News
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.
ECB holds rates steady
The European Central Bank held its key interest rate steady at 3.75% on 17 May, in the light of strong growth prospects but hinted that inflation is becoming a concern.
Kuwait removes dinar's dollar peg
The central bank of Kuwait de-linked its currency, the dinar, from the depreciating dollar on 20 May and opted for an exchange rate mechanism tied to a basket of other currencies.
A new RTGS system for Iraq
The Iraqi central bank has reportedly started with the implementation of a new electronic real-time gross settlement payment system.
Thai fin min wants to keep control of BoT
Reuters quoted a senior official this week as saying the Thai Finance Minister Chalongphob Sussangkarn wants to keep the power to appoint or fire the Bank of Thailand governor.
Riksbank board divided on rate hold decision
The Swedish Riksbank's monetary policy meeting was divided in its recent decision to leave the rate unchanged, according to reports.
ECB head says UK should join eurozone
Jean-Claude Trichet, president of the European Central Bank, questioned the UK's refusal to join the eurozone, in an interview in the Financial Times on 17 May.
Trichet supports hedge fund code of conduct
There is growing support around the world for a proposed voluntary code of conduct for hedge funds, European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said recently.
Europeans react to Wolfowitz departure
Following the announcement that Paul Wolfowitz, the under-fire president of the World Bank, will step down on 30 June, European government officials are calling for the Bank to rebuild its credibility.
Fukui again says rates must rise
In further comments on Japan's interest rates, Bank of Japan governor Toshihiko Fukui said Thursday 17 May rates should increase gradually to support economic growth amid price stability.
Greenspan joins Pimco in first post-Fed role
Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan has signed on as a consultant to Newport Beach-based bond investment giant Pacific Investment Management, known as Pimco, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday 16 May.
Swaziland to introduce RTGS system
The Central Bank of Swaziland announced Wednesday 16 May that it will soon be introducing a Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system at the beginning of June 2007.
Zhou says room to raise reserve requirement
China still has room to raise the commercial banks' reserve requirement ratio, the Shanghai-based Oriental Morning Post reported Thursday 17 May, citing People's Bank of China governor Zhou Xiaochuan.
Noyer says Europe may experience sustained growth
European Central Bank governing council member Christian Noyer said on Wednesday 16 May that Europe could be experiencing a period of sustained, stable growth.
King hints that Greenspan's comments are unhelpful
Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, told a press conference on Wednesday 16 May that it isn't helpful for former central bankers to comment on aspects of monetary policy or economic conditions.
ECB's Noyer warns on 'benign conditions'
European Central Bank governing council member Christian Noyer said in a speech Wednesday 16 May that benign conditions in financial markets can be reversed.
BNB's Quaden says ECB will keep acting on prices
Belgian National Bank governor Guy Quaden said in an interview published Wednesday 16 May that the ECB will continue to act to lower inflationary expectations.