News
Japanese policy makers clash over economy
JAPAN - Japanese policy makers are increasingly clashing on how to fix the nation's moribund economy, with the finance minister issuing a clear call for re-inflating the economy by actively boosting price levels, even as the central bank decided not to…
Swaziland on money-laundering alert
SWAZILAND - Swaziland is on alert for foreign organisations trying to channel money through the tiny African kingdom after a government official was offered a bribe, authorities said on Monday 15 October.
Euro coins out in Austria ahead of official launch
AUSTRIA - A small volume of euro-denominated coins have already entered into circulation amongst the general public in Austria. This is despite the fact that starter packs of euro coins are not officially due to be released to private citizens until mid…
Greenspan upbeat on economy
US - Prospects for the future of the US economy have been "scarcely diminished" by the 11 September attacks, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan has said.
Financial regulator rejects Tory call for probe
UK - The City regulator has rejected Conservative calls for an investigation of the government's role in the collapse of Railtrack, and told MPs if impropriety were proven it would be up to the government to prosecute itself.
Vietnam's Eximbank begins payments scheme
VIETNAM - The joint stock Commercial Bank for Import and Export of Vietnam, Eximbank, held on 11 October the second phase of bidding for the project "Intrabank payment system and Eximbank's applications."
Repse's deputy may take a shot at top position
LATVIA - The Bank of Latvia vice-president Ilmars Rimsevics may agree to run for the top position with the central bank, if approached with such an offer.
Minutes of Bank of England MPC meeting 3-4 October
MINUTES - The Bank of England has published the minutes from its Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on 3 and 4 October.
Minutes of Bank of England special MPC meeting
MINUTES - The Bank of England has published the minutes from its special Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on 18 September.
Sweden's Riksbank leaves repo rate unchanged
SWEDEN - Sweden's central bank, Sveriges Riksbank, left its key repo rate unchanged at 3.75% Tuesday 16 October, as expected, in conjunction with the release of its latest inflation report.
Thai central bank head: IMF satisfied with rates
THAILAND - The governor of the Bank of Thailand, Pridiyathorn Devakula, said Monday 15 October that the management team of the International Monetary Fund was satisfied with the level of the bank's policy signalling interest rate.
Hearing on nominees to US Fed set for 17 Oct
US - The U.S. Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on 17 October to consider two candidates for the Federal Reserve Board, a Senate aide said on Friday 12 October.
EU candidates told not to focus only on inflation
UK - Central banks in countries seeking to join the European Union should ensure that their battle against inflation doesn't harm economic growth, a senior official at the European Central Bank said.
Fed's Ferguson - Long term US econ prospects sound
US - Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson on Tuesday said the U.S. economy's longer-term prospects "remain sound," but said it is not known how long it will be before U.S. economic growth begins to recover from the events of 11 September.
ECB's Issing: Unlikely HICP below 2% by end 2001
GERMANY - European Central Bank Chief Economist and Executive Board member Otmar Issing said Monday 15 October that third quarter euro-zone growth figures to be published by Eurostat in December aren't likely to be encouraging.
Deadline passes for banks to meet new rules
BRAZIL - Last Friday 12 October saw the passage of the deadline for banks to meet the decision of the National Monetary Council (CMN), taken at its last meeting, demanding that the institutions have more equity to meet operations with foreign exchange…
Egypt's central bank deputy becomes temporary head
EGYPT - Egypt's deputy central bank governor, Mahmoud Abu Al-Ayoun, is standing in as the governor of the bank until a new one is appointed to replace Ismail Hassan, a central bank official said Monday 15 October.
BOE Oct minutes: MPC voted 8-1 to cut repo rate
UK - The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted 8-1 to cut the repo rate by a quarter percentage point to 4.5% in October, just weeks after it had cut rates by an equal amount in a 7-2 vote, according to minutes of those meetings released…
Why China needs a real central bank
ARTICLE - On paper, the People's Bank of China is in charge of monetary affairs - In reality, its authority is emasculated by party politics - a huge liability as WTO entry nears.
Meyer: Basel rules take time, need bank support
US - New rules on risk management and bank capital standards will take longer to set up than either banks or regulators want but they are too complicated to rush, Federal Reserve Governor Laurence Meyer said in a speech on Monday 15 October.
Sharp fall in UK inflation revealed
UK - The headline rate of UK inflation, which includes mortgage interest payments, fell last month by 0.4 of a percentage point to 1.7%.
Conference targets terror funds
CANADA - An international conference on money laundering opens in Montreal late on Monday 15 October, aimed at helping countries harmonise their approaches to tackling the issue.
Bank of Japan issues grim outlook
JAPAN - The Bank of Japan, as widely expected, downgraded its assessment of the economy, citing a continued tumble in output and exports, deteriorating job and income conditions, and an increasingly bleak economic outlook following the 11 September…
Japan's central bank warns on economy
JAPAN - The Bank of Japan has warned that the country's economy is facing "more severe" adjustments, with the "terrorist attacks in the US... further [heightening] uncertainty".