Central Banking
Russia finds a third of banks could not survive another crisis
Stress test results show 321 banks would fall below capital minimum in another financial crisis; licences would be revoked
Bernanke heeds unemployment effects on housing market
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke says high unemployment rates were increasingly forcing households to fall behind on mortgage payments
UK must press ahead with fiscal cuts: panel
Panellists at Fathom Monetary Policy Forum present gloomy view on UK economy; former Bank deputy questions wisdom of cutbacks, but says it’s too late to turn back
Draghi calls for EU law to govern bail-in powers
Financial Stability Board chairman Mario Draghi says measures to enable bondholders to receive haircuts before the collapse of a financial institution should be placed in European Union legislation
Barney Frank in bid to revoke regional Fed presidents’ FOMC votes
Former chair of House Financial Services Committee says regional Fed presidents shouldn’t vote because they are appointed by business, not Congress
Wellink clarifies position on Greece restructuring
Media reports suggest Netherlands Bank president Nout Wellink is open to a debt restructuring for Greece; central bank spokesperson denies suggestions, says president’s views remain in line with European Central Bank
SNB turns profit in first quarter following steep loss in 2010
First quarter profits likely to come as relief after criticism that greeted $20.7 billion loss in 2010
Bank of Thailand Inflation Report – (April 2011)
Bank of Thailand’s April 2011 Inflation Report says Monetary Policy Committee raised rates to curb build up in commodity price pressures
BIS paper highlights change in bank-lending channel
Bank for International Settlements study shows shift in drivers of bank-lending channel in European and United States pre-crisis
Turkey’s Yilmaz explains motivation behind policy strategy
Central Bank of Turkey governor Durmuş Yilmaz says combination of liquidity management facilities, reserve requirements and policy rates will help achieve price and financial stability in Turkey
HKMA’s Pang warns of hot pockets in emerging Asia
Hong Kong Monetary Authority deputy chief executive Peter Pang highlights policymakers’ concerns of growing capital inflows in emerging markets
Weidmann takes over as Bundesbank chief
Jens Weidmann takes over as head of the Deutsche Bundesbank; signals support for rate “normalisation”
Bulgaria ordered capital hikes, report released
Bulgarian National Bank publishes 2010 Annual Report; asked three banks to increase capital
IMF urges emerging markets to tighten monetary policy
IMF Regional Economic Outlook for Asia report says emerging market central banks must tighten monetary policy to stave off inflation; acknowledges limitations of monetary tools
Bank Negara Malaysia sets up shop in Beijing
Bank Negara Malaysia signs agreement with People’s Bank of China to open representative office in Beijing
SEC proposes amendments to remove references to credit ratings in rules
SEC makes latest changes to bring legislation into line with Dodd-Frank; proposes numerous changes to the Exchange Act
Central banks continue to purchase gold
World Gold Council releases first Gold Investment Digest of 2011; shows central banks are still net buyers of gold in Q1
Finland’s central bank unveils first volume of official history
Bank of Finland publishes first of two-part history; describes how governor fought to stabilise national economy during the Great Depression
Economy on road to recovery: Sri Lanka’s Ranasinghe
Central Bank of Sri Lanka chief economist KD Ranasinghe says GDP growth in Sri Lanka more than doubled during 2010
Euro area SME external financing improves: ECB survey
European Central Bank survey on small and medium-sized enterprises shows moderate improvement in access to external finance in euro area
IMF paper builds US, euro area financial conditions indexes
Fund paper creates financial conditions indexes to forecast economic activity in the US and euro area
IT outsourcing services aid recovery: Central Bank of Philippines survey
Central Bank of the Philippines survey finds growth in IT-enabled services picked up in 2009
Bernanke holds first press conference
Federal Reserve chairman reiterates US commitment to strong dollar, voices concern over shift in outlook for US debt
China to broaden cross-border renminbi trade settlement
People’s Bank of China director of monetary policy Li Bo says central bank plans to expand pilot for cross-border renminbi trade to more regions on the mainland