News
Century-old vault to be opened to Japan's public
The Bank of Japan will open its oldest underground vault to the public for the first time on 3 August at its headquarters in Tokyo.
Hungary holds key interest rates steady
The National Bank of Hungary left its key interest rates unchanged at 11.5 per cent on Monday.
Snow reassures after IMF, World Bank terror threat
US Treasury Secretary John Snow sought to calm nerves on Monday 2 August following newly disclosed terror threats against the U.S. financial institutions including the IMF and World Bank in Washington.
Brazil's Candiota resigns, Meirelles to stay on
Luiz Candiota resigned as director of monetary policy at the Central Bank of Brazil on Wednesday 28 July following allegations in the press of tax evasion. Central bank president Henrique Meirelles has also denied allegations that he avoided paying taxes…
Miner and central bank to share giant diamond
The young miner in the West African state of Guinea who, as we reported last week, found a near-flawless 182 carat diamond will share the value of the sparkler 50/50 with the central bank of Guinea.
Goeltom new Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor
In a ceremony at the Bank Indonesia Head Office in Jakarta this week, the Governor of Bank Indonesia Burhanuddin Abdullah presided over the formal handover of the position of Senior Deputy Governor Anwar Nasution to Miranda Swaray Goeltom.
Kenya cb suspends eight over missing notes
Eight members of staff at the central bank of Kenya (CBK), including two departmental heads, are under suspension after at least Sh10 million to-be-discarded notes were believed to have escaped the incinerator, The Nation in Nairobi reported this week.
Report says Mauritania's central bank chief sacked
A report by IRIN news.org special to The Daily Star said on Wednesday 28 July that Mauritania's President Maaouiya Ould Taya had sacked the entire economic team of his government the previous Sunday. It was followed by the sacking of the central bank…
BoE wins appeal on limiting legal privilege
The Bank of England won an appeal on Thursday 29 July against rulings that restrict the confidentiality of a lawyer's contact with clients. The British government and Law Society had supported its claim that the Court of Appeal erred in its rulings on…
IMF criticised in report on Argentina
The IMF has been urged to have clear "stop loss" rules when deciding if its support for a country's policies was working or if a more fundamental change was needed.
Sri Lanka's fin min denies signing banknotes
Sri Lanka's central bank has been forced to hold back huge quantities of new banknotes because Finance Minister Sarath Amunugama publicly denied signing them, an official said on Thursday 29 July.
SAMA awards ATM contract
CyberGuard Corporation, a technology leader in network security, announced Thursday that the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) has selected CyberGuard's premium firewall/VPN appliances to provide the information security for a new ATM network.
New Zealand's OCR increased to 6 per cent
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand increased the Official Cash Rate from 5.75 per cent to 6.00 per cent on 29 July.
Brazil ready to take more active inflation stance
Brazil's central bank revealed Thursday 29 July in the minutes of its last Copom monetary policy meeting that it was ready to raise take a "more active" position on price increases if there are signs inflation is rising at too fast a pace to meet its…
McTeer says euro was political not economic idea
Dallas Fed president Robert McTeer told the Latin American meeting of the Econometric Society in Santiago that the euro was a politically motivated project that may slow growth and that it was "never obvious" to him as an ideal currency area.
Turkey's cb chief warns over austerity measures
Turkish central bank chief Sureyya Serdengecti said on Wednesday 28 July that Turkey has to continue the International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal under the current circumstances or risked a return to economic instability.
OECD report says ECB should hold rates steady
The European Central Bank (ECB) will probably keep interest rates in the dozen euro nations at their six-decade low for the rest of the year to help an economic recovery still threatened by "large risks," the Organization for Economic Co-operation and…
Poland raises rates for a second month
Poland's central bank raised interest rates for the second month running after the inflation rate rose close to a three-year high.
IMF delays Argentine loan
The International Monetary Fund has delayed approval of a $728 million loan payment to Argentina, forcing the country to draw on central bank reserves to pay back multinational lenders.
Zimbabwe offers investment sweetener
Zimbabwe's central bank announced on Tuesday 27 July a new measure to attract much-needed foreign investment: a guarantee to pay back the entire capital within three months if investors decided to leave.
Bank of England's customer banking strategy review
Following a review of its customer banking activities, the Bank of England said on 27 July that it has concluded that the provision of retail banking activities does not form an integral part of its role as a central bank.
South Africa celebrates democracy with new coin
The South African Reserve Bank said on 27 July it is issuing a special commemorative R2 coin, celebrating 10 years of democracy in South Africa.
SARB to issue bi-metal R5 coin
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) launched a bi-metal R5 coin on 27 July. The new R5 coin will be in circulation from Monday, 2 August 2004. The coin has a bronze-coloured centre and a silver-coloured border.
Future rate level not 'pre-decided' :ECB's Quaden
The European Central Bank probably won't raise interest rates soon as it forecasts that inflation will ease next year, the Financial Times reported, citing ECB governing council member Guy Quaden in an interview.