Opinion
Draghi joins ECB council,marking changing of guard
A new generation is taking the levers of power at the ECB. This article published on Monday 16 January says the new breed of central banker could bring a heightened pragmatism to ECB decision-making, one less shaped by ideology as the centre of gravity…
Comment: Botswana's challenge
After decades of expansion, Botswana's central bank now faces a battle to restore economic stability and its own credibility.
Former Fed governors expect change
According to the article "As Bernanke era begins, former Fed governors expect change" published Wednesday 11 January, Ben Bernanke will arrive at the Fed without the clout either of his predecessors carried on Wall Street or in Washington. Only time will…
Is China accumulating too much foreign cash?
According to this article published on Monday 16 January, with China's reserves now approaching the level of Japanese holdings, there are fears that this vast hoard of foreign exchange exposes the country to risks that could undermine future growth.
Comment: Riksbank to turn the tide
Incoming Riksbank governor, Stefan Ingves, faces a challenge that few, if any, central bank governors have yet had to confront: making the case for a rate hike at a time when inflation is still below the inflation-targetting central bank's tolerance…
China's conundrum tops Greenspan's riddle
According to this article published on Friday 13 January, China's ascent will become more apparent than ever this year, establishing the nation's status as a superpower and sending new reverberations through the global economic order.
Enough said, Mr. Park
This Editorial published on Friday 13 January urges Bank of Korea Governor Park Seung not to cause any more losses to the country through his verbal mistakes. Following comments made Thursday by Mr Park, the won surged immediately, causing a big…
Alan Greenspan - Monetary myopia
The accolades bestowed upon Alan Greenspan ahead of his retirement on January 31st have a strong whiff of irrational exuberance, according to this article published on Thursday 12 January. "Does he really deserve such uniform praise?" it asks.
Comment:Euro area central banks begin to modernise
Central banks are busy modernizing themselves - indeed, it has become an important element in building credibility. That process almost always involves staff cuts.
Asian FX surge eases tightening need
Central banks in Asia could be starting to reap the benefits from a recent surge in regional currencies, according to this article published on Thursday 12 January, by possibly tightening monetary policy less than previously thought.
Fixing the RBI`s own monetary policy
This article published on Thursday 12 January says the Reserve Bank of India has an absurd officer-to-staff ratio and poor salary structures. And the staffing structure is lopsided in favour of non-officers, it says.
How long can BoU reserves go without aid?
This article published on Wednesday 11 January asks how big are the Bank of Uganda's reserves? And how far can the country run until the financial tank shows 'empty?'
Lull in hostile criticisms from politicians
The New Year seems to have started on an unusually harmonious note as far as relations between central banks and politicians are concerned. With policy interest rates on hold in the UK and euro areas, and perhaps soon to reach a plateau in the US,…
Regulators should not be competition authorities
Does the Bank of Italy's rejection of the takeover bid for Banca Nazionale de Lavoro by Italian insurer Unipol mean that the Italian authorities have stopped protecting the Italian banking system?
Europe's central bank must show some backbone
According to this article published on Monday 9 January , political pressure could be responsible for the European Central Bank's 'timid' interest rate move last month.
Federal Reserve needs English elocution lessons
Once Ben Bernanke becomes Federal Reserve chairman after the bank's 31 Jan meeting, suggests this article published on Tuesday 9 January, a top priority should be ending the textual semaphore that's become the central bank's way of not quite…
Jurgen Stark on the IMF's strategic direction
In an Editorial published on Friday 6 January, Jurgen Stark, currently vice president of the Deutsche Bundesbank, says efforts to strengthen the IMF's surveillance function and the so-called "exceptional access framework" - must now be locked in and…
Fed speeches may send investors in wrong direction
This article published on Saturday 7 January reports on research presented in Boston by Vincent Reinhart, director of the Fed's monetary affairs division, and Brian Sack, a former Fed economist which says Federal Reserve speeches "are the least accurate…
Fed may take pass at Jan. 31 meeting
According to this article published on Thursday 5 January, there's an outside chance the Federal Reserve could pass on raising rates on 31 January following 25-basis-point moves at each of the last 13 meetings. The next move skywards would put the Fed's…
Are we headed toward one world currency?
This article published on Friday 6 January suggests that we are unlikely to see one world currency in our lifetimes, but that we may see a new currency zone develop in China.
Asian FX intervention may have less bite this time
Asian central banks have made it clear they are not happy with a surge in their currencies as 2006 gets under way, this article published on Friday 6 January notes.
ECB's message can get lost in translation
On occasions the European Central Bank's monthly news conferences on interest rates can be as much an exercise in linguistic guesswork as a window on the thinking of the world's number two central bank, according to this article published Wednesday 4…
Switzerland gives ECB a lesson on interest rates
According to this article published on 28 December, it's only four hours on the train from the ECB's Frankfurt headquarters down to Zurich - yet it provides a very different brand of central banking.
Fed can see an end to interest rate increases
Federal Reserve officials may be close to ending the series of interest-rate increases they started 18 months ago, according to this article published on Wednesday 4 January, though they will keep going as long as necessary to combat inflation, it says.