Central Banking
Bosnia and Herzegovina - Annual Report 2006
Presenting the annual report for 2006 of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CBBH), Kemal Kozaric, the governor, said that 2006 had been another successful year for the central bank.
BIS Quarterly Review
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published the 'BIS Quarterly Review' on 3 September. It gave an overview of recent developments in financial markets, before turning in more detail to highlights from the latest BIS data on international…
BoE holds rates, aids markets
The Bank of England voted on Thursday to keep the base rate at 5.75% after offering the previous day to inject extra funds into the money markets next week if liquidity problems persist.
ECB holds rates, offers injection
The European Central Bank (ECB) decided Thursday to keep its benchmark rate at 4%, after promising extra liquidity to the markets Wednesday.
Ex-Fed governor Gramlich dies
Former Federal Reserve governor Edward Gramlich has died of leukemia. He was 68. Gramlich served the Fed from 1997 to 2005.
Bank of Canada holds rates
The Bank of Canada said on 5 September that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 4.5%. The operating band for the overnight rate is unchanged, and the bank rate remains 4.75%.
Credit crunch has "sown seeds of downturn"
Jon Moulton, a well-known private equity investor, said that the credit crunch had " sown the seeds of a major downturn," the Financial Times reported.
Fed's Beige Book published
"Outside of real estate, reports that the turmoil in financial markets had affected economic activity during the survey period were limited," the Fed said in its latest "Beige Book" on economic conditions, featuring reports from the 12 regional Fed…
MAS - Annual Report 2006-2007
Presenting the annual report for 2006-2007 of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Goh Chok Toy, the chairman of the central bank, said 2006 was a significant year for Singapore and MAS.
Globalisation's impact on UK inflation
The author of this paper uses the International Monetary Fund's new Global Economy Model (GEM) to estimate the importance of various factors, which are used to explain the differences in the trends in core inflation and relative prices in the UK, the…
Japanese deputy discusses housing
Kazumasa Iwata, a deputy governor of the Bank of Japan, discussed links between the housing market and monetary policy at a symposium sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City on 1 September.
OECD sings praises of central banks
Jean-Philippe Cotis, the chief economist of the OECD, had warm words for central banks Wednesday when he presented the organisation's interim assessment of the global economy in between the spring and autumn editions of the Economic Outlook.
Fed's Lacker "unconvinced" of need for cut
Jeffrey Lacker, the president of the Richmond Federal Reserve intimated that he was not yet convinced of the necessity for a cut in the Fed's overnight policy rate, and said that, although he would back a cut if necessary, he remained wary of inflation.
Israel launches same-day clearing system
The Bank of Israel launched its real-time gross settlement system (RTGS) for bank transfers on 3 September. This is part of the central bank's reforms of Israel's payment and clearing systems.
Australia keeps benchmark rate unchanged
As widely expected, the Reserve Bank of Australia left its overnight cash rate target unchanged on Wednesday at an 11-year high of 6.5%. The central bank had previously raised borrowing costs on 8 August, the first move since November last year.
Thailand encourages e-payment
The Bank of Thailand plans to reduce cash payments and cheque payments by promoting e-payment with consumers and the public and private sectors.
ECB rate setting analysed
This paper, published by the Institute for Monetary and Financial Stability, uses the ordered-probit technique and variables noted in the European Central Bank's (ECB's) Monthly Bulletin to investigate how the central bank sets rates.
Bank of Guyana - Annual Report 2006
Lawrence Williams, the governor of the central bank, said that, after recording a decline of 1.9% in 2005, Guyana's economy rebounded in 2006 to register real economic growth of 4.7%, exceeding the 4.3% target for the year.
Deputy discusses Australian reaction to turmoil
Ric Battellino, deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, spoke about the central bank's handling of the recent bout of market turmoil at the Retail Financial Services Forum on Central Bank Market Operations in Sydney on 28 August.
3rd Islamic banking conference in Karachi
The third international conference on Islamic Banking and Finance Risk Management, Regulation and Supervision will be held in Karachi during April 2008, according to an announcement by the State Bank of Pakistan.
Cost of UK borrowing hits ten-year high
Banks borrowing sterling over a three-month period yesterday found the cost at a near-ten-year high as the major UK financial institutions sought medium-term funding to help them survive the financial volatility in the credit markets.
EU's Almunia expects rates to tighten
Speaking at a conference organised by Nueva Economia, Joaquin Almunia, the EU economic and monetary affairs commissioner, intimated that he expects Eurozone interest rates to tighten further. He also warned that financial market volatility might carry…
Pakistan banking supervision move
The government of Pakistan is planning to take banking supervision away from the central bank and bring banks under the regulatory control of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) through new legislation, the 'Financial Market…
RBI profits soar
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recorded growth of 182% in gross total income to Rs 75,348 crore ($18.4 billion) during 2006-07 from Rs 26,320 crore last year on the back of the sale of State Bank of India (SBI) shares.