Central Bank of Chile (BCCh)
People: Frank Smets to head ECB economics department; new Chilean board member
Long-serving ECB economist becomes director-general; Chilean senate ratifies the appointment of Rosanna Costa; new communications director for Banque de France
FMI transparency needs to improve, Chile deputy says
Central bank leading by example with regard to improved FMI transparency and governance; disclosure framework for central bank’s settlement system to be completed in 2017
Chile notes health of domestic economy has declined
Latest financial stability report highlights the lack of profitability in the banking sector; institutions’ ability to cope with adverse external scenarios has “diminished”
IMF supports Chile move to form financial markets commission
Body will help with better co-ordination and information sharing between the financial sector and central bank; fund says central bank should be ready to cut rates if disinflation appears
Chile’s Vergara to pass torch to Marcel
Mario Marcel is chosen to become the next central bank governor when Vergara’s term ends in December; Marcel has experience at the World Bank, OECD and IDB
Rates likely to stay on hold, says Chilean monetary policy report
Inflation expected to be in the target range by year-end, latest monetary policy report forecasts show; no need for new hikes if economic trends continue
Interest rates to remain flat for longer period of time – Chile minutes
It might be necessary to “postpone” normalisation of monetary policy, latest minutes from Central Bank of Chile show; interest rates to stay at 3.5% for “prolonged period” of time
Chilean central bank changes guidance and keeps policy on hold
Central Bank of Chile removes reference to continued normalisation as inflation returns to target range; holds benchmark rate at 3.5%
Chilean minutes show widespread support for holding policy
Board unanimously votes to hold rates; one member sees tightening cycle ending, while another says lowering rates is “beyond reason”
Chile expands dollar holdings, central bank annual report shows
Central Bank of Chile reserve allocations in euro, Canadian dollar and Australian dollar fall, as dollar holdings rise
Governor sees Chile progressing with macro-prudential framework
Working paper outlines importance of macro-prudential policy in maintaining financial stability; Vergara and Raddatz identify counter-cyclical capital buffer as a possible tool for the future
Low income households ‘highly’ vulnerable to changes in interest rates, paper shows
Banks and regulators require the use of ‘richer’ information to understand consumer debt, a Central Bank of Chile paper finds; new model would help evaluate economic policies
Responses to commodity shocks only have ‘small’ impact on investment, paper finds
Flexible inflation-targeting frameworks and exchange rates are ‘essential’ to limit the macroeconomic impact of commodity price volatility
Chilean central bank spells out risks to outlook
Central bank expects inflation to return to 3% target by end of 2017 according to latest forecasts; details risks from home and abroad to macroeconomic outlook
LatAm response to Fed sees two hikes
Mexico and Chile both raise rates by 25bp in the wake of the Fed decision, with currencies remaining relatively stable in the aftermath
Chile bides time on macro-prudential debate
Governor of the Central Bank of Chile says the bank will continue to ‘watch’ macro-prudential debate with view to ‘carefully studying’ different tools
Further rate hikes likely as Chile raises 25bp
Central bank lifts rate to 3.25% in first move in four years; analysts suggest the move is an effort to rein in expectations
Global indicators can boost inflation forecasts in short term, paper finds
Author uses global inflation indicators and Brent oil price to augment domestic inflation forecasts in 523 countries, finding both improve accuracy
Chile and IMF divided on potential growth
Latest staff report reveals difference in views on long-term growth of the Chilean economy, in line with earlier comments made by the central bank governor
Market expectations respond to contractionary shocks, Chilean paper argues
Monetary expectations in major eurozone economies are responsive to contractionary shocks but not expansionary ones, a paper published by the Chilean central bank argues
Chilean paper analyses ‘labour wedge’ cycles
The gap between the marginal rate of substitution (MRS) and the marginal productivity of labour (MPL) increases during recessions and is counter-cyclical in Chile, finds research
IMF projections may be ‘too pro-cyclical’ warns Vergara
Central Bank of Chile president questions whether a drop in productivity has occurred recently, suggesting potential growth was actually ‘lower than previously thought all along’
Chilean paper analyses unemployment’s impact on wages
The impact of unemployment spells on wages is high, but the volatility ‘increases much more during recessions’, research finds
Chilean paper calls on policy-makers to consider source of shocks
Policy-makers in Chile ‘have to take into account the source of the shock when evaluating possible policy options’ in response to copper price shocks, research finds