United Kingdom
The Bank of England gets a respected new chief
Mervyn King began his 5-year term as governor of the Bank of England on 1 July. An article in BusinessWeek describes him as the brains behind the Bank's solid track record since 1997. He is viewed as both a formidable scholar and independent thinker.
Farewell Eddie
Sir Edward George retired from the Bank of England on Monday. An article in the Financial Times looks back at his time as governor which, it says, can be looked on a successful decade which will not see him move rapidly from Who's Who to Who's He?
Bank of England Financial Stability Review, Jun 03
The Bank of England published its latest Financial Stability Review for June 2003 on Thursday 26 June. It contains the Bank's regular half-yearly review of risks to financial stability and measures taken to strengthen the financial infrastructure,…
BofE's George shrugs off fears of deflation
In an appearance before the Treasury select committee on Tuesday outgoing governor of the Bank of England Edward George said there was an "extremely" low risk of deflation in the UK and the US, acording to the Independent newspaper. He described the risk…
Wisdom, wit and gaffes from Sir Edward George
As the governor of the Bank of England prepares to leave the Old Lady an article in the Independent guides you, in its words, "through some of Sir Edward's "thoughts" and some other thoughts about Sir Edward, renowned central banker, after-dinner speaker…
Constitution could mean veto loss over ECB changes
The new draft European constitution could mean European member states would no longer have a veto over adjustments to the workings of the ECB, according to the Financial Times. The UK Treasury and the Foreign Office both said they would campaign for…
Bank of England Quarterly Bulletin, Summer 2003
The Bank of England released its Quarterly Bulletin, Summer 2003, on 20 June. The Bulletin includes articles entitled 'What caused the rise in the UK terms of trade?' and 'An analysis of the UK gold auctions 1999-2002'.
Bank of England Inflation Attitudes Survey, May 03
The Bank of England's May 2003 quarterly Inflation Attitudes Survey was published on 20 June. Asked for their expectations of inflation over the coming year, respondents gave the same median answer as for perceptions of current inflation: 2.0%. This is…
BOE George, Mortgage change to help UK adopt euro
Speaking on Monday in an interview with BBC radio, the outgoing Bank of England governor Sir Edward George said he was optimistic the UK economy was entering a period of more balanced growth, and that the government should not raise taxes in the near…
The Eddie and Gordon show
Praise was liberally showered on Sir Edward George at his City swansong, the annual Lord Mayor's banquet for the square mile's great and good - Eddie's 27th in a row. Gordon Brown, Chancellor of the Exchequer, praised his integrity, steadfastness and…
Grilled Lambert
Richard Lambert was given a run for his money before Britain's Treasury Select Committee when prodded and poked over what on earth he was doing on the Bank of England's MPC (monetary policy committee) without an economics degree to his name.
Crockett honoured
Andrew Crockett always did have one of those names that look as if it is just waiting to have a "sir" in front of it. Now the space has been duly filled as the former central banker and general manager of the BIS received a knighthood from the Queen of…
Gap in our knowledge about output and inflation
In this article in the Financial Times Samuel Brittan looks at the idea of discretionary fiscal policy replacing monetary policy once Britain is in the euro - a return to Keynesian demand management as some have describe it. The Treasury's proposal…
Sir Edward George's Mansion House speech
In his Mansion House speech Sir Edward George, Governor of the Bank of England said that in terms of the overall macro-economy the Monetary Policy Committee framework has served us well. Annual inflation - on the present RPIX target measure - perhaps…
Brown pledges not to fix euro entry tests
Gordon Brown said on Wednesday 18 June that the five euro entry tests would not be fixed, in a report in the Financial Times, and that the review in next year's budget of reforms aiming to create convergence between the UK and eurozone economies would…
Andrew Large to head financial system taskforce
Deputy governor of the Bank of England for Financial Stability, Sir Andrew Large, has been asked to establish a taskforce to examine the possible need for legislative powers in the event of major operational disruption to the UK financial system.
Bank of England MPC Minutes 4/5 June 2003
Minutes of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee Meeting were released on 18 June for the meeting of 4 and 5 June 2003. The minutes showed that the MPC was split 6-3 in favour of maintaining interest rates at 3.75%. Kate Barker, Marian Bell and…
MPC recruit Lambert urges UK Treasury drop secrecy
The most recent member of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee called for openness and transparency in the selection process of appointees to the MPC when facing the Treasury select committee on Monday 16 June, according to a report by the…
Interview with Bank of England's Stephen Nickell
UK inflation has peaked and will soon head lower, Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Stephen Nickell told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday 17 June. He also played down the importance of the government's plan to switch the Bank's inflation…
Large on convergence in insurance and banking
In a speech on 'Convergence in Insurance and Banking: Some Financial Stability Issues' Andrew Large of the Bank of England said the data deficiencies we confront today where the actual location of risk is so opaque is a major challenge. Better…
Change in the remit of the Bank of England's MPC
In a letter from Gordon Brown to Eddie George, governor of the Bank of England, the chancellor sets out his intention to change the MPC's remit in the next Pre-Budget Report to give the Bank of England a symmetric inflation target as measured by the…
New Second Permanent Secretary at the Treasury
Professor Nicholas Stern will take over from Sir Robert Culpin in September as the new Second Permanent Secretary at the UK Treasury. Nick Stern has been Chief Economist and Senior Vice President at the World Bank, Washington D.C. since July 2000.
European Parliament response to UK euro decision
Christa Randzio-Plath, Chair of the European Parliament's Committee of Economic and Monetary Affairs, called the UK's decision on the euro politically motivated and said it was "unimaginable" for the UK to remain outside the single currency indefinately.
U.K. Euro Decision: Assessment and Analysis Guide
A report published on Monday 9 June by Bloomberg News provides a concise guide to the UK decision on the euro. It lists the five tests and the 18 separate studies used in the decision process as to whether to call a referendum on adopting the euro in the…