News
RBNZ's Bollard gets second term
New Zealand's finance minister, Michael Cullen, reappointed Alan Bollard for a second five-year term, the Reserve Bank announced.
South Africa's Mboweni outlines inflation threats
Tito Mboweni, the governor of the South African Reserve Bank, has identified union-driven salary disputes and increasing food and oil prices as the main threats to the current inflation outlook in the country.
Rates on hold in Canada, Slovakia and Malaysia
A number of central banks have announced this week that interest rates will remain unchanged. Rates will remain on hold in Canada, Slovakia and Malaysia.
Israeli rates cut again
The Bank of Israel has cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.5%. The decision, announced on 28 May, comes as inflation remains below the central bank's 1 to 3% inflation target.
New names for WB presidency
Some interesting names are being bandied about as potential replacements for Paul Wolfowitz as president of the World Bank, when he steps down next month.
Turkey's Yilmaz issues inflation warning
Inflation is expected to exceed the 4% target set by the government for the end of the year, Durmus Yilmaz, the governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, has told the country's cabinet.
Eurozone business confidence dips
Analysts are suggesting that business confidence in the euro area may have peaked. The May figure for the widely-watched Ifo index was unchanged from a month earlier for Germany, but somewhat lower for France and Italy.
FSA issues hedge fund guidelines
In the latest development surrounding the regulation of hedge funds, the British Financial Services Authority (FSA) has issued guidelines clarifying its approach in four important areas of hedge fund regulation.
Japanese consumers to keep economy floating
The International Monetary Fund predicts an economic expansion in Japan of 2.3% this year, followed by 1.9% in 2008.
Shareholders call for investigation on ABN Amro
A Dutch shareholders association has asked the European Internal Market Commissioner, Charlie McCreevy, to investigate the Dutch central bank's recent actions in the ongoing takeover battle for ABN Amro.
World on the brink of higher inflation - OECD
Citing strong domestic demand as the main factor driving prices upward, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development says central banks should "err on the side of tightness" in the face of inflationary pressure.
Germany defends ECB focus on money growth
Germany's Bundesbank has come out in stout defence of the European Central Bank, arguing that money supply figures - used by the ECB in making interest rate decisions - are helpful in identifying property market distortions.
Uncertainty surrounds Gulf monetary union
In the last week Kuwait and Oman have opted expand the range of currencies they peg their exchange rates to. These developments cast doubts over the gulf region's ability to meet its 2010 deadline for a monetary union.
Thai CB cuts rates again
In an effort to revitalise the economy, Thailand's central bank has cut interest rates for the fourth time since the start of 2007, reducing the one-day bond repurchase rate from 4% to 3.5%.
BoE contemplated 0.5% rate hike
The Bank of England considered raising interest rates by 50 basis points at the Monetary Policy Committee meeting of 9-10 May, the meeting's minutes showed.
PBoC deputy weighs in on exchange rate battles
With the US and China engaged in talks over the latter's large trade surplus, Su Ning, the deputy governor of the People's Bank of China has said that the surplus has not been caused by the yuan-dollar exchange rate but that the country nonetheless…
IMF wants Dominican CB bill passed
A delegation of the International Monetary Fund to the Dominican Republic has pushed for the country's congress to pass a bill to recapitalise the central bank with $200m.
Hedge funds to rebuff German regulators
According to reports, updated guidelines on best practice published by hedge fund industry associations on 22 May will not heed German calls for a full voluntary code of conduct for the industry.
New board for German regulator
A new board will govern BaFin, the German banking supervision agency, following an internal fraud scandal that gripped the agency in 2006.
Norwegian oil fund up 1.5%
Norway's Government Pension Fund - Global produced a total return on investment of 1.5% during the first quarter of 2007, which the Bank of Norway said was 0.09 percentage points above the benchmark set by the government.
Cyprus's Orphanides prioritises euro entry
The newly-appointed governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus, Athanasios Orphanides, has told the country's parliament that overseeing a smooth introduction to the euro in January is the central bank's number one priority.
FSA's inaction on split caps chided
The UK's Financial Services Authority (FSA) has been criticised for closing a five-year investigation into the split capital investment trust scandal without taking action against any individuals or firms.
Fed's Lacker: core inflation still too high
Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, said on 22 May that core inflation was still too high and rising expectations of future price pressures was a source of concern.
China hikes rates, loosens currency markets
The People's Bank of China raised interest rates for the fourth time in a year on 18 May and widened the yuan's daily trading limit against the dollar.