Opinion
IMF takes aim at small offshore centres
After three years examining offshore centres, the International Monetary Fund has decided to focus on smaller offshore centres which don't meet international standards. CentralBankNet here gives a sneak preview of the report in the latest edition of The…
Bank of England maintains interest rates at 3.75%
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted to maintain the Bank's repo rate at 3.75% on 4 December. The minutes of the meeting will be published at 9.30am on Wednesday 17 December.
Should BOT be a watchdog?
This article published in The Nation, Thailand, asks whether a country's central bank should be involved with banking supervision. It looks at the moves to separate the supervision function from the central bank in countries such as Canada and…
Hans Eichel Interview - 'Spirit' of Pact observed
In an interview published by Welt am Sonntag, German Finance Minister Hans Eichel said Germany has "observed the letter and spirit of the Stability Pact". He commented that further measures to reign in the budget deficit would have been wrong and…
Slimming down the Bank of Spain
SPECIAL FEATURE - Like all the central banks of the Eurosystem, the Bank of Spain is grappling with the implications of its status as one central bank within the larger federal. CentralBankNet reports from Madrid on how the restructuring is being carried…
BSP printing plant: More than just about money
This article in the Philippine Daily Inquirerlooks at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) bank note printing operations. The BSP owns the printing, minting and refining facility it calls the Security Plant Complex (SPC), an imposing structure…
Central bankers: Smarter or better informed?
"I have always admired the unique role of central bankers. As we reflect from time to time upon reincarnation as a possible next step, I lean towards that option", writes OECD secretary-general, Donald J. Johnston in this article published by the OECD…
ECB new ruling on central bank capital
CentralBankNet investigates a new ruling by the ECB with wide implications for all the central banks of the euro area. The present situation, under which the national central banks are in effect national investment funds, is uncomfortable. If the ECB…
Destructive Ambiguity
The Hong Kong dollar was pegged twenty years ago in October 1983. HKMA Chief Joseph Yam said he was going to "hit them where it hurts", earning himself a short-term action-man nickname of "Yambo". This article from webb-site.com takes aim at what it…
CentralBankNet on inflation targeting
SPECIAL FEATURE - Addressing a recent St Louis Fed conference, Fed Governor Ben Bernanke got straight to the point. He began his speech by asking: "Should the Federal Reserve announce a quantitative inflation objective". Below is CentralBanknet's guide…
Can UK's 'economic luck' last'?
Mervyn King described the UK's "non-inflationary consistently expansionary" economic performance since sterling's eviction from the exchange rate mechanism as "nice" earlier this month. Can the "nice" performance last, an article in the Financial Times…
A vision of stability within the Basel accord
In this article, first published by the Financial Times, Bank of Spain governor Jaime Caruana says the new Basel accord offers us the chance significantly to improve financial stability. In a few years' time, the benefits of Basel II will have become so…
A mangled message from the Federal Reserve
The Federal Reserve's FOMC committee meets on Tuesday 28 October to decide interest rates. The accompanying statement with their decision, this article in the Financial Times says, is now so central to markets' interpretation of the Fed's intentions that…
How will Trichet speak?
SPECIAL FEATURE - In a little over a week, as president of the European Central Bank, it will be up to Jean-Claude Trichet to explain European Central Bank policy. There are clear signs that he plans to change the way the ECB presents policy. Not only…
CPA Briefs on Iraqi Currency Exchange
Saddam-free dinars have hit the streets in Iraq. How has this been achieved? This week's CentralBankNet Monday Special Feature gives a fascinating glimpse of the immense logistical challenges faced by the authorities in Iraq. The Central Bank of Iraq has…
Interview with the Governor of the Bank of Korea
In an interview published by The Chosun Ilbo, Governor Park Seung of the Bank of Korea spoke at the central bank building about the problem with rising housing prices. "It is difficult to solve the property speculation issue fundamentally without drastic…
International policymakers' comments on Trichet
Following Jean-Claude Trichet's formal appointment as the President of the European Central Bank, this article published by Reuters provides a selection of comments from international policymakers about Trichet. European Commission President Romano Prodi…
Trichet must be decisive on ECB policies
This article in the Financial times says that Jean-Claude Trichet should make tackling the ECB's lack of responsiveness and poor communication his priorities. The test, it says, will be whether Mr Trichet can persuade his colleagues to cut short-term…
Is inflation targeting yesterday's success story?
The problem now for the Bank of England, this article in The Independent suggests, is that the achievement of low and stable inflation may have become a little too easy. Inflation targeting may work very well in puncturing a bubble of inflationary…
Interview with Iraq's central bank governor
In an interview on Friday 10 October, published by Reuters, Iraq's central bank governor Sinan al-Shibibi said that donors should not be deterred from giving money by differences between the US and World Bank on how much aid Iraq can put to good use. …
Interview with central bank governor, Congo DR
Interview with the governor of the Central Bank of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Jean-Claude Masangu Mulongo. In the interview, published by IRIN News, the Governor talks about the introduction of the new 10- and 20-Congolese franc bank notes, and…
Boardroom split at the Reserve Bank
SPECIAL FEATURE - Until recently, the question of whether banks or other firms should combine the role of chairman and CEO was one on which well-intentioned people would differ. UK corporate governance codes favour a split. US companies tended to combine…
Interview with IMF Chief Economist Raghuram Rajan
The new Chief Economist at the International Monetary Fund Raghuram Rajan said in an interview, published by Business Week Online, that the IMF is extremely strong in its views on exchange rates, monetary policy, and fiscal policy and that "I suspect my…