News
Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey, May 2004
According to the firms surveyed for the Philadelphia Fed's Business Outlook Survey, May 2004 activity in the region's manufacturing sector continues to expand. Indicators for employment and prices received were up from their April readings, the survey…
Mundell: Chinese economy not overheated
China's economy was not overheated in a wide sense, said Nobel Prize Laureate Robert Mundell on Sunday 22 May in Urumqi. According to him, a floating exchange rate system is not suitable for China, and giving up the fixed exchange rate system will have a…
G7 urge OPEC to raise oil output
The Group of Seven top economic powers on Sunday 22 May, called on all oil-producing nations to safeguard the world economy from soaring energy costs by raising production.
Previous G7 forex statement still valid-Koch-Weser
German deputy finance minister Caio Koch-Weser said the Group of Seven's stance on foreign exchange rates expressed at a meeting in Washington in April is still valid, even though the statement issued after G7 finance officials' meeting on Sunday 22 May…
Tanigaki tells G7 Japan is working on debt
Japanese Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki said that he told Group of Seven nations and Russia that Japan will try harder to control the expansion of its public debt.
PBOC chief calls for risk exchange to price NPLs
China's central bank chief, Zhou Xiaochuan, is urging the establishment of a risk exchange market that would price banks' nonperforming loans and allow for their sale to entities willing to assume risk in exchange for the opportunity of high profits.
Russian Duma to consider central bank reshuffle
Russian lawmakers are to consider reshuffling the board of directors of the Russian Central Bank, the State Duma Council has announced.
Greenspan gets the nod for new Fed term
President Bush finally renominated Alan Greenspan to another term as Federal Reserve chairman this week. Greenspan expressed his honour at the renomination. If he holds the chair until June 2006, Greenspan will be the longest-serving chairman in the Fed…
MAS chairman's dual role to stay
Singapore's Second Finance Minister Lim Hng Kiang said this week that there is no immediate need to change the status quo for Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lee Hsien Loong's concurrent role as the Monetary Authority of Singapore's chairman.
Names forwarded for Macedonian central bank chief
Former finance ministers Petar Gosev and Taki Fiti were named by local media on Wednesday 19 May as the most likely candidates to head Macedonia's central bank.
Former RBI governor to lead India
Manmohan Singh, a former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, is set to become India's next prime minister after Sonia Gandhi's decision to turn down the job. Mr Singh was in charge of the RBI from September 82 to January 85.
Israel: Central bank workers storm meeting
Bank of Israel employees held a protest meeting this week during working hours and later disrupted a management meeting, which had to be cancelled, according to a report by Haaretz.
Deal may be close in Welteke probe
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported on Friday 21 May that a deal may be close whereby German prosecutors drop the case against former Deutsche Bundesbank President Ernst Welteke in exchange for the payment of a fine.
US inflation a concern for McTeer
A recent rise in U.S. inflation has raised some concerns but Federal Reserve officials are not unduly worried, Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert McTeer said on Thursday 20 May.
SNB's Roth: Euro's positive global influence
Swiss National Bank (SNB) governing board chairman Jean-Pierre Roth said that the euro has had a "positive global influence", including on Switzerland, since its introduction in 1999.
BoJ and govt agree to watch interest rates
Top government and central bank officials agreed in a meeting on Friday 21 May that they should carefully watch interest rates, Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Toshiro Muto said.
IMF may raise growth forecast for Japan
The International Monetary Fund said on Friday 21 May that it is likely to raise its forecast for Japan's economic growth from its current estimate of 3.4 percent for this year when it issues its next global economic outlook.
Central bank holdings of US debt at new high
Foreign central banks increased their holdings of U.S. debt in the last week, the Federal Reserve reported on Thursday 20 May, taking their total holdings to yet another record.
PBOC's Zhou calls on banks to avoid loans bubble
People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said Friday banks should increase their provisioning for bad loans, while he criticized their failure to use a wider range for lending rates to properly weight risk.
African central bank governors meet in Uganda
At least 100 African ministers of finance and central bank governors were expected in Uganda Friday 21 May to discuss the obstacles to the continent's participation in global trade.
Deutsche Bundesbank Monthly Report, April 2004
The Deutsche Bundesbank has published the English version of its April 2004 monthly report. the German economy has continued its moderate upturn which began in the summer of 2003. According to the Bundesbank's calculations, real gross domestic product …
Sveriges Riksbank launches new website
The website of the Sveriges Riksbank has been changed radically in terms of content, function and graphic design and is based on the results of a user survey. The website has been developed with usability and accessibility in mind, according to the…
Reserve Bank of Australia Bulletin, May 2004
The Reserve Bank of Australia published its May 2004 Bulletin on 20 May. The Bulletin includes articles titled 'Residential Property Investors in Australia' And 'Banking Fees in Australia'.
Markets right to expect rate rise: Fed's Stern
Minneapolis Fed President Gary Stern said in an interview on Wednesday 19 May that financial markets are right to expect the Federal Reserve to start raising interest rates.