News
Sweden's Bergstrom on causes of unemployment
Sveriges Riksbank Deputy Governor Villy Bergstrom spoke at a seminar on economics in Stockholm on Wednesday 15 December. He said there is no long-term stable connection between inflation and unemployment. Instead, structural measures are required to…
Deficit cuts vital for U.S. economy says Snow
US Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Wednesday 15 December that cutting the twin deficits, blamed for weakening the dollar, would be a top priority in president Bush's second term.
Qatar to launch Payment Gateway early next year
Qatar's Central Bank (QCB) has said is will launch its Payment Gateway in early 2005 which will boost and ease e-commerce and e-transactions in Qatar.
French fin min hints over ECB intervention
The newly appointed French finance minister, Herve Gaymard, warned in an interview that the US dollar's weakness is "very worrying" and suggested possible intervention by the European Central Bank.
Fed raises rates, says economic outlook unchanged
The Federal Open Market Committee decided on Tuesday 14 December to raise its target for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 2-1/4 percent. In its press release the FOMC signalled there had been no change in its assessment of current economic…
Norges Bank keeps interest rate unchanged at 1.75%
Norges Bank's Executive Board decided on Wednesday 15 December to leave interest rates unchanged at 1.75 per cent. The Executive Board said in a press release it did not see any clear alternatives to leaving the interest rate unchanged.
IMF's Rajan says US dollar fall is a wake-up call
International Monetary Fund research department director and economic counsellor Raghuram Rajan told the Australasian Finance and Banking Conference in Sydney that the depreciating US dollar is a wake-up call and urged policymakers to pay attention to…
China seeing gold-buying surge as dollar hedge
China is seeing a gold-buying surge as a hedge against the weakening dollar and negative real interest rates, the South China Morning Post reported, citing figures from the China Gold Society and analysts.
Poll shows Sweden still opposed to euro
Opposition to the euro in Sweden remains strong 15 months after voters rejected the single currency in a referendum, but the number of opponents has fallen, a poll published on Wednesday 15 December by Statistics Sweden showed.
Portugal's central bank warns over 2005 deficit
The governor of the Bank of Portugal, Vitor Constancio, said Monday that Portugal's fiscal deficit was on target to reach 5 percent of output next year, breaching European Union rules, without exceptional revenues.
Korean won climbs on central bank comments
South Korea's won had its biggest gain in more than two weeks Tuesday after the Bank of Korea signaled it won't sell the currency to protect exporters, prompting them to speed up the conversion of their overseas earnings.
Fed likely to raise rates a quarter-point
Federal Reserve policy-makers were widely expected to raise target for the federal funds rate to 2.25 percent from 2 percent on Tuesday, their last regularly scheduled session of 2004.
Mersch says ECB ready to act on inflation
European Central Bank council member Yves Mersch said the bank would act if inflation expectations in the eurozone rise further after record oil costs raised prices this year.
EU may clear France, Germany on deficit rule break
The Associated Press reported Tuesday that the European Union's executive office was expected to end an three-year battle with France and Germany on Tuesday, dropping EU procedures against them after the two pledged to get their budget deficits back…
SARB to issue upgraded banknotes in the new year
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) announced on Monday 13 December that it plans to issue upgraded banknotes with improved security features from 1 February 2005.
BoJs Fukui says economic growth slowdown temporary
Bank of Japan governor Toshihiko Fukui said in a speech on Monday 13 December that the growth of the economy is slowing down, but only temporarily.
Dallas Fed FOMC vote may go to Atlanta
The Dallas Federal Reserve said on Friday 10 December that the Atlanta Fed would temporarily take its vote next year on the US central bank's interest rate setting committee until it finds a replacement for departed President Robert McTeer.
French PM concerned on dollar weakness
French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin voiced concern about the euro's surge to record highs against the dollar, but didn't comment on whether he thought the European Central Bank should intervene.
Bank of Korea says won's rise 'too fast'
The pace of the won's recent rise against the US dollar has been too fast, compared to other currencies, said Bank of Korea assistant governor Rhee Yeung-Kyun.
Bank of Spain completes branch restructuring
Spain's central bank has completed its branch restructuring program and will close 10 branches in a number of Spanish cities, reducing its total number of branches to 22.
Change in the members of the Bank Board of the NBS
A change in the membership of the Bank Board of the National Bank of Slovakia has become effective from 1 December. The four-year term of Professor Jozef Kosnar came to an end on 30 November. The NBS said in a press release he would be succeeded by…
New York Fed names new director of research
Joseph S. Tracy was named executive vice president and director of research of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Monday 6 December.
Interview with ECB's Issing
In an interview with Slovenian daily newspaper Delo published this week, European Central Bank chief economist Prof. Otmar Issing said the US twin current account and budget deficits are unsustainable and the US is well aware of this. He reiterated ECB…
Interview with ECB's Gonzalez-Paramo
Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo, member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank, gave an interview this week to Il Sole 24 Ore. In the interview he said the Greek case [where the deficit has clearly been larger than that reported] speaks for…