Opinion
Monday Special - ECB and the retail payments mire
SPECIAL FEATURE - The European Central Bank (ECB) is preparing to intervene in the market for small bank transfers in the eurozone, unless banks move quickly to make euro transfers quicker, cheaper and less bureaucratic. For this weeks Special Feature…
'Absurd criteria for new EU members'
An article in the Financial Times says that, fortunately, such a disastrous scenario as a deflationary spiral in the eurozone is unlikely. But that is not true of the problems that low or negative inflation within the eurozone could pose for the…
Interview with National Bank of Poland governor
In an interview with the Polish News Bulletin published Friday, Leszek Balcerowicz, governor of the National Bank of Poland spoke on the government deficit, inflation targeting, and eurozone accession.
Interview: Iraq's acting central bank chief Salman
In an interview with Reuters Faleh Salman, interim central bank governor in Iraq said Tuesday the central bank's independence from government interference for the first time in decades will help create confidence in the new Iraqi dinar banknotes. The…
Greenspan enters his surrealist period
Salvador Dali has apparently taken over as chairman of the Federal Reserve. An article in the Financial Times suggests the Fed's recent behaviour indicates a sudden conversion to surrealism in the conduct of monetary policy.
GCC Gulf single currency may be 'unrealistic'
An article in the Jordan Times says that the proposed single currency for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states is unrealistic. Arab Gulf states, it says, lack the maturity, the political and legal stability needed to take such a radical measure and…
A double bubble of the Fed's own making
This article suggests that the Fed's decision to reduce interest rates by only a quarter point misled markets and casts doubt on the Federal Reserve's reputation as a "paragon of virtue" and undermined the popular myth that it is Mr Duisenberg and the…
Monday Special - Basel's Banking Behemoth
The BIS is most commonly understood to serve as a forum for central bankers and financial regulators to meet and discuss how to keep the world's financial system on the rails. Its role as a bank is often overlooked. The BIS's balance sheet is large…
Article asks Is BOT too focused on the short term?
An article in The Nation asks whether the Bank of Thailand is focussing too much on the short term and risking the ability to tackle possible problems with economic fundamentals later on in its foreign exchange-rate management.
Uzbekistan action plan on currency convertibility
The government of Uzbekistan has made a pledge to introduce the long-awaited convertibility of the national currency, setting late November as the deadline for this move. An action plan developed by the Uzbek government aims to remove all restrictions on…
"Take a razor to the debate on deflation"
An article published in the Financial Times asks how deflationary panic can be averted and suggests that a little deflation would be far from catastrophic in any case.
Candidates and crystal balls in Bulgaria
Candidates for the post of governor of the Bulgarian national bank were asked to compile reports as part of the selection process. Of particular interest were European Union accession and the date when Bulgaria is likely to introduce the euro.
New Bank of England governor speaks of his pride
On the eve of taking over as Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King spoke to The Times about his personal approach to the role, filling the shoes of Sir Edward George and crucial issues facing the financial sector, including the prospect of…
Fedspeak with the Fed rate cut
An article in the Washington Times suggests that to understand what the Federal Reserve does, it's best to start with reasonably low expectations about what any central bank can do. It also suggests that the Fed's "balance of risk" assessment of the…
The Bank of England gets a respected new chief
Mervyn King began his 5-year term as governor of the Bank of England on 1 July. An article in BusinessWeek describes him as the brains behind the Bank's solid track record since 1997. He is viewed as both a formidable scholar and independent thinker.
Farewell Eddie
Sir Edward George retired from the Bank of England on Monday. An article in the Financial Times looks back at his time as governor which, it says, can be looked on a successful decade which will not see him move rapidly from Who's Who to Who's He?
The case for a single currency for the planet
A recent conference in Italy debated the idea of a common global currency and a world central bank, according to the Wall Street Journal. If the euro can replace the franc, mark and lira, why can't a new world currency merge the dollar, euro and yen? A…
''The Fed has not avoided danger''
An article in the Financial Times argues that the Federal Reserve's decision to cut interest rates last week was a missed opportunity. Quantitative easing through an expansion of the money supply is needed, it argues, or the economic recovery could be…
Spotlight on central bank efficiency
Centralbanknet Monday Special Feature: How many economists does it take to set an interest rate? 320 staff toil away in the Bank of England's monetary analysis area. New Zealand's reserve bank manages with an entire staff of under 200. On the other hand,…
Wisdom, wit and gaffes from Sir Edward George
As the governor of the Bank of England prepares to leave the Old Lady an article in the Independent guides you, in its words, "through some of Sir Edward's "thoughts" and some other thoughts about Sir Edward, renowned central banker, after-dinner speaker…
FATF tightens laundering rules - Monday Special
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on money laundering on Friday 20 June released a radically-overhauled set of rules for preventing money laundering internationally. CentralBankNet's Monday special feature comes from the sidelines of the meeting in…
Gap in our knowledge about output and inflation
In this article in the Financial Times Samuel Brittan looks at the idea of discretionary fiscal policy replacing monetary policy once Britain is in the euro - a return to Keynesian demand management as some have describe it. The Treasury's proposal…
CBN: Who wants Sanusi out ?
An article in the Nigerian Daily Times discusses the recent speculation over the resignation of the governor of the central bank of Nigeria (CBN) Joseph Sanusi. During the week he found himself learning about his resignation from the media the article…
Interview with Bank of England's Stephen Nickell
UK inflation has peaked and will soon head lower, Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Stephen Nickell told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday 17 June. He also played down the importance of the government's plan to switch the Bank's inflation…