News
Japan holds rates for now
The Bank of Japan's monetary policy board voted 8-1 in favour of keeping the overnight call rate at about 0.5%.
RBNZ boosts liquidity with bill buyback
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand said that it will accept New Zealand bank bills in its overnight reverse repurchase facility from 24 August.
Pressure moves to money market funds
In a classic example of how financial strains can have repercussions in areas of finance far away from the original epicentre of the crisis, asset management companies such as Vanguard Group and Fidelity Investments have been flooded with calls from…
We can overcome international snub - Iran deputy
Mohammad-Jaafar Mojarrad, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran, said it is handling the impact of the US's plea to Europe's banks to stop trading dollars with the country.
US Senator hints at cut after high level meeting
Christopher Dodd, a US senator, said Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, would use "all the available tools" to ensure markets remained liquid.
Russia wants Czech governor Tosovsky to head IMF
Russia has nominated Josef Tosovsky, the former head of the Czech National Bank and the current chair of the Bank for International Settlements' Financial Stability Institute, to take over from Rodrigo Rato at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Central bank gold sales to approach limit
Members of the central bank gold agreement (essentially the eurozone plus Sweden and Switzerland) have sold 396 tonnes in the first 10 months of the "gold year", as much as the total for the whole of last year.
Polish MPC member says rate hike can wait
Stanislaw Owsiak, a member of the National Bank of Poland's monetary policy council (MPC), said July data indicated an August interest rate rise may not be necessary.
China makes two rate hikes to cool inflation
The People's Bank of China increased its benchmark rate by 18 basis points to 7.02% and its deposit rate by 27 basis points to 3.6% in an effort to stabilise inflationary pressures.
Bank of England joins the fray with emergency loan
In what represents its first unusual market intervention during the current spell of market volatility, the Bank of England lent £314 million ($622 million) today to an unnamed financial institution through its standing facility.
Swiss chairman criticises US subprime
Jean-Pierre Roth, the chairman of the Swiss National Bank described the US subprime crisis as "unbelievable" and said that reality was "striking back"
Bahamas steps up supervision
The Central Bank of The Bahamas has asked resident commercial banks to submit group organisational charts in order to comply with the Basel core principles for effective banking supervision.
China to pursue private equity, despite losses
Jesse Wang, vice chairman of the People's Bank of China's investment arm Central Huijin, defended the central bank's investment in Blackstone and said he would continue to recommend investment in private equity funds.
Basel II needs risk culture to work - Kenyan chief
Njuguna Ndung'u, the governor of the Central Bank of Kenya, said that east African commercial banks need to adopt sound risk management practices before the region's central banks can implement the Basel II accord.
Market optimism fades after Fed action
After the rally in US equity market of Friday continued in Asian and European markets after the weekend, Wall Street indexes were firmly back in the red by mid-day on Monday.
Ecuadorian board member seen as president's ally
Ecuador's congress has named Miguel Ruiz, who is seen as an ally of the country's leftist president, to the central bank's board boosting his influence over an institution he has vowed to strip of its independence.
Czech deputy sees "significant" rate rise
The Czech central bank should raise rates "significantly" to keep inflation on target, says Ludek Niedermayer, the Czech central bank's deputy governor.
Bank Indonesia changes loan regulations
Bank Indonesia, the country's central bank, has announced new limits the type and amount of corporate bonds which commercial banks can classify as "loans" in their official loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) calculations.
Gono denies parallel trading by central bank
Gideon Gono, the governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, has denied reports that the central bank is tapping unofficial currency markets in search of foreign currency, notably dollar and South African rand.
Poole replaced on Fed policy vote
In a surprise development, William Poole, the president of the St Louis Federal Reserve, did not vote on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy announcement on recent market volatility.
Japan injects 1.2 trillion as Nikkei falls 5.4%
The Bank of Japan lent 1.2 trillion ($10.5 billion) to the markets Friday after draining 2 trillion Wednesday. The central bank's injection was made as market concerns over liquidity took the overnight lending rate above the central bank's 0.5% target.
UK regulator revamps enforcement division
The Financial Services Authority (FSA), the UK industry regulator, will offload a third of staff from its enforcement division as part of its shift from a rules to a principles-based regulatory framework.
Independence nothing new - Jamaican governor
Local media reports the governor of the Bank of Jamaica, Derek Lati-beaudiere, played down plans from the Jamaica Labour Party, the country's main opposition party, for an independent central bank.
Virtual bank collapse spurs calls for regulation
The failure of a bank that exists only in cyberspace has raised awareness of the lack of real world supervision to protect online investors.