank of England debt through the sale of a mortgage portfolio worth £2.2 billion to JPMorgan, the- American investment bank.
Tanzania's Ballali fired over central bank fraud
Jakaya Kikwete, Tanzania's president, has sacked Daudi Ballali, the governor of the Bank of Tanzania, after external auditors found massive fraud at the central bank.
Turkish central bank set for Istanbul move
The Central Bank of Turkey will relocate to Istanbul in spite of objections from the institution's staff, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's prime minister said on Thursday.
Chile raises rates
The Central Bank of Chile voted on Thursday to hike rates by 25 basis points to 6.25%.
Peruvian rates hit 5.25% on inflation fears
The Central Bank of Peru's rate-setting board raised rates to 5.25%.
Rock action set for wider ambit
The scope of the regulatory response to Northern Rock will be much broader than originally anticipated, Alistair Darling, the British chancellor of the exchequer, said on Thursday.
Fed ready to act on worsening outlook: Bernanke
The Federal Reserve looks set to cut rates further after its chairman, Ben Bernanke, said central bank policy would look to counter the increasing risk of an economic slowdown.
UK rates held at 5.5%
The Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC) on Thursday voted to keep the benchmark bank rate at 5.5%.
ECB holds rates, warns of inflation risk
The European Central Bank kept rates on hold at 4% on Thursday, with its president, Jean-Claude Trichet, reiterating that upside risks to price stability were "fully confirmed".
Czech governor misquoted on currency comments
Comments attributed to Zdenik Tuma, the governor of the Czech National Bank, which led to exchange rate fluctuations, have misquoted him, the Czech National Bank has said.
Bank of Canada plans to increase transparency
Canada's central bank will review whether to provide more information about its predictions for the economic outlook in a bid to improve transparency.
France renews onslaught on ECB policy
The French government has resumed its campaign calling for the European Central Bank (ECB) to cut rates.
Decision supports ECB on counterfeit check
The European Central Bank (ECB) won backing from a French court on Wednesday for the right to use a method to detect fake notes.
Fed's Poole says risk of recession unclear
William Poole, the president of the St Louis Federal Reserve, said on Wednesday that it was still too early to tell whether the housing sector's problems would push the US economy into recession.
New Korean government to leave central bank alone
South Korea's incoming government, elected in December, will respect the Bank of Korea's independence, an official said on Wednesday.
UK chancellor blames Rock run on regulator
Alistair Darling, the British chancellor of the exchequer, admitted on Tuesday that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) was culpable in the run on Northern Rock, but said he still planned to grant the banking regulator more power.
Israeli central bank set for greater independence
Israel's new central banking law will create a more independent institution, said Stanley Fischer, the governor of the Bank of Israel.
Fed's Plosser stays hawkish on rates
Charles Plosser, the president of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve and a voting member of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), hinted that he would back a rate hold when the committee meets later this month.
Bank Indonesia avoids rate cut on price fears
Bank Indonesia's rate-setting board voted to keep rates on hold at 8% on Tuesday after inflation remained way above the central bank's medium-term target in December.
Austrian central bank increases regulatory role
The National Bank of Austria has strengthened its hold on the regulation of the banking industry following the introduction of a new financial market supervision framework.
G10 reassured by impact of joint injections
Central bank governors and finance ministers from the G10 economies were "very satisfied" with the effect of the coordinated action to ease interbank tensions, said Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB).
Fed pledges more cash to combat interbank woe
In a bid to further ease money market tensions, the Federal Reserve said on Friday that it will increase the amount of extra funds on offer through its additional open market operations after both of its December auctions were heavily oversubscribed.
Canada names John Murray as deputy
The Bank of Canada has appointed John Murray as a deputy governor.
ECB ready to act as inflation stays high
Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), said on Saturday that the rate-setting governing council was ready to act to control rising prices after figures published Friday showed euro-area inflation stayed at 3.1%.