Europe
Eurozone inflation falls within ECB target of 2%
BELGIUM - Inflation in the euro zone slowed sharply to 2% in May, Eurostat confirmed on Tuesday. The drop put inflation within the upper limit of the European Central Bank's inflation target of 2%.
Speech Wim Duisenberg, ECB president, 13 June
SPEECH - In a speech on 'The euro as a catalyst for integration and competition in EMU', Wim Duisenberg talks about the link between European integration and the euro, explaining the need for further structural reforms and their importance for the smooth…
Eurozone inflation falls but M3 grows
GERMANY - A marked drop in euro zone inflation in May strengthened beliefs that the ECB will hold fire on interest rates, although its key money gauge M3 moved further away from its benchmark of 4.5%, growing to 7.5% from 7.3% in March.
Swedish central bank governor resigns
SWEDEN - Sweden's central bank governor said Tuesday he will resign at the end of the year, two years before his term expires, as the Scandinavian country considers adopting Europe's common currency.
Europeans aim for joint rate rises
UK - Europe's central banks are set to raise interest rates simultaneously on 6 June, say leading economists. The Bank of England, the European Central Bank and the Swedish Riksbank are likely to hike rates at their respective policy-making meetings in…
Speech by Sirkka Hamalainen of the ECB, 30 Apr
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'Consolidation in the European securities infrastructure - what is needed?' Hamalainen said that "By eliminating currency segmentation, the introduction of the euro has naturally been a major factor in the integration of…
Speech by T Padoa-Schioppa of the ECB, 29 Apr
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'Competition, co-operation, public action: Three necessary drivers for European financial integration' Padoa-Schioppa expressed the benefits of the euro when saying "Market segmentation - the opposite of integration - is…
Eurozone interest rates left unchanged
EUROPE - Interest rates in the 12-nation eurozone have been kept on hold as expected at a regular ECB meeting held Thursday.
European Central Bank - Annual Report 2001
ANNUAL REPORT - The European Central Bank has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2001.
ECB Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - The European Central Bank's Annual Report 2001, 23 April 2002.
ECB Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - New ECB Regulation in the field of minimum reserves, 23 April.
Bank of England leaves key lending rate at 4.0 pct
UK - The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee on Thursday left its key lending rate unchanged at 4.0 percent for the fifth month in a row despite signs Europe's second biggest economy is recovering.
Keep floating, stop worrying
FEATURE - The real case for an independent pound has nothing to do with ultra-nationalism or hostility to Europe writes Samuel Brittan in Thursday's Financial Times. He suggests the British government allow use of the euro as a parallel currency and…
Speech by Dr Wellink, Nederlandsche Bank, 12 Mar
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'The Euro, a major challenge and catalyst for Europe' Wellink said that he saw little effect on euro-zone inflation from the physical introduction of the euro and said the euro was "on the low side" historically but noted a…
ECB Duisenberg says europe needs structural reform
SPAIN - Wim Duisenberg, chairman of the European Central Bank, said Europe needs to speed up structural economic reforms to stimulate growth.
History shows East Europe pitfalls on way to euro
FEATURE - Investors are already betting Eastern Europe's road to the euro will be remarkably short, but the history of European monetary union shows just how many hairpin bends and potholes still litter the way.
ECB Monthly Bulletin March 2002
REPORT - The European Central Bank published its March 2002 Monthly Bulletin on 14 March.
ECB Issing says eurozone econ hit bottom in '01
FRANCE - Europe's economic slowdown hit bottom at the end of last year and growth should be back above 2% by the end of 2002, European Central Bank Chief Economist Otmar Issing says in an interview with Les Echos Tuesday.
ECB Press Conference
PRESS CONFERENCE - Introductory statement by Willem F. Duisenberg, President of the European Central Bank, Christian Noyer, Vice-President of the European Central Bank, Frankfurt am Main, 7 March.
US finance chief backs steel moves
US - US Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill has rejected suggestions from Europe that America's push to protect the domestic steel industry is simply a matter of treating the symptoms of an overvalued dollar.
Speech by Susan Schmidt Bies of the Fed, 28 Feb
SPEECH - In the speech titled 'Strengthening the Financial System of the 21st Century through Sound Accounting and Disclosure' Bies said "It has become clear in recent months that some companies have not been completely transparent in their application…
Final day for euro changeover
EUROPE - Two months after it was introduced as a cash currency on 1 January 2002, the euro will finally become the sole legal tender in the 12 countries in the eurozone.
Currencies consigned to history
FEATURE - "A piece of Europe in our hands" is how Romano Prodi, president of the European Commission, greeted the launch of the euro.
Manchester United player joins eurozone collection
FEATURE - Ole Gunnar Solskjaer from Manchester United has teamed up with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) on his return from Europe to collect soon-to-be obsolete currency.