Germany
Buba's Welteke says 2002 hard for German banks
GERMANY - Bundesbank President Ernst Welteke said on Friday 2002 would be a difficult year for German banks and urged the sector to take measures to counter falling results and weak international competitive power.
ECB start raising rates by autumn - Kiel institute
GERMANY - The Kiel Institute for the World Economy IfW, one of Germany's six leading economic research institutes, said on Thursday it expected the European Central Bank to start raising rates in autumn 2002 in response to strengthening euro zone…
ECB optimistic about euro zone upturn, inflation
GERMANY - The European Central Bank on Thursday again voiced confidence the euro zone economy had bottomed out and the region's growth should gradually return to full speed before the end of the year.
EU summit won't discuss ECB job - German source
GERMANY - A German government source said on Thursday he did not expect this week's European Union summit to discuss who should succeed European Central Bank Vice President Christian Noyer, although surprises were possible.
ECB gold reserves - EUR35M in week of 8 March
GERMANY - The Eurosystem's net reserves in gold and gold receivables declined by EUR35 million, to EUR126.8 billion, in the week ended 8 March, the European Central Bank said Tuesday.
Labour mismatches plague euro zone
GERMANY - Austria has too many construction workers and too few hairdressers. France suffers from an abundance of woodworkers but a shortage of nurses. These are some of the findings of an ECB report published today.
BIS hits back over banking standards
GERMANY - Andrew Crockett, head of the Bank for International Settlements, has answered criticism of his plans for new global banking standards from Gerhard Schroder, German chancellor, by warning politicians not to interfere.
ECB buys Frankfurt market site to build new office
GERMANY - With European Union enlargement in mind, the European Central Bank has agreed to spend about 60 million euros to buy the land housing Frankfurt's wholesale vegetable and fruit market to build a new headquarter.
German finance ministry, Buba spurn gold sale call
GERMANY - The German Bundesbank and finance ministry on Tuesday rejected suggestions by some government politicians that holes in the public purse could be plugged by the sale of gold and foreign exchange reserves.
No Mersch comment on ECB VP position
GERMANY - Luxembourg's central bank governor, Yves Mersch, is declining comment for the time being on his interest in a potential nomination for the vice-presidency of the European Central Bank.
German minister sees early UK use of euro
GERMANY - Hans Eichel, Germany's finance minister, yesterday predicted that Britain would join the euro "in the not too distant future", in comments likely to renew debate on the single currency.
Welteke: Past rate cuts will still show effect
GERMANY - Current price developments in the euro zone are "positive", but past interest rate cuts have yet to fully show their effect, Deutsche Bundesbank President Ernst Welteke said Wednesday.
German recession confirmed
GERMANY - The German economy is officially in recession, according to official figures which have confirmed two successive quarters of contraction.
Bundesbank reform heads toward final hurdle
GERMANY - Germany's reform of the once mighty Bundesbank headed toward its final parliamentary hurdle on Wednesday but a last-minute change cast doubt on when the changes would take effect, parliamentary officials said.
Bundesbank reform likely despite state fears
GERMANY - The German government's reform of the Bundesbank should take place on schedule in May, despite regional states' fear they will lose their power to shape policy in Europe's monetary union, an official said on Monday.
Duisenberg sees global recovery, risks remain
GERMANY - European Central Bank President Wim Duisenberg said on Monday he expected a mild recovery of the global economy this year with euro zone growth reaching its long-term potential by the end of 2002.
Bundesbank - 10% D mark bills still in circulation
GERMANY - The amount of Deutsche mark bills still in circulation is about 10% of the level at the end of 2000, the Deutsche Bundesbank said Friday.
German sale plan triggers gold slump
GERMANY - The price of gold fell on 20 February 2002 following comments by the president of Germany's Bundesbank.
ECB eyeing council revamp ahead of enlargement
GERMANY - The European Central Bank is studying draft proposals on how the bank should be governed once several eastern European nations join the euro zone later this decade, a newspaper said on Wednesday.
Give Wadhwani a longer run at Bank
FEATURE - Sushil Wadhwani has denied a stock market rumour that he asked Gordon Brown to keep his seat on the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee after his three-year term expires in May.
Nations start line up for Washington rollover
UK - The announcement last week that Wim Duisenberg is to retire as head of the European Central Bank, and the comments by Bundesbank governor Ernst Welteke Tuesday that Germany may sell some of its gold, has revived industry speculation that the…
U.S. German wages risks to German upturn - Welteke
GERMANY - European Central Bank council member Ernst Welteke said on Monday an upcoming wage round and uncertainty about the U.S. economy were risks to an upturn of the Germany economy.
Speech by Jurgen Stark of the Bundesbank, 13 Feb
SPEECH - The speech was given on the presentation of the report "IT innovations and financing patterns: Implications for the financial system". The report was prepared by a Working Group of the Committee on the Global Financial System (CGFS) composed of…
ECB Feb bulletin - Reiterates Duisenberg remarks
GERMANY - The European Central Bank Thursday repeated that interest rates in the euro zone remain at an appropriate level and that it expects a gradual economic recovery this year.