Central Banking
BoE's Gieve: market signals mixed
The fortunes of the financial markets in the New Year have been mixed, said Sir John Gieve, the deputy governor of the Bank of England.
Hard-to-value assets halt investment - Fed's Kohn
The large quantity of hard-to-value assets remaining on financial institutions' balance sheets is acting as a barrier to private investment, said Donald Kohn, the vice-chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Government should not give in to fear
The government should not capitulate when the public shows an excessive fear towards risk, says a new paper from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
ECB cuts, Trichet signals more could come
The European Central Bank (ECB) has chopped a half point off its key rate and indicated rates could reach a fresh low in the months to come. The news followed confirmation that eurozone inflation sank below the central bank's target in December.
Fed's Beige Book reports weakening activity
The latest edition of the Federal Reserve's Beige Book, a guide to business conditions in the 12 districts overseen by the regional Feds, indicates that economic activity continued to weaken in December across the country.
G30 proposes reforms to punish biggest banks
The biggest financial institutions must be subjected to more stringent regulation and central banks must take a greater role in safeguarding stability, the Group of Thirty, an influential consultative group on economics, has warned.
We should have warned Europe more: IMF's Belka
The head of the International Monetary Fund's European department has acknowledged the Fund failed to adequately warn European states of the risks from the fallout of the financial crisis.
Recovery to begin in 2009 - Philadelphia's Plosser
President of the Philadelphia Fed Charles Plosser sees the economy starting to slowly recover in the second half of 2009.
Philippines' Tetangco: 2009 will be critical
Philippines ended 2008 fairly unharmed from the global financial turmoil but 2009 is critical, said Amando Tetangco, the governor of the Central Bank of the Philippines.
Innovation impacts money demand
Technological developments affect average money holding and interest elasticity of money demand, research from the Bank of Italy notes.
Rouble at fresh low as devaluation continues apace
The rouble slumped to a record low against the greenback on Thursday as the country's central bank stepped up its devaluation of the currency.
Denmark slashes on back of ECB move
The National Bank of Denmark lopped three-quarters of a percentage point of its key rate on Thursday in response to the European Central Bank's (ECB) move.
Anti-Fed senator behind Geithner nomination block
Jim Bunning, a Republican politician who last year labelled the Federal Reserve "a leading cause of the mess we're in", is one of two senators attempting to block Tim Geithner becoming Treasury Secretary on Friday.
Academics advocate discretionary ECB supervision
European Union member states should be allowed to choose whether or not they want to be regulated by the European Central Bank (ECB), academics say.
Lacker pans Fed for risky "fiscal" action
A regional Federal Reserve president has warned that the recent expansion of the Fed's balance sheet is fraught with risks.
Thailand slashes rates, cites demand and exports
The Bank of Thailand surprised markets on Wednesday by slashing rates for the second month in a row on further signs of a slowdown.
Philadelphia Fed promotes five vice presidents
The Philadelphia Federal Reserve has promoted one of its staff to the role of executive vice president, two to the role of senior vice president, and two to vice presidential positions.
Banking system stability measures - a new model
A paper from the International Monetary Fund, co-authored by Charles Goodhart, a former member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, presents a new method for estimating the impact of stability measures on the banking system.
Government spending ineffective
Government spending shocks have a small effect on GDP and lead to crowding-out effects on private sector investment, a paper from the European Central Bank posits.
Israel's Fischer: banking system still strong
In contrast to the health of the global banking system, Israel's lenders remain strong, Stanley Fischer, the governor of the Bank of Israel, said.
Financial intermediation affects labour shares
Financial intermediation plays an important role in the determination of labour shares in the national income, research from the Bank of Canada finds.
Bernanke revisits idea of toxic asset purchases
Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, on Tuesday mooted several ways in which American authorities could remove toxic assets from banks' balance sheets. He also said that more capital injections and guarantees may be required to ensure…
Ex-MPC members offer solutions to crunch
A financial stability committee, a derivatives exchange and a pan-EU regulator were among the ideas suggested to stave off future credit crises by an influential group of British-based economists on Tuesday.
Mexico's Ortiz to replace Roth as BIS chair
Guillermo Ortiz, the governor of the Bank of Mexico, is to succeed Jean-Pierre Roth, the head of the Swiss National Bank, as the chairman of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). He becomes the first governor from an emerging-market economy to…