News
Canada holds rates, warns on inflation
The Bank of Canada on Tuesday opted to keep rates at 3% but warned inflation was set to soar above 4%, double the institution's target.
Olympic banknotes spark queues in Hong Kong
The release of special banknotes to mark the Beijing Olympics has prompted queues outside the Bank of China's Hong Kong branches.
Japan lowers growth forecast
The Bank of Japan has revised down its growth estimate for this year on the back of flagging business fixed investment and poor private consumption figures.
UK inflation surges to 16-year high
British headline inflation rose to 3.8% in the year to June, its highest level since 1992.
Fed tightens lending standards
The Federal Reserve on Monday approved a series of measures which it hopes will protect consumers against the sort of misleading lending practices considered partly responsible for the subprime crisis.
Fed will lend to Fannie and Freddie
The Federal Reserve has authorised the New York Federal Reserve to lend to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) that insure half of the US's home loans.
FDIC seizes Californian bank
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), a US regulator, has taken control of IndyMac, a California-based lender with total assets of $32 billion.
King declines bumper pay hike
Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England who has repeatedly called on UK employers to avoid hiking wages in line with rising inflation, has refused a salary increase that would have seen his pay soar by more than a third.
UAE speeds up cheque processing
The Central Bank of the UAE has introduced a new cheque-clearing system that will vastly reduce the time taken to process cheques.
UAE's Suwaidi wins fifth term
Sultan Bin Nasser al-Suwaidi, the governor of the Central Bank of the United Arab Emriates (UAE), will serve another four-year term.
Denmark bails out bank
The National Bank of Denmark has agreed to provide $158m-worth of emergency financing to Roskilde, a bank.
Kenya governor caught up in hotel probe
Njuguna Ndung'u, the governor of the Central Bank of Kenya, is reportedly facing allegations of defamation and has become embroiled in investigations into the controversial sale of a Nairobi Hotel.
Swiss regulator heeds calls for tougher rules
The Swiss Federal Banking Commission, the industry regulatory, has written to the country's two biggest banks to outline plans to enforce more stringent capital requirements.
Chile hikes by half a point
The Central Bank of Chile on Thursday raised its key rate half a point to 7.25% on the back of a deteriorating inflationary outlook.
Canada names special advisers
The Bank of Canada has appointed two economics professors as its special advisers on monetary policy for the coming year.
UK rates stay at 5%
The Bank of England held its key rate at 5% for the third straight month on Thursday.
Number of counterfeit euro notes surges
The number of counterfeit banknotes recovered in the eurozone soared by 5.4% in the first half of 2008, the European Central Bank (ECB) said on Thursday.
Goodhart predicts "annus horribilis" for BoE's MPC
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is in for a terrible year, Charles Goodhart, a former member of the committee, said.
GCC should drop dollar peg: Fed adviser
A prominent US economist with Federal Reserve experience has said it makes sense for Gulf states to abandon their dollar pegs.
Canada calls time on money injections
The Bank of Canada has said it will withdraw liquidity from the system on signs that money-market tensions are abating.
US lists advanced Basel II qualification rules
The four US regulatory agencies responsible for Basel II have detailed how firms may qualify to use the advanced approaches of the framework.
BoE rate low but homeowners face price surge
UK mortgage costs hit an eight-year high at the end of June despite the Bank of England's key rate remaining at 5%, its lowest level for more than two years.
Norwegian SWF mulls emerging-market portfolio
Norway's Government Pension Fund - Global is looking to invest in emerging-market stocks, say media reports.
EU sets euro exchange rate for Slovakia
The European Commission on Tuesday finalised Slovakia's bid to join Europe's single currency, fixing the koruna's conversion rate at 30.1260 to the euro.