United Kingdom
BoE’s Broadbent: globalisation has been largely a good thing
Bank of England deputy says flexible labour market has helped dull the pain of adjustment to trade shocks, while lower prices have most benefited the poorest groups
UK elects first woman to chair Treasury Select Committee
Nicky Morgan to take over from influential chair Andrew Tyrie, who stepped down this year; former secretary to treasury seen as supporter of “soft” Brexit
BoE leads foray into non-bank stress simulations
Paper sets out agent-based approach to modelling feedback loop that could create sharp price moves, even where funds and dealers are individually safe
BoE distributed ledger project delivers cross-border payments success
Bank of England completes transactions across two RTGS networks using Ripple’s DLT solution; issues remain on how tech could be adapted for wholesale payments
BoE needs to ‘raise its game’ on cyber threats – BoE’s Habgood
BoE’s Habgood praises institution’s cyber security but says more can be done; new multi-level defence designed to ensure critical bank systems are not breached
Any London forex trading move would be ‘gradual’ – ECB
City’s place in global submarine cable network is likely to be key, researcher says
Brexit should not lead to restrictions on financial trade – FCA’s Bailey
If UK and EU work hard to maintain similar regulations, Brexit need not lead to restrictions on open markets and free trade, says FCA chief executive
PRA urges insurers to act on ‘silent cyber’ risks
Watchdog urges underwriters to embrace cross-policy stress-testing to identify exposure to claims from non-specified risks
Pass-through varies across countries and time – BoE paper
Kristin Forbes and co-authors study the shocks and structural factors that help explain variations in the exchange rate’s impact on inflation
BoE bloggers suggest central banks could use equity-financed QE
Economists raise ideas for future balance sheet innovations, including digital currencies, helicopter money drops and equity-based quantitative easing
Bank of England staff vote for strike action
Central bank faces four days of disruption among support staff, with the union threatening to “escalate” the matter to other departments
Bond sell-off slows as markets digest central bank comments
Upbeat comments from ECB and BoE chiefs trigger brief tantrum, but bond markets now appear to be settling down
Carney comments lead to sterling wobbles
Pound leaps as markets interpret comments as sign Bank of England governor is contemplating a rate hike later this year
UK audit office praises most of BoE’s ‘One Bank’ strategy
Report says Bank of England has been broadly successful in its transformation, although there have been some delays and changing culture is a long-term challenge
Commission’s CCP powers ‘might not lead to exodus from UK’
US regulation of CCPs provides a “plausible template” for the eurozone, says commentator
House prices could outstrip income for decades – David Miles
Former Bank of England policymaker says under “plausible” assumptions, real house prices can rise without limit, implying high prices are not necessarily a sign of bubbles
BoE ups capital buffers as consumer credit outstrips income
“Pockets of risk” including effects of Brexit negotiations and car finance warrant attention, BoE says, though it stresses overall stability threats are at “normal” levels
‘No evidence’ of criminality in BoE crisis auctions
Bank of England given all clear on question of whether financial crisis liquidity auctions were rigged; central bank has now corrected may of the issues with its liquidity framework
ECB requests powers to regulate CCPs
Brexit heightens concern over importance of central counterparties
BoE’s Forbes points to bias among overworked MPC members
Senior Bank of England officials are overworked and heavily scrutinised, which may make it harder for them to take tough decisions, Kristin Forbes says in her final speech as an MPC member
Book notes: Can We Avoid Another Financial Crisis?, by Steve Keen
Steve Keen challenges “mainstream” economic thinking in this concise book, hoping to shift the political debate on debt
UK payments regulator unveils competition reforms
Reforms aim to open up UK payments infrastructure to competition, and include move to common messaging standards
BoE’s Haldane examines changing nature of work
Rise of “gig economy” and self-employment may have weakened wage-setting power among workers, the BoE chief economist says; he indicates a willingness to vote for a hike later this year
BoE economists criticise DSGE inflation modelling
Team including MPC member Kristin Forbes criticises structural modelling approaches for failing to properly account for trend inflation