Central Banking
Binned Bundesbank secrets found by hairdresser
A Berlin-based hairdresser has found secret drawings for a Bundesbank vault in a bin in the centre of the German capital.
ECB keeps rates at 4%
The European Central Bank's (ECB) rate-setting Governing Council held its benchmark rate at 4%. The vote contrasts with decisions in recent days to cut rates from the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England.
South Africa bids to cool economy with 50bp rise
The South African Reserve Bank looked to dampen rampant inflation by hiking rates by half a percentage point for the third time since July.
Japanese lawmakers want $100 billion SWF
Japanese politicians from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party want to start a $100 billion sovereign wealth fund in order to improve returns on foreign exchange reserves.
Dollar's value linked to US productivity
A more productive United States workforce indirectly enhances the dollar's value, research published by the San Francisco Federal Reserve finds.
Eurozone needs to deal with global imbalances
The euro area must prepare for the orderly resolution of global imbalances, says Klaus Liebscher, the governor of the Austrian National Bank.
Japan must not be too late in hiking rates
The Bank of Japan needs to ensure that the pace of rate hikes in Japan is not too slow to risk the economy overheating, says Miyako Suda, a board member at the central bank.
National Bank of Serbia - Annual Report 2006
Core inflation fell below the National Bank of Serbia's 7% to 9% target range in 2006 to just 5.9%.
UK moves to encourage SWF investment
The British authorities on Tuesday launched a charm offensive in a bid to coax sovereign wealth funds to invest in UK business.
Australia holds rates at 6.75%
The Reserve Bank of Australia's rate-setting board voted on Wednesday to leave its benchmark cash rate at 6.75%, an 11-year high.
Nigeria combats inflation with 50bp hike
The Central Bank of Nigeria's rate-setting board voted on Tuesday to raise rates by half a percentage point to 9.5% in a bid to fight inflation.
Interest rates set to climb in China in 2008
The People's Bank of China said on Wednesday that it would step up its fight against inflation by implementing tighter monetary policy controls and utilising other monetary tools in 2008.
Thailand holds rates despite rising inflation
The Bank of Thailand's rate-setting board voted on Tuesday to keep its benchmark one-day repurchase rate at 3.25% in spite of signs that inflation is beginning to accelerate.
Economic outlook is worsening: Fed's Yellen
The United States economic growth outlook has weakened further since the Federal Reserve said that the risks to inflation and growth were balanced in late October, says Janet Yellen, the president of the San Francisco Federal Reserve.
New thinking on large current-account deficits
Governments should not necessarily intervene to reduce the large current-account deficits of the United States and many of the euro area economies, research published by the International Monetary Fund finds.
Bank of Korea - Annual Report 2006
Korean growth edged up to 5% in 2006, from 4.2% the previous year.
Domestic pressures behind Australian rate rise
Members of the Reserve Bank of Australia's rate-setting board voted to hike rates last month on domestic economic grounds, minutes of the 6 November meeting reveal.
Canada surprises markets with quarter-point cut
The Bank of Canada's rate-setting board voted unexpectedly on Tuesday to cut its benchmark overnight rate by 25 basis points to 4.25%.
We were transparent enough, say bankers
Investors were given all the information they required on structured products, a group of senior figures at top investment and commercial banks told UK lawmakers on Tuesday.
UK regulator warns on worsening liquidity risk
Mortgage lenders must protect themselves against the "very real prospect" that liquidity conditions will worsen in 2008, Clive Briault, the retail managing director at the Financial Services Authority (FSA), Britain's banking regulator, said on Tuesday.
De Gregorio set to become Chilean governor
Jose de Gregorio, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Chile will take over from Vittorio Corbio as governor of the central bank later this week, Michelle Bachelet, Chile's president, announced on Monday.
New Zealand to webcast monetary policy statements
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is set to webcast the news conference that will follow this Thursday's rate decision.
CEPR proposes solution for fiscal dilemma
Game theory and inflation targeting could provide the best solution to the problem of fiscal policy impacting monetary policy, a paper published by the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) finds.
Banks cannot shun subprime borrowers: Rosengren
Eric Rosengren, the president of the Boston Federal Reserve, stressed on Monday the importance of continued availability of loans to subprime borrowers.