News
Israel stress test results show room for improvement
Results of stress tests show Israeli banks need to improve Core Tier I capital and risk management practices
Former Estonian official advises prime minister before Helsinki move
Märten Ross takes up prime minister advisory role before joining as adviser to Bank of Finland’s monetary policy and research department
Gono urges caution in banking sector split
Gideon Gono says indigenisation and economic empowerment plan must be applied in a way that benefits the population most broadly; urges caution in division of banking industry
Tunisia struggling to regain stability
'Sharp regression' in mining and tourism leads executive board to call for 'ongoing follow-up of the economic situation' in the country
BoE’s Haldane considers policy to stem pro-cyclicality of haircuts
Bank of England executive director of financial stability Andy Haldane says minimum collateral requirements could be used to ease pro-cyclical nature of haircuts
China focus remains on inflation fight
Prudent monetary policy to continue, says central bank; fighting inflation is still top priority
Norway SWF adds more London properties to portfolio
Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global takes 25% share in two London properties; move follows $700 million investment in London’s Regent Street
Obama acknowledges AAA credit rating at risk
Obama says result of downgrade would be “like a tax on everyone” with higher interest rates; remains hopeful that there are “plenty of ways out of this mess”
Swiss National Bank posts large loss due to surge in currency
SNB records Sfr10.8 billion ($13.7 billion) loss for the first half of 2011; blames strong appreciation of Swiss franc
Asian Development Bank encourages regional policy cooperation
The Asian Development Bank wants to see increased regional policy cooperation to ensure more balanced and sustained growth in emerging East Asia
Questions raised over UK’s FX volume surge
Market participants attribute a range of factors to the 23% rise in FX turnover in the UK reported by the Bank of England's FX Joint Standing Committee on July 25
Turkmen central bankers jailed
Three central bank officials jailed; latest in long history of dramatics at the country’s central bank
Fed warns of Dodd-Frank clash with Basel III
Proposal to remove references to credit rating agencies conflicts with Basel III wording; Fed faces tough process to find alternative standards of creditworthiness
Cyprus fiscal woes deepen as Moody’s downgrades
Moody’s downgrades Cyprus two notches as country’s fiscal problems force government to resign
Bank’s Miles allays fears over economic costs of Basel III
Bank of England external Monetary Policy Committee member David Miles says Basel III requirements will not have negative bearing on economy, as long as the transition is gradual
Ireland copies UK in new central bank law
Central bank can now order financial services providers to have an independent expert prepare a report on any regulatory matter; similar to UK provision
Belarus new chief hails from biggest state bank
Nadezhda Yermakova leaves Belarusbank to take over as head of the central bank
Draghi backs ‘consistent’ implementation of Basel III
In his foreword to a new book, Mario Draghi says consistent implementation of Basel III rules must be achieved
Lagarde sets out ‘four-C’ plan to keep IMF relevant
Christine Lagarde says IMF must focus on clients and connections, be comprehensive and credible; reform of voting system is a top priority
Greek debt guarantees were vital for monetary policy: Estonia’s Lipstok
Bank of Estonia chairman Andres Lipstok says pledge by eurozone leaders to provide European Central Bank with guarantees for Greek collateral was very important for its price stability mandate
South Sudan currency exchange begins in earnest: images
Senior officials in South Sudan exchange Sudan pound for new South Sudan currency; central bank sets deadline for public to exchange old banknotes for new ones
Afghanistan denies oversight failures
Afghanistan’s government defends itself against claims it failed to co-operate with auditors to safeguard US funds; says relationship with US watchdog is “strained”
Robert Mundell: How to save the euro
Nobel laureate Robert Mundell says eurozone can be saved with three-pronged policy solution, ‘for the short run, intermediate run and long run’
Political impasse raises US default concerns
As the August 2 deadline to raise the US debt ceiling looms, Blair Baker looks at what the prospect of a default in the US means for the world and whether the Fed can play a pivotal role in Washington