United States
Treasuries' safe-haven status faces growing threat
According to this article published Wednesday 17 May, long-term threats to the status of Treasury bonds as a safe haven are gathering even as global investors pour money into U.S. government debt.
The new Fed chairman faces the same old dilemma
Ben Bernanke is facing the age-old test all central bankers eventually have to confront: what to do in the face of slowing growth and rising inflation, according to this article published Thursday 18 May.
Comment: Safe hands for Fed No. 2 spot
US president George W. Bush opted for a safe pair of hands in the form of Donald Kohn to replace Roger Ferguson as No. 2 at the Fed. Kohn, a 36-year Fed veteran, will be both a countervailing and supplementary force to the more studious Ben Bernanke.
Kohn going to be next Fed vice-chairman
US president George W. Bush on Thursday 18 May announced plans to nominate Fed governor Donald Kohn to be vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
Fed's Kohn on the evolving financial system
In the speech 'The evolving nature of the financial system: Financial crises and the role of the central bank' given on 18 May Donald Kohn of the Federal Reserve said U.S. bank regulators are focused on encouraging market discipline, sound risk…
Fed's Bernanke on Basel II
In the speech 'Basel II: Its promise and its challenges' given on 18 May Ben Bernanke of the Federal Reserve said federal banking regulators will press ahead on a sweeping plan aimed at improving risk management for the country's largest and most…
NY Fed's Kos on the foreign exchange market
In the speech 'Recent volatility trends in the foreign exchange market' given on 11 May Dino Kos of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said there is a risk that the current period of low volatility in the foreign exchange market will not last, and…
Fed's Bernanke on hedge funds and systemic risk
In the speech 'Hedge funds and systemic risk' given on 16 May Ben Bernanke of the Federal Reserve said financial authorities must stay attuned to any potential risks posed by the growth of hedge funds, an investment domain of the wealthy that has become…
NY Fed's Geithner on financial stability
In the speech 'Implications of growth in credit derivatives for financial stability' given on 16 May Timothy Geithner of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said banks and other financial players must be cautious in their use of credit derivatives.
Shrinking central bank asset buys worry for dollar
Foreign central banks' net purchases of U.S. assets have slumped to a mere $1.6 billion, the lowest in a year, according to this article published Monday 15 May.
Phil Fed's Survey of Professional Forecasters
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia published its Second Quarter 2006 Survey of Professional Forecasters on 15 May. Stronger growth in real GDP this year will come at the expense of weaker growth next year, according to 53 forecasters surveyed.
Fed's Bies on implementing Basel II
In the speech 'Implementing Basel II: Choices and challenges' given on 16 May Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve said the Federal Reserve will conduct "ongoing, detailed" analyses to ensure new bank capital rules, when implemented, do not lead to…
Fed's Kohn on investing in payment innovations
In the speech 'Investing in payment innovations: A Federal Reserve perspective' given on 11 May Donald Kohn of the Federal Reserve said changing electronic payment systems benefit both institutions and consumers, but also expose them to new risks,…
Richmond Fed welcomes chief HR officer
Tammy H. Cummings will join the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond as vice president of human resources for the Fifth District, effective 15 May.
The little-noticed 'yet' in the Fed's statement
According to this article by John Berry, published Thursday 11 May, it was in the FOMC's statement explaining what may come next that "yet" appeared, signalling that after boosting the target at 16 consecutive meetings the committee probably will take a…
The origins of bubbles in laboratory asset markets
The authors of this Atlanta Fed Working Paper, published May 2006, conduct experiments that are designed to investigate individual probability judgment error and speculative behaviour. They find that both factors contribute to the creation of asset price…
Fed raises rates to 5%
The Federal Open Market Committee decided Wednesday 10 May to raise its target for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 5 percent. In its statement the FOMC said "some further policy firming may yet be needed."
Fed Reserve Bank of St Louis Review, May/Jun 2006
The latest edition of the St Louis Fed's Review for May/Jun 2006 includes the article 'The learnability criterion and monetary policy'. The paper reviews some recent research that has emphasized methods for analyzing models of learning, in which…
Central bank intervention and ex rate volatility
The St Louis Fed Working Paper "Central bank intervention and exchange rate volatility, its continuous and jump components" analyses the relationship between interventions and volatility at daily and intra-daily frequencies for the two major exchange…
Why economists worry about foreign reserves
According to the article "Why economists worry about who holds foreign currency reserves" published Tuesday 9 May, the idea that China or some other American rival could someday use its vast holdings of U.S. debt as a geopolitical weapon is gaining…
A hands-off central banker?
According to the Working Paper "A hands-off central banker? Marriner S. Eccles and the Federal Reserve Policy, 1934-1951" published April 2006, the Federal Reserve after 1935 acquired new instruments to command monetary policy, but it did not change its…
Wages no bar to Fed pause after move tomorrow
There's no reason for Federal Reserve officials to stop thinking about a pause in raising interest rates after going to 5 percent when they meet tomorrow (Wednesday), according to this article published Tuesday 9 May.
Former Fed economist urges more transparency
There is cautious optimism that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke will bring real transparency to the US central bank, this article published Monday 8 May says.
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Ann Rep 2005
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's annual report for 2005, 'Facing Change, Managing Risk,' was published on Friday 5 May. This year, the report includes messages from Bank executives about new trends in the payments system, the banking industry,…