News
China surprises with interest rate rise
The People's Bank of China raised its benchmark interest rate on Thursday 27 April in an unexpected move.
Bernanke prods Fed to review communication
According to the article "Bernanke prods Federal Reserve to review communication strategy" published on Wednesday 26 April , the Federal Reserve is preparing a comprehensive communication review. The examination will take months and seek a consensus…
Interview with Zhang Zhuoyuan
In an interview published on Wednesday 26 April, Zhang Zhuoyuan of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences said China may widen the yuan's trading band when "suitable" to allow more gains and boost investors' role in setting exchange rates.
Strategist says central banks may sell dollars
Central banks are likely to sell dollars in 2006 as they move to diversify their reserves in favour of the euro, according to BNP Paribas SA.
Tanigaki wants orderly fx moves
Japan's finance minister Sadakazu Tanigaki said on Tuesday 25 April that sudden exchange rate movements seen after the recent Group of Seven meeting were undesirable.
ECB to weigh rate options - Gonzalez-Paramo
ECB executive board member Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo said on Tuesday 25 April that the euro zone central bank will debate raising interest rates at its meeting next week, but nothing was fixed.
China must develop bond market - PBOC official
China needs to foster more domestic consumption to drive the nation's economy, and also develop its bond market, an official with the People's Bank of China said.
Bank of Canada raises interest rates
The Bank of Canada on Tuesday 25 April announced that it is raising its target for the overnight rate by one-quarter of one percentage point to 4 per cent.
G-7 appeals to IMF to pressure China on yuan
The International Monetary Fund will take up the task of trying to get China to accept a stronger currency, according to this article published on Tuesday 25 April. Whether the IMF is up to shouldering the burden remains to be seen, it says.
Bubble, schmubble - foil or trouble?
According to this article published on Saturday 22 April, a number of economists are beginning to argue that long-accepted methods of measuring economic trends must be rethought and possibly replaced to reflect new economic conditions.
ECB talk of normalising rates confirms slow pace
This article published on Monday 24 April suggests that a recent shift in ECB rhetoric to talk of normalising interest rates appears to confirm that the central bank has in mind a slow and steady course of rate hikes.
Is single global currency feasible?
The problems of how to value one currency compared to another and How to predict or control fluctuations in those values persist and now must be solved, according to this article published Tuesday 25 April.
Buba's Weber sticks to German growth forecast
The German central bank still expects economic growth of around 'one-and-a half percent' in Germany this year, despite the rallying oil prices, Bundesbank president Axel Weber told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in an interview.
Economist warns over euro currency
Respected European economist Paul de Grauwe has warned of the euro's collapse unless there is progress towards political union.
ECB's Mersch sees inflation risks from oil
European Central Bank council member Yves Mersch said in an interview he is concerned about a surge in liquidity and oil prices pushing up inflation.
Does the euro zone really need political union?
Seven years after the launch of the euro, this article published on Friday 21 April asks how much political union is needed to make monetary union work more effectively?
Capital accord or capital discord?
According to this recent article, preparations for the new capital accord continue but there are growing fears among bankers and their supervisors that its inconsistent implementation around the world will cause problems.
Language: Breaking the code of the Fed
This article published on Monday 24 April sets out to decipher the language of the Federal Reserve System, otherwise known as the House of Hints, it says.
Mario Draghi to succeed Roger Ferguson at FSF
Following consultations within the Financial Stability Forum's (FSF) membership, the G7 Finance Ministers and central bank Governors on Monday 24 April confirmed their support for the designation of Mario Draghi as Chairman of the FSF.
Fed's Ferguson warns over shock potential
U.S. Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson on Saturday 22 April cautioned that the tranquillity of financial markets in recent years does not mean that they were not vulnerable to more severe shocks.
IMF given new surveillance powers
The International Monetary Fund has won new powers after its 184 member countries supported a new framework to monitor how the economic policies of one country affect others.
PBOC economist says 2006 GDP at least 9%
China's gross domestic product (GDP) will rise at least nine pct this year and the consumer price index (CPI) is likely to rise more than two pct, the official China Securities Journal reported, citing a central bank economist.
Riksbank changes currency allocation
Sweden's Riksbank announced on Friday 21 April that it has reallocated the currency holdings in the bank's foreign currency reserves. The changes include a move away from US dollar holdings in favour of euros.
Interview with Fed's Roger Ferguson
In an interview published on Friday 21 April, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson said if there were a sense that the economy was at great risk, he would not want to leave the Fed.