News
Snow repeats call for action on China peg
U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow on Friday 13 May renewed pressure on China to let its currency trade freely, saying the United States has made clear it wants Beijing to move to a flexible exchange rate soon.
Venezuela's Chavez considers vote on reserves use
Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez said on Saturday 14 May he may decide to call a referendum on whether the country should be able to use part of its international exchange reserves for projects to help the poor.
Iceland re-appoints central bank chief
The Prime Minister of Iceland has re-appointed Eirikur Gunason as Governor of the central bank for a term of seven years which began on 1 May.
PBOC's Zhou Xiaochuan on exchange rate reform
In a recently published interview Zhou Xiaochuan, Governor of the People's Bank of China, said we will make active and steady efforts to push ahead with the reform of the RMB exchange rate regime on a well-planned and step-by-step basis.
NY Fed's Geithner appointed CPSS Chairman
The Governors of the central banks of the G10 countries have appointed Timothy F Geithner as Chairman of the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems (CPSS) with effect from June 2005.
Parliamentary speaker nominated Estonia bank chief
The supervisory council of the Bank of Estonia on Tuesday 10 May nominated deputy parliamentary speaker Andres Lipstok as the new president of the Baltic country's central bank.
Bank Indonesia gets new deputy governor
Indonesia's Lower House of Parliament has unanimously appointed Siti Chalimah Fadjrijah as the central bank's new deputy governor in charge of bank supervision, replacing Aulia Pohan.
Uncertainty over new deputy governor in Kenya
The tenure of the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Kenya was uncertain this week after Dr Edward Sambili's contract ended on April 30, but no one had been appointed to take his place.
IMF opens new headquarters building
The International Monetary Fund will open its second headquarters building in downtown Washington, D.C. on 16 May. The new building, which is adjacent to the IMF's existing headquarters building at 700 19th Street, N.W. will house about 1,500 staff.
IMF says Iraq too dangerous to open office
The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday 12 May that it is too dangerous for the Fund to open an office in Iraq at the present time but it hopes to begin talks soon on a special loan to the Iraqi government.
IMF say conditions favourable on China rate reform
International Monetary Fund spokesman Thomas Dawson said that China is now ready and able to reform its exchange rate system, and it is in its best economic interest for it to do so.
PBOC chief rejects rate change rumour
The head of the People's Bank of China, Zhou Xiaochuan, denied rumours on Friday that the renminbi will be allowed to appreciate on 18 May.
Wolfowitz reassures World Bank staff
Paul Wolfowitz is trying to reassure World Bank staff that he has turned put his past involvement with the Iraq war behind him and has his eyes trained on global development.
EMEAP announces ABF2 moves to implementation phase
The eleven central banks and monetary authorities from East Asia and the Pacific which make up the EMEAP Group announced on Thursday 12 May that the Asian Bond Fund 2 (ABF2) has moved into its implementation phase.
US Treasury denies China visit report
A US Treasury Department spokesman denied media reports on Wednesday 11 May that officials planned to visit China next week for talks with Chinese economic authorities.
Tanigaki says yuan revaluation won't push up yen
A revaluation of China's currency wouldn't immediately strengthen the yen, Japan's Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki said on Thursday 12 May.
SARB deputy says economy can sustain brisk growth
South African Reserve Bank deputy governor Ian Plenderleith said on Wednesday 12 May that South Africa can sustain economic growth of at least 4 per cent over the next few years and investor confidence in the country has improved.
House prices overvalued says Spain's Caruana
Bank of Spain Governor Jaime Caruana Wednesday said that in the central banks view house prices are overvalued as a result of an extended property boom, but ruled out the possibility of a "disorderly adjustment" in the market.
PBOC official says prepared for yuan reform
A deputy governor of the People's Bank of China said the central bank is now "technically" prepared to carry out currency reforms, according to a report on Wednesday 11 May.
Fed's Hoenig: statement error a 'doggone mistake'
Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig said on Tuesday 10 May that the omission of a reassurance about the long-term inflation outlook in last week's Federal Reserve policy statement was just a mistake.
Fed's Fisher sees US economy in 'sweet spot'
Dallas Federal Reserve President Richard Fisher said on Tuesday an apparent soft spot in U.S. growth may have been influenced by technical factors making March data look especially weak, but in fact the economy is pulling ahead well.
Japan's MOF may yield to BOJ on reserves
Japan's Ministry of Finance is expected to approve the Bank of Japan's plans to build up its reserves beyond the amount legally required, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported.
Bank of Japan Minutes, 15 and 16 March
The Bank of Japan's minutes from its 15 and 16 March monetary policy meeting published on 9 May showed policy makers agreed they can keep the target for reserves available to lenders by changing the way the bank conducts money-market operations.
PBOC to increase bank card business
China's central bank and other related government agencies have developed guidelines and measures to accelerate the development of the burgeoning bank card industry.