Central Banking
IMF to appoint Jonathan Palmer to new CIO role
Rodrigo de Rato, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), announced Wednesday 26 July his intention to appoint Jonathan Palmer as Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the IMF and Associate Director of the Fund's Technology and General…
Mishkin to be sworn in after Aug 8 Fed meeting
Federal Reserve Governor-designate Frederic Mishkin will not take office in time to participate in the next Fed policy-setting meeting on 8 August, a Fed spokesman told Reuters on Thursday 27 July.
Cen bank reserve shifts not all that meets the eye
This article published Thursday 27 July by Reuters says a close look at IMF reserve data, and the dollar's moves in recent years, suggests central banks may not be undertaking conventional reserve diversification.
Central banks need not divine bubbles
According to this article by Samuel Brittan of the Financial Times, published Friday 28 July, the question of whether central bankers should target asset prices will not go away.
Interview: National Bank of Poland's Balcerowicz
In an interview with the Dziennik daily, published Friday 28 July, National Bank of Poland governor Leszek Balcerowicz said the central bank cannot be independent only as long as it is obedient.
China official mulls freer hand for central bank
According to this article from the Financial Times, published Friday 28 July, a People's Bank of China official has suggested policy making could be more effective if the central bank had more autonomy.
PBOC research head says yuan band wide enough
There is no need to widen the yuan-dollar trading band at the present time, the head of the research department within the People's Bank of China said in an interview.
Kohn says Fed policy lags may be shorter
The communication of interest-rate moves during the Fed's latest tightening campaign may mean their impact on the economy will be felt more quickly than otherwise, a top Fed official said in a letter released on Friday 28 July.
RBNZ leaves OCR unchanged at 7.25 per cent
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced Thursday 27 July that the Official Cash Rate (OCR) will remain unchanged at 7.25 per cent. Reserve bank governor Alan Bollard said: "Recent economic developments have been broadly in line with our June Monetary…
Federal Reserve Board - Beige Book, July 2006
The Federal Reserve published its July 2006 Beige Book survey on 26 July. The U.S. economy grew overall during June through mid-July but some individual regions reported slowing activity, and there were scattered reports of rising prices, the report said.
Chicago Fed National Activity Index, June 2006
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for June 2006, published 26 July, was +0.34 in June, up from -0.14 in May. Three of the four broad categories of indicators made positive contributions to the index.
Central Bank of Seychelles - Annual Report 2005
According to the Central Bank of Seychelles Annual Report 2005, the year 2005 began on a downbeat note with economic prospects seriously dampened by the nationwide damage to productive capacity and infrastructure caused by the tsunami and flash floods of…
Japan - Effects of the quantitative easing policy
The Bank of Japan Working Paper "Effects of the quantitative easing policy: A survey of empirical analyses" surveys the empirical analyses that examine the effects of the Bank of Japan (BOJ)'s quantitative easing policy (QEP).
Central banking model for neither gods nor monkeys
According to this article by Paul de Grauwe, published Wednesday 26 July by the Financial Times, the first serious attempt to put central banking on a sound scientific basis failed miserably.
Gentle Ben - Inside the head of the Fed
This recent article published by Time says that after a few early missteps, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke is hitting his stride, but the economy may not cooperate.
Report says US offers China IMF role deal
The US is quietly offering the prospect that it will help China secure more power in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) if Beijing lets the yuan appreciate further against the dollar, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Minutes suggest smaller rate cuts in Brazil
Brazil's central bank said Thursday 27 July it sees a "low probability" of inflationary pressures in the coming quarters, but interest rate cuts may need to be smaller to avoid a pickup in inflation.
BoJ 'very careful' about drastic rate hike-Yosano
Japan's Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Kaoru Yosano said Thursday 27 July the Bank of Japan is "very careful" about implementing credit tightening too drastically.
PBOC's Yu to stay in post until replaced - report
Yu Yongding, whose term is due to end this month, will remain in his post until a replacement is found, an official in the news department of the People's Bank of China told Dow Jones on Thursday 27 July.
IMF warns Poland over super-regulator
The International Monetary Fund has warned Poland that plans for a unified financial services supervisory agency could expose the system to political interference, the Financial Times reported.
Comment: Transparency in EU bond markets
As a rule, transparency in government activities, in regulation and in financial markets is encouraged and regarded as a positive thing. But when it comes to the way governments sell bonds, the authors of a recent study suggest that increasing…
National Bank of Rwanda - Annual Report 2003
According to the National Bank of Rwanda's Annual Report 2003, Rwanda's economy in 2003 developed in an unfavourable international economic environment linked mainly to the poor performance of capital markets and the rise in energy prices, partly a…
Central Bank of the Philippines - Annual Report 05
According to the Central Bank of the Philippines Annual Report 2005, the Philippine economy expanded by 5.1 percent in 2005, buoyed by the continued growth of the services and industry sectors on the production side and sustained consumer expenditures on…
IMF paper on global imbalances
The International Monetary Fund Working Paper "How Might a Disorderly Resolution of Global Imbalances Affect Global Wealth?" describes the impact on global wealth of an unanticipated shock to U.S. financial markets.