International Monetary Fund (IMF)
IMF's Rato to visit Brazil on January 10-11
Rodrigo de Rato, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, will visit Brazil on January 10-11, 2006, at the invitation of the President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva to mark the nation's early repayment of its outstanding obligations to the Fund.
IMF to help with GCC monetary union plan
The International Monetary Fund has offered help to GCC countries to proceed with their monetary union plan and has proposed the creation of a body similar to the European Union's Eurostat office to support the project.
IMF Paper: Debt overhang or debt irrelevance?
The IMF Working Paper 'Debt overhang or debt irrelevance? Revisiting the debt growth link' published December 2005 asks whether Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) suffer from a debt overhang. Is debt relief going to improve their growth rates, it…
Argentina to pay off IMF debts at start of 2006
Argentine President Nestor Kirchner said on Wednesday 21 December that his country will clear its debt with the International Monetary Fund on 2 January next year, instead of the previously announced next Thursday.
Argentina sells bonds to Venezuela
Argentina sold $496 million in bonds to Venezuela to help boost its international reserves as it prepares to pay back the $9.8 billion it owes the International Monetary Fund.
Krueger on IMF's role in the modern global economy
In the speech 'At the service of the nations: The role of the IMF in the modern global economy' given on 16 December Anne Krueger of the IMF said the Fund's mandate is as relevant today as it was when the Fund was established more than 60 years ago.
Comment: Latin America spurns the Fund
Last week Brazil and Argentina surprised the international community by announcing that they both intend paying off all of their outstanding debt to the IMF before the end of the year.
Krueger on the global consequences of Asian growth
In the speech 'Still achieving, still pursuing: The global consequences of Asian growth' given on 14 December Anne Krueger of the IMF said many Asian economies have long been reaping the benefits of trade liberalization.
Comment: Brazil's surprise IMF settlement
Earlier this week Brazil announced that it plans to pay off its entire $15.5 billion in debt to the IMF by the end of the month. In doing so, the country will meet its outstanding IMF obligations two years ahead of schedule.
Brazil announces intention to repay IMF debt
Brazil announced on Tuesday 13 December its intention to make an early repayment of its entire outstanding obligations to the International Monetary Fund amounting to SDR 10.79 billion (about US$15.46 billion).
Interview with IMF's Agustin Carstens
Agustin Carstens, Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, recently talked about the challenges facing the Eastern Caribbean region.
IMF chief economist sees further US rate hikes
The International Monetary Fund's chief economist, Raghuram Rajan, predicted on Friday 9 December that the Federal Reserve would probably continue to raise interest rates.
IMF's Krueger on economic policy reform
In the speech 'Mutual reinforcement: Economic policy reform and financial market strength' given on 1 December Anne Krueger of the IMF said for economists and policymakers, the experience of the 1990s taught us a great deal.
IMF's Rajan urges caution on further ECB rate hike
IMF chief economist Raghuram Rajan has called on the European Central Bank to wait for evidence that an economic recovery is taking hold in the euro zone before raising interest rates again.
IMF Paper on capital account liberalization
The IMF Working Paper "Capital account liberalization, capital flow patterns, and policy responses in the EU's new member states" discusses the experience of the EU's eight new member countries (EU8) between 1995 and 2003 when the bulk of capital account…
Comment: IMF criticises ECB's move
The decision by the ECB to increase interest rates by 25 basis points has come in for a fair amount of criticism in the press and from market analysts. On Thursday 1 December the eurozone's central bank received another stinging blow.
Rato on problems and issues in the global economy
In the speech 'Problems and issues in the global economy: A call for action' given on 22 November Rodrigo de Rato of the IMF said we need action on IMF governance.
Rato promotes central bank communication
IMF Managing Director Rodrigo Rato told a European Banking Congress in Frankfurt on Friday 18 November that central banks should communicate their monetary policy plans clearly to avoid disruptive shocks to financial markets.
IMF central bank governance survey
An IMF survey of governance boards and management structures at central banks by JoAnne Morris and Tonny Lybek identifies "issues to consider when designing the structure, size, and composition of the governing boards and management of a central bank".
New book on International Financial Architecture
Palgrave has published a new book by Carlos M. Pelaez and Carlos A. Pelaez entitled "International Financial Architecture" as part of the Palgrave Texts in Finance and Monetary Economics series.
Fischer wows Israel
Stanley Fischer has ambitious plans to reform the Bank of Israel. Dan Gerstenfeld reports.
Why statistics matter
More care should be taken in presenting important statistics, says Steve Hanke, editorial adviser to Central Banking.
IMF's Rato on building better institutions
In the speech 'Building better institutions' given on 3 November Rodrigo de Rato of the IMF said central banks in emerging markets that used inflation targeting not only reduced inflation but experienced less volatility.
Kosovo to establish central bank by end of 2006
The Banking and Payment Authority of Kosova will be transformed into the Central Bank of Kosovo by the end of next year, the BPK and the Ministry of Economy and Finance were quoted as saying by KosovaLive.