News
World Bank pledges $3.5 billion, cuts rates
The World Bank said it will give $3.5 billion to the world's poorest economies and will lower borrowing costs for poor and middle-income countries.
OECD advises UK to cut rates
The UK should lower interest rates, the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has said.
Spain's Solbes supports Trichet on Sarkozy debate
Pedro Solbes, the Spanish finance minister, indicated that he would side with Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), over his recent exchange with Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president.
Alan Greenspan on volatile markets
Interviewed on the BBC's Today programme on 28 September, Alan Greenspan waxed philosophical about the changing nature of financial markets and their relationship to the real economy.
UK business chief singles out King
Richard Lambert, a former member of the monetary policy committee who now heads the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), dismissed Mervyn King's blaming of the Northern Rock crisis on regulatory complexity as unsatisfactory.
Banks snub Old Lady's three-month money
The Bank of England received no bids for its additional three-month tender on Wednesday but the European Central Bank (ECB) revealed that it had loaned €3.9 billion the same day from its marginal lending facility.
German sovereign wealth rules "lean and liberal"
Germany's planned legislation to limit investment by sovereign wealth funds will allow foreign funds to buy banks, media companies and consumer industries, but not in the energy sector.
Czech central bank holds rates
The Czech National Bank decided on Thursday to keep its benchmark interest rate at 3.25%.
Injections were the right response - OECD chief
Central banks were correct to inject liquidity into the banking system in order to deal with the turmoil in global money markets, said Angel Gurria, the secretary general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Further rapid growth in foreign exchange trading
The volumes of foreign exchange traded has grown by 65% over the last three years, the preliminary results of the Bank for International Settlement's (BIS) triennial survey reveal, with global daily turnover averaging $3.2 trillion in April 2007.
New governance head at Norwegian oil fund
Anne Kvam, a legal director at paper producer Norske Skog, will replace Henrik Syse, as head of corporate governance at Norges Bank Investment Management, the Central Bank of Norway's sovereign wealth fund.
Sudan to switch dollar reserves
The Bank of Sudan has said it is looking to replace its dollar reserves with euros and other currencies by the end of 2007 to lessen the impact of US sanctions.
Poland and Romania hold rates
The central banks of Poland and Romania decided on Thursday to leave their benchmark rates unchanged at 4.75% and 7% respectively.
Norway raises rates
Norway's central bank surprised markets by hiking its benchmark rate 25 basis points to 5% on Wednesday.
Politicians want more power to veto Bank
An enquiry into the crisis at Northern Rock by Treasury ministers is expected to result in calls for their colleague, the chancellor of the exchequer, to be able to overrule the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
EU re-designs euro coin to exclude Turkey
The new design of the euro coin - set to be introduced next year in Slovenia, Malta and Cyprus - will not feature Turkey despite its inclusion in the original plans.
Dugan to replace Witteveen at joint forum
John Dugan, the comptroller of the currency in the US, will head the Joint Forum, a group of senior financial sector regulators, following the death of Dirk Witteveen, an executive director at the Netherlands Bank, earlier this month.
Slovakia holds rates
The National Bank of Slovakia decided to keep its benchmark rate at 4.25% on Tuesday.
Currency reform set for delays - Nigeria's Soludo
Charles Soludo, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, said reforms of its naira currency, set out in mid-August, are on hold until the central bank meets with the government.
IMF warns against over-regulation following crisis
Jaime Caruana, the head of capital markets at the International Monetary Fund, on Monday urged financial regulators to avoid introducing a raft of rules in reaction to recent events in global money markets.
Tosovsky and Strauss-Kahn interview for IMF head
Josef Tosovsky's and Dominique Strauss-Kahn's respective statements to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the role of managing director touched on similar problems. But their solutions differed vastly.
Hungary cuts rates, looks to abolish two coins
The National Bank of Hungary decided on Monday to lower its base rate by 25 basis points to 7.5% after announcing on Friday that it would withdraw its one and two forint coins.
Trichet responds to Sarkozy criticism
Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank, has again hit back at French president Nicolas Sarkozy's attempts to criticise and influence monetary policy.
Israel holds rates
The Bank of Israel decided on Monday to keep its interest rate at 4% as the strength of the shekel is counterbalancing rising prices and keeping inflation in check.