Central Banking
Bank of Mozambique - annual report
Among the highlights of 2006, Mozambique's central bank we began the process of establishing agencies of throughout the country in order to ensure the supply of banknotes and coins closer to commercial banks.
BoE's governor blames banks for £5 note shortage
Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, criticised the short supply of "fivers" in his annual Mansion House speech on 20 June.
Credit mis-pricing in India creates risks
Mis-pricing of credit risks by domestic bankers can both create systemic vulnerability and have implications for small borrowers, the deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Rakesh Mohan, noted yesterday.
Kuwaiti institutions under fire from Parliament
Members of parliament in Kuwait launched a fierce attack on the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) and the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), saying that some of their officials were deriving personal benefit from their decisions and investments.
Angola can end this year with 10% inflation: cb
The National Bank of Angola, the country's central bank, has stated its confidence that Angola can end this year with an inflation rate of 10%, while acknowledging that structural difficulties in the economy may get in the way of achieving this…
Provinces press Canadian cb not to raise rates
Ontario was in the forefront of pressure from the Canadian provinces on Bank of Canada governor David Dodge not to raise interest rates.
Polish bank head outvoted over rate rise
The National Bank of Poland's president was on the losing side as the rate-setting committee voted 6-4 for the first rise in interest rate in three years in April, a report released today showed.
US treasury points to dangers of sovereign wealth
Clay Lowery, acting under-secretary for international affairs at the US treasury, has asked the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to compile best-practice guidelines for sovereign wealth funds.
Reaction to King's loss of MPC vote
Less of a threat to the governor's credibility and more a sign of what is to come, was the conclusion observers drew from Mervyn King being in the minority at the MPC meeting in June.
Spain's Ordonez: annual address
Speaking at the Bank of Spain's annual meeting, Miguel Fernandez Ordonez, the governor, took stock of the Spanish economy in 2006 its 13th continuous year of expansion.
Minutes of Polish monetary policy meeting
The minutes set out the committee's reasons for rejecting a quarter-point rate hike at the meeting three weeks ago, in favour maintaining the cost of borrowing at 4.25%.
National Bank of Hungary - Annual Report 2006
"In terms of inflation, 2006 was an unfavourable year," is the ominous opening to the National Bank of Hungary's assessment of 2006.
Dr Zeti on developing Islamic markets
Speaking at the Sukuk summit in London, the governor of Bank Negara Malaysia's discussed the development of Islamic capital markets in Malaysia.
Taiwan raises rates again
Taiwan's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate - the discount rate on 10-day loans to banks - by a quarter percentage point to 3.125% today.
China cool on IMF policy shift
The People's Bank of China reacted coolly to the change in the International Monetary Fund's currency monitoring policies (see our news item, 19 June).
BoJ to continue gradual rate hikes
The minutes of the May 16-17 board meeting of the Bank of Japan confirmed the view of members that the central bank should continue to raise interest rates gradually, in line with growth and inflation prospects.
Russian cb retains hold on banking regulation
The Central Bank of the Russia will hold on to its position as sole regulator of the banking sector, in the teeth of a determined effort by the State Duma to remove its power to revoke banking licences.
Bank of Papua New Guinea warns on spending
The Bank of Papua New Guinea issued a warning to the government against increased spending during the general elections, in the face of unfavourable external developments.
ECB's Bini Smaghi on euro entry
In this speech ECB executive board member, Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, argues that there is "evidence that the euro may be setting in motion some endogenous process, moving the euro area progressively closer to the concept of an optimum currency area."
IMF authors on impact of remittances
In this article on remittances, published in the IMF's quaterly Finance & Development, the authors suggest that the "bottom line is that remittances cannot be a substitute for a sustained, domestically engineered development effort."
Gold and inflation - BoC paper
In this Bank of Canada Working Paper, the authors find that the gold price "contains significant information for future inflation for several countries, especially for those that have adopted formal inflation targets."
Del Cueto nominated as Mexican deputy governor
The Mexican president, Felipe Calderon, has proposed Roberto del Cueto as the deputy governor of the country's central bank for a seven-year term on 20 June.
Options open on Canadian securities regulator
The Canadian government says it will consider an alternative structure for securities regulation if it is favoured by most provincial authorities.
Riksbank's Monetary Policy Report
Published the day Sweden's central bank raised rates, the report sets out the Riksbank's thinking behind the rise and its assessment that that the repo rate will need to be around 4% at the end of the year