News
Greek deficit breach likely to avoid sanctions
Greece announced on Saturday 11 September that its 2004 budget deficit would be 5.3% of gross domestic product. With national debt standing at 184 billion euros, 112% of GDP, or 50,000 euros for every citizen. However the collapse of the stability and…
Brazil hikes interest rates to 16.25%
Brazil's central bank interest rate setting Copom committee increased interest rates on Wednesday 15 September for the first time since February 2003, saying that it hoped to rein in inflation without disrupting the country's economic recovery.
Atlanta Fed economist sees GSEs taking more risks
U.S. mortgage finance enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are likely to take greater risks as they face stiffer competition from banks and regional Federal Home Loan Banks, a study by an Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank economist said.
Ueda predicts close to 4% growth for Japan
Japan's economy is likely to grow at a pace of "slightly below 4 percent" for the time being, Kazuo Ueda, a member of the Bank of Japan's policy-setting panel, said on Thursday 16 September.
High demand expected for new China bonds
China has reportedly appointed Merrill Lynch to co-ordinate the US dollar part of its planned sovereign foreign bond issue, Business Monitor International said. The issue was reported to be worth between US$1.5bn and US$2.0bn.
Deutsche Bundesbank Monthly Report, August 2004
German business confidence dropped for the third month in four in August and the number of unemployed rose to the highest since May of last year. The surge in oil prices to record levels this year may further delay a recovery in consumer spending, the…
US to offer anti-money laundering training
The Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS) will be the first US organisation to offer training and certification in the UAE to help Middle Eastern professionals develop their controls against money laundering and terrorist…
No gold sale plan, says Bank of Italy
In a statement released on Monday 13 September, the Bank of Italy said it had no plans to sell its gold reserves.
IMF's Krueger supports Russian central bank
IMF First Deputy Managing Director Anne Krueger said at a press conference on Monday 13 September that the International Monetary Fund supports actions by the Central Bank of Russia to regulate the recent unstable situation in the country's banking…
RBI may revise inflation target
The Reserve Bank of India, which is closely monitoring inflation, now at 8.33 per cent, may revise its annual target of 5-5.5 per cent in the busy season credit policy next month, according to RBI deputy governor Rakesh Mohan.
Papua New Guinea central bank posts record profit
The Bank of Papua New Guinea posted a record profit of 68m kina for last year on Tuesday. The bank posted a profit of 54m kina in 2002 and paid 50m kina of that to the state.
BoJ's Monetary Policy Meeting, 9/10 August
The Bank of Japan released the minutes from its 9 and 10 August meeting on 14 September. In the minutes of its monthly meeting the BoJ cautioned that high oil prices will have a negative impact on the Japanese economy.
'No urgency' to lift rates says Fed's Bies
Federal Reserve Governor Susan Bies said the central bank faces ``no urgency'' to lift the benchmark U.S. interest rate while awaiting more evidence that economic expansion is steady.
BOJ may hold rates down until 2008
The Bank of Japan may hold its key interest rate near zero per cent until 2008 as declines in rice and electricity prices fuel deflation, Mizuho Securities Co. economist Yasunari Ueno wrote in a report, according to Bloomberg News.
China eyes capital market reforms
China has succeeded in curbing investment and credit growth, and the priority now is to free up interest rates, People's Bank of China deputy governor Li Ruogu said in remarks that may signal long-awaited capital market reforms are drawing nearer.
Russia cb prepares for world-class infrastructure
At a strategic meeting on June 23, 2004 in St. Petersburg, Russia, Michail Senatorov, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Central Bank, and Lazaro Campos, Member of the SWIFT Executive Committee, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in which the bank…
ECB's Trichet says he's still 'Mr Euro'
ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet said Saturday he remained firmly in place as "Mr Euro" despite the appointment of Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker as the political face of the 12-nation eurozone.
Bank of Japan Monthly Report, September 2004
The Bank of Japan released the English version of its September 2004 monthly report on 13 September. In the report the bank said Japan's economy continues to recover. But the report also says exports and industrial production increased at a slower pace,…
Rate hikes can be measured, says Dallas Fed chief
Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert McTeer said on Friday 10 September that he believed further interest rate increases could be measured and noted that economic growth would be stronger in the months ahead.
IMF's Krueger to visit Moscow
The International Monetary Fund's First Deputy Managing Director Anne Krueger will be visiting Moscow September 12- 15, IMF External Relations Department Director Thomas Dawson announced in Washington on Thursday 9 September.
ECB chief economist says Pact losing its bite
The European Central Bank's chief economist has described the current status of the eurozone's Stability and Growth Pact as 'intolerable'. Otmar Issing told the German newspaper Die Welt that without a credible threat of sanctions, the pact was 'losing…
Weak EU growth threat to recovery: UK's Brown
Weak economic growth in the European Union is threatening the "uneven and fragile" global recovery, British Treasury chief Gordon Brown said in comments published on Friday 10 September.
Global recovery on track, say G10 central bankers
The global economic recovery is on track but monetary authorities have to remain vigilant against inflationary dangers, the G10 central bank governors said on Monday 13 Septemberin Basel, Switzerland.
Argentine protesters at IMF storm cb building
About 400 protesters waving banners marched into the main entrance of the central bank of Argentina in Buenos Aires last week, calling for President Nestor Kirchner to end relations with the International Monetary Fund.