News
Bank of Finland lines up academic for board
Seppo Honkapohja, a professor of macroeconomics at the University of Cambridge, is set to join the board of the Bank of Finland for a five-year term beginning January 2008.
New Zealand holds rates
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand decided to keep its benchmark official cash rate (OCR) at 8.25% on Thursday.
SNB adjusts three-month inter-bank target
The Swiss National Bank said on Thursday that it was increasing its three-month Libor (London inter-bank offered rate) by 25 basis points to 2.75% in an effort to calm the Swiss franc money market.
King refuses to aid markets
Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, said on Wednesday that he believed providing additional liquidity against a wider range of collateral and over longer periods "sows the seeds of a future financial crisis".
Bank of Italy closes more than a third of branches
The Bank of Italy said on Wednesday that it will close 33 of its 97 branches as part of the reorganisation of its network.
Bosnian CB must improve vastly to meet EU level
The EU said on Wednesday that the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CBBH) needed to make "significant progress" in order to meet the trade bloc's standards.
Qatar to keep riyal pegged to dollar
Abdullah al-Thani, the governor of the Qatar Central Bank, said that the riyal would remain pegged to the US dollar on Tuesday.
ECB carries out three-month tender
The European Central Bank injected €75 billion into the money markets on Wednesday as part of a three-month refinancing operation.
Turmoil prompts supervision recommendations
New rules for conduits, special purpose vehicles (SPVs) and rating agencies must be introduced to stop another subprime crisis, according to several shadow financial regulatory committees. The Basel II framework must also be reassessed because of its…
Japan safe from subprime threat
The Bank of Japan said on Tuesday that the country's financial institutions were unlikely to be drastically affected by the subprime crisis in the US.
Sarkozy and Merkel call for more transparency
Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, and Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, said on Monday that hedge funds and rating agencies must face greater scrutiny.
Australian inter-bank rates hit 11-year high
Australian three-month bank bill rates reached 7.08% on Tuesday, 58 points above the central bank's benchmark rate and their highest level since July 1996.
Chinese inflation reaches 6.5%
China's consumer price index rose 6.5% in August, prompting speculation that the People's Bank of China will be forced to raise rates again.
Subprime reaction mirrors past crises - Greenspan
Alan Greenspan, a former chairman of the Federal Reserve, has said that the reaction of bankers to the subprime crisis is identical to their behaviour during the 1987 crash and the near-collapse of the Long Term Capital Management hedge fund in 1998.
Iran to consider redenomination
The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran will look into the possibility of knocking three zeros off its rial currency.
Venezuela set to publicise new currency
The Venezuelan Central Bank will launch a nationwide campaign to familiarise consumers with its new notes and coins, which will come into circulation at the start of next year.
Bahrain's payment system a success
The Central Bank of Bahrain said that its real time gross settlement (RTGS) payment system introduced on 9 August, has "dramatically speeded up the flow of money", leading to a more efficient financial sector.
Cyprus holds rates
The Central Bank of Cyprus decided to leave its benchmark rate at 4.5% on Monday.
Bank of Russia to widen eligible collateral
The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) intends to expand the list of paper involved in the refinancing mechanism with 'securities of non-rated borrowers', according to the Russian newspaper Kommersant. "This should make life easier for second- and third-tier…
Riksbank to publish repo path, hikes rates
The executive board of the Riksbank will publish forecasts for the future repo rate path and a number of other important variables in connection with each monetary policy meeting. The central bank decided on Thursday to raise the repo rate by 25 basis…
New governor for Iran
Tahmasb Mazaheri, a former Iranian finance minister, was appointed yesterday as head of the country's central bank.
Poland looking to join ERM2, says Skrzypek
Poland will be able to cut its general government deficit to below 3% of GDP by 2009, as pledged by the government, which would allow it to join the exchange rate mechanism ERM2 the same year, deems National Bank of Poland (NBP) governor Slawomir…
Russia hit by market turbulence
The net capital inflow to Russia hit a record $67.1 billion in the first half of 2007, the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) has said.
Gulf may escape contagion
Rasheed Al Maraj, the governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain, said Gulf markets are unlikely to see a major fallout from the slump in USsubprime mortgages as most local companies have their core businesses in the area.