Central Banking
France confirms Cœuré as ECB nominee
Finance ministry puts Benoît Cœuré forward as nominee to replace Bini Smaghi on European Central Bank’s executive board; firm favourite choice confirmed
FSA’s Bailey calls on banks to plan for eurozone break-up
Banks must prepare for the "disorderly departure of some countries from the eurozone", says Andrew Bailey
Sweden sets higher capital buffers for big banks
Swedish authorities say capital buffers of country’s largest banks will be raised to 10% of risk-weighted assets by 2013, swelling to 12% in 2015
How to make the most of forecasts: RBA’s Stevens
Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens says an element of judgement must be exercised when interpreting economic forecasts
ECB’s Praet highlights challenges in identifying asset-price bubbles
European Central Bank executive board member Peter Praet says detection of house price booms in advance is extremely difficult
Central Bank of Brazil paper addresses exchange rate puzzle in emerging market economies
Central Bank of Brazil study says contraction in monetary policy does not always lead to an appreciation in the domestic currency
RBNZ paper tests performance of house price forecasts
Reserve Bank of New Zealand tests the central bank’s forecasting model against a series of house price models
Ex-MPC member says BoE wrong to delay on QE
Former Bank of England external member Sushil Wadhwani disagrees with current rate-setter Martin Weale over when to provide additional stimulus to UK economy
Swaziland trains Revenue Authority cash collectors
Officers shown security features of banknotes introduced last year; participants travelled from all over the country to attend the training
Greek central bank issues government with ultimatum
Bank of Greece tells newly formed government that unless structural reforms are implemented on schedule, Greece risks being thrown out of the eurozone
ECB offers CSDs financial incentives for early T2S adoption
European Central Bank offers central securities depositories (CSDs) financial incentives to sign up to T2S early; governing council gives CSDs until the end of April to agree
National Bank of Hungary takes swipe at government
Central bank rejects cabinet selection of official to attend meetings on foreign currency loan problems in Hungary; sign of continued poor relationship
Banque de France outsources collateral management
French central bank agrees collateral management deal with Euroclear France; entire French banking community will use new system next year
Yields soar as Portugal is downgraded
Ten-year yield on Portuguese debt rises sharply as Fitch downgrades Portugal's credit rating to junk status, sparking renewed concerns over the sustainability of the sovereign
Carney discusses limitations of price-level targeting
Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney says adoption of price-level targets may not be beneficial in periods of turmoil
BoE’s Jenkins attacks banking lobby tactics
Bank of England Financial Policy Committee member Robert Jenkins says lobbyists' attempts to scupper banking reforms are dishonest and potentially damaging
Interest rate pass-through in Ghana protracted: IMF paper
Fund study finds lags in adjustment of wholesale market rates reduces the effectiveness of monetary policy conducted by the Bank of Ghana
Netherlands Bank paper highlights risk of excessive reliance on wholesale funding
Netherlands Bank study says multinational bank subsidiaries’ access to parent bank and wholesale funding can increase instability
Commission unveils contentious Eurobond proposals
European Commission unveils three options for Eurobonds in bid to restore stability in Europe; analysts say the measures are politically unviable and ineffective
Weak demand adds pressure on Bank of England
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee minutes shows all members voted to hold rates despite growing signs of declining demand from UK households
FOMC disagrees over monetary policy strategy
Federal Open Market Committee discusses alternative monetary policy strategies; committee disagrees over setting a “longer-run inflation goal”
Barbados calms public fears over 'counterfeit' banknotes
The Central Bank of Barbados reassures public that notes dated 2007 but bearing the signature of the current governor are genuine; statement in response to several queries
Delawari nominated as governor in Afghanistan
Afghan president Hamid Karzai proposes reappointment of Noorullah Delawari as governor of Bank of Afghanistan; last governor fled the country in fear of life
Asset shortages fuel price bubbles: IMF paper
Fund study says higher dependence on intangible capital and scarcity of high-yield assets creates asset-price bubbles