International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Volcker lambasts higher inflation targets
Former Fed chairman Paul Volcker calls the suggestion that inflation targets should be raised to about 4% “nonsense”; points to the difficulties of the 1980s
IMF deputy on drivers of the Asian recovery
International Monetary Fund first deputy managing director Murillo Portugal says Australia has done well as a result of Chinese commodity demand, but must watch out for a cooling off
Stimulus is not the bulk of debt: Fund’s Lipsky
International Money Fund first deputy John Lipsky says underlying increases in spending and lower taxes from financial sector underpin the debt burden, rather than stimulus
Merge G20 and IMF: Norway’s Gjedrem
Norges Bank governor Svein Gjedrem calls for the two bodies to be combined, and underpinned by principles that mean all countries, irrespective of size, have their voices heard
The simulation of inflation forecasting
IMF research asks how useful is a simple Phillips Curve in simulating inflation forecasting in real time in Germany, the UK, and the US?
Last survivor of Bretton Woods dies
IMF managing director calls Jacques Polak an “iconic figure”
IMF should have come to emerging markets’ rescue: DSK
International Monetary Fund managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn says it should have been the Fund, not the Fed and other central banks, which provided swap lines to emerging markets in the crisis
Shogo Ishii to head IMF’s Asia office
Current head Akira Ariyoshi to take up academic post in Hitotsubashi University
Emerging markets need a voice: Krueger
Ex-IMF first deputy managing director Anne Krueger writes that countries such as India and China must have a presence of the international stage reflecting their weight in the global economy
PBoC deputy named IMF special adviser
Zhu Min to join the International Monetary Fund in late spring
Focus on fundamentals outperforms carry trades: IMF paper
International Monetary Fund paper finds that an investment strategy determined by analysis of the real effective exchange rate ultimately does better than one that relies on borrowing cheap and lending at higher rates
Fiscal cuts must precede monetary tightening: IMF
International Monetary Fund notes fiscal consolidation is by far the biggest concern; suggests central banks maintain large balance sheets for time being
Monetary-policy transmission in Mauritius
Paper examines mechanism over the past decade
IMF to sell gold in the market
Fund’s move comes after offer of sale to central banks
Crises dampen productivity: IMF paper
Rising costs negatively impact factor productivity and have implications for both monetary and fiscal policy, International Monetary Fund research finds
“We failed the system”: Carney at RBI panel
Governors including Canada’s Mark Carney and India’s Duvvuri Subbarao point to imbalances as root cause of the crisis, but skirt around concerns over the dollar
Inflation targets must be raised: IMF’s Blanchard
IMF economists Olivier Blanchard, Giovanni Dell’Ariccia and Paulo Mauro call for central banks to revise their price growth targets if they want to avoid crippling deflation
Middle East and North Africa’s trade below potential
International Monetary Fund looks at trade constraints in the region
Greece should go to IMF, not EU for aid: Issing
Former ECB chief economist advocates tough love from Washington, rejects Brussels bailout; position conflicts with senior EU bureaucrat
Romania makes half-point cut
Romanian central bank lowers cost of borrowing despite above-target inflation
Africa mostly sheltered from remittances drop
International Monetary Fund looks at the impact of the global economic crisis on African GDP via the remittance channel
IMF warns against Japanese complacency
International Monetary Fund report says Japan will face a harder task in convincing markets it can manage high debt levels in future
Iceland cuts by 50 bp as króna stands ground
Unexpected reduction leaves borrowing costs at 9.5%, central bank notes Icesave debacle failed to impact króna