European Central Bank (ECB)
European Central Bank Court of Auditors Report
REPORT - Report by the Court of Auditors on the audit of the operational efficiency of the management of the European Central Bank for the financial year 2001, together with the replies of the European Central Bank, 7 October.
Testimony of Wim Duisenberg, ECB President, 8 Oct
SPEECH - In testimony before the EU Parliament Duisenberg stressed that structural reforms are required so that the full benefits of the introduction of the euro can be reaped. Given the environment of subdued economic growth, Duisenberg was of the…
IMF's Kohler calls for ECB rate cut
EUROPE - International Monetary Fund Managing Director Horst Koehler said the European Central Bank should cut interest rates soon to help boost the economy.Koehler said he believes a drop in rates would stimulate growth, adding that central bankers must…
Mrs Duisenberg may be taken to court - report
NETHERLANDS - Gretta Duisenberg, wife of European Central Bank president Wim Duisenberg, is in trouble again.
Speech by Wim Duisenberg, ECB President, 24 Sep
SPEECH - Duisenberg said in a speech titled 'The first nine months of the euro cash era' that the he introduction of the euro banknotes and coins has been a major success. Euro banknotes make visible the Monetary Union and the close financial integration…
Speech by Eugenio Domingo Solans, ECB, 17 Sep
SPEECH - Domingo Solans said in a speech titled 'European financial integration and stability' that the introduction of the euro has changed the terms of reference on which an appropriate solution for the best framework for banking regulation and…
ECB's Quaden says Europe's economy struggling
BELGIUM - European Central Bank council member Guy Quaden said the economy is struggling to expand and higher oil prices may curb spending by companies and consumers.
ECB Monthly Bulletin, September 2002
REPORT - The European Central Bank published its September 2002 Monthly Bulletin on 19 September. In the bulletin the ECB said that while the euro zone economy was still on a path of modest growth for this year, "there are downside risks to the economic…
ECB Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - ECB hosts consultation on integration of short-term securities markets, 16 September.
ECB Press Conference, 12 Sep
PRESS CONFERENCE - Introductory statement by Willem F. Duisenberg, President of the European Central Bank, Lucas Papademos, Vice-President of the European Central Bank, Frankfurt, 12 September 2002. At today's meeting Duisenberg said the Governing…
ECB leader Sirkka Hamalainen criticises banks
FINLAND - Sirkka Hamalainen, a member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank and the former Governor of the Bank of Finland, criticised banks and national authorities in the euro zone for hindering integration in financial markets.
Economist says ECB rate is overvalued
GERMANY - The chief economist of Deutsche Bank says he believes the ECB's key interest rate is at least a full percentage point too high.
Speech by Otmar Issing of the ECB, 30 Aug
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'Monetary policy in a changing economic environment' Issing said that asset prices do not make a suitable monetary policy objective. "Asset prices, by themselves, are not a suitable goal for monetary policy. In the long run…
European Central Bank Report
REPORT - Publication of the second edition of the accession country Blue Book. The European Central Bank (ECB) is today (30 August) publishing a report entitled "Payment and securities settlement systems in accession countries", the "accession country…
Eurozone CPI rises above ECB ceiling
GERMANY - Consumer price inflation in the eurozone rose above the European Central Bank's 2 per cent ceiling in August, weakening any hopes of a rate cut in the near future.
European Central Bank Publication
PUBLICATION - The European Central Bank has published it's euro banknotes and coins, brochure, August 2002.
Behind the scenes in Basel
Neil Courtis ventures into the BIS in Basel and finds an institution in the process of redefining its role.
Issing sees slow US growth rather than double dip
GERMANY - European Central Bank chief economist Otmar Issing was quoted on Monday as saying a "double dip" in the U.S. economy could not be ruled out but that continued slow growth was more likely.
ECB Monthly Bulletin, August 2002
REPORT - The European Central Bank published its August 2002 Monthly Bulletin on 8 August. In the bulletin the ECB reinforced its "wait and see" approach to interest rates but admitted risks to price stability had become "more balanced". This was in…
ECB grows more cautious on growth outlook
GERMANY - A shift of stance on inflationary pressures by the European Central Bank on Thursday reflected growing pessimism on the outlook for economic growth in the eurozone.
Interest rates in europe left unchanged
GERMANY - The European Central Bank on Thursday kept interest rates unchanged for the ninth month in a row amid uncertainty over the impact of turbulent financial markets and a stronger euro on Europe's slowly recovering economy.
Next ECB head may not be French says Italy's Tanzi
ITALY - Wim Duisenberg's successor as president of the European Central Bank may not necessarily be French. That is the belief of Italy's Treasury undersecretary Vito Tanzi who spoke to Italian daily La Repubblica on Saturday.
Euro-zone current account moves to surplus in May
GERMANY - The current account for the 12-nation euro zone showed a surplus of 100 million euros (dollars) in May compared with a deficit of 2.2 billion euros in May 2001, the European Central Bank reported Friday.