Europe
Issing says ECB must check inflation expectations
European Central Bank Chief Economist Otmar Issing said it's important for the bank to prevent expectations of inflation from rising excessively, the Nihon Keizai newspaper said, citing an interview with Issing.
ECB on Court of Justice decision on Pact
The European Central Bank (ECB) said in a statement released Tuesday 13 July that it takes note of the judgement by the Court of Justice on the Council's actions of 25 November 2003.
European Parliament on Pact decision
Christa Randzio-Plath, outgoing chair of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament, expressed her views on the Stability and Growth Pact issue in this press release, 13 July.
No need for ECB to hike rates: Buba's Weber
Bundesbank president and European Central Bank governing council member Axel Weber said in an interview published at the weekend that available information indicates the ECB will not need to change its interest rates in the foreseeable future.
Decision on 'Mr Euro' delayed to September
Finance ministers from the 12-country eurozone have deferred until September a decision on creating a "Mr Euro" as the political face of the single currency.
Trichet: The current state of the European economy
In a speech on 'The current state of the European economy and the ECB's monetary policy concept' given on 9 July, Jean-Claude Trichet of the ECB said it has only been possible to achieve low levels of market interest rates in the eurozone because of the…
ECB Monthly Bulletin, July 2004
The European Central Bank published its July 2004 Monthly Bulletin on 8 July. The high unemployment rate in the eurozone is likely to limit pressure for wage increases and thus prevent the recent rise in oil prices spilling over to other consumer prices…
Sarkozy calls for more transparency at ECB
French finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy has called on the European Central Bank (ECB) to publish records of its debates and votes when setting interest rates, in the interests of transparency.
ECB's Issing on sustained economic growth
In a speech on 'Sustained economic growth and central banking' given on 6 July, Otmar Issing of the ECB said central banking activities can impact on longer run growth through a number of potential channels. These include the role of central banks in…
ECB's new HQ begins to take shape
The construction of the new European Central Bank headquarters in Frankfurt moved one step closer this week with demolition work on the former site of the Grossmarkthalle (wholesale market) due to begin on Thursday 1 July.
The development of statistics for EMU - ECB book
The European Central Bank published a book on 2 July recording the work to develop statistics for Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Part A of the book concerns the preparatory work in the years 1992 - 98. Part B describes the numerous enhancements made…
Trichet on European financial sector integration
In a speech on 'Integration of the European Financial Sector' given on 29 June, Jean-Claude Trichet of the ECB said the financial system plays an essential role in the transmission of monetary policy and integrated European financial markets facilitate…
Will ECB independence threaten ECB independence?
The Federal Reserve is about to join the club of central banks that has embarked on a course of normalizing short-term interest rates, this article says ahead of the Fed's much awaited FOMC decision. And with the ECB meeting on Thursday it describes the…
New version of the ECB's website
The European Central Bank (ECB) launched a new version of its website (www.ecb.int) on Saturday, 26 June. The site's design has been modernised and the contents restructured in order to make it more user-friendly, the ECB said.
ECB board bypass Frankfurt
Apparently none of the Frankfurt based European Central Bank's board members actually live in Frankfurt, the FT revealed this week.
Trichet shown red card for speaking English
French deputies walked out of the Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly on Monday 21 June when ECB chief Jean-Claude Trichet began addressing a meeting in English, according to Reuters.
EU proposes easing of stability pact
At its regular meeting on Thursday 24 June, the European Commission recommended that a country's economic situation should be taken into account when applying the stability and growth pact, Deutsche Welle reported.
ECB's Padoa-Schioppa on challenges post-FSAP
In a speech on 'Challenges of financial integration in the post-FSAP period' given on 23 June, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa of the ECB said efforts in the post-FSAP period should be devoted to best implementing the new framework. If exploited ambitiously, the…
Rates not to blame for slow growth: Padoa-Schioppa
The European Central Bank's reluctance to cut interest rates below 2 per cent isn't to blame for slow growth in the 12 nations that share the euro, said Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, an ECB board member, in an interview with newspaper La Stampa.
ECB's Issing on the primacy of price stability
In a speech 'On the primacy of price stability' given on 10 June. Otmar Issing of the ECB said the primacy of price stability does not imply that this objective can be left to the central banks alone. Monetary policy needs to be complemented by a sound…
ECB Monthly Bulletin, June 2004
The European Central Bank published its June 2004 Monthly Bulletin on 10 June. The report said the recovery in euro area economic growth is expected to continue over the coming quarters, leading to a broader and stronger upswing in the course of next…
Prodi defends independence of ECB
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his compatriot Romano Prodi, president of the European Commission, have locked swords over the strength of the euro and European Central Bank interest rate policy during the G8 summit of industrialized nations…
Trichet says ECB vigilant on oil
European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said the ECB has to be vigilant over the recent rise in oil prices, but is confident that inflation in the euro zone will be below 2 pct in 2005.
President proposed for euro finance ministers
French finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy proposed this week that the finance ministers of the 12 eurozone countries should have a permanent president for two and a half years.