Central Banking
Comment: Central banks scrutinize staff costs
How do central banks compare on staff costs? Central Banking Publications has compiled some figures for a group of countries (mainly OECD) using central banks' annual reports.
Fazio faces strike ultimatum
The union representing the majority of staff at the Bank of Italy has threatened to call a strike unless Antonio Fazio, the central bank's governor, resigns over the Antonveneta affair.
Filipino rates unmoved despite inflation threat
The Philippines central bank held interest rates steady at its August monetary policy meeting, despite inflation which is expected to be above-target in 2005 and 2006.
Brazil looks to strengthen AML regime
A bill has been presented to the Brazilian Congress which would bolster anti money laundering rules and give the central bank more control over transactions.
Sweden leaves interest rate unchanged
The Swedish Riksbank kept the repo rate unchanged at 1.5% at its meeting on 23 August. CPI inflation remains low at 0.3% in the year to July, but it is expected to return to the target level of 2% over the next two years.
SARB annual report
In remarking upon "another successful year for the South African Reserve Bank", Tito Mboweni, the governor, painted a rosy picture of the current state of the country's economy in delivering the SARB's 2005 annual report.
Nigeria in record forex sale
The Central Bank of Nigeria offered $500 million to banks in the foreign exchange market on 23 August, in its largest ever sale of foreign exchange.
China legislates to protect foreign CB assets
The Chinese government is considering legislation which would exempt the assets of foreign central banks from judicial enforcement, according to the China Daily.
Mboweni downplays loan-to-Zimbabwe stories
Tito Mboweni, governor of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), yesterday told journalists that the size of the loan to the Zimbabwean government that South Africa was considering was "nowhere near" the US$1 billion mark previously reported in the press.
Inflation still below target in Israel
The Bank of Israel's inflation report for the first half of 2005 shows inflation below the lower limit of the target range, despite reductions in interest rates at the beginning of the year.
Bank of England to cut financial stability staff
The Bank of England is planning to restructure the division which monitors financial stability, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph. The move could see the elimination of about 20 of the 150 jobs in the department.
Comment: The Benefits of Joining the EMU
What is the gain for new European Union member states of joining the Euro currency area so soon? This is the question asked by Federico Ravenna in a recent ECB working paper*. The author argues that the decision to become part of the monetary union is…
The FSA sharpens its claws
The UK Financial Services Authority has signed a new agreement with the City of London police, which enhances its ability to pursue corporate criminals.
Europe's unstable currency union?
John Nugee writes on how a "one size fits all" interest rate policy in the Eurozone can exacerbate divergence between economies.
Iraq's first Article IV for 25 years
The IMF has issued its first Article IV report on Iraq in 25 years. It reports that economic activity in Iraq has grown significantly in 2004, but that inflation has also been higher than expected at 37% for the year to June, compared with estimates of…
Bank of Italy slaps down investigation story
The Bank of Italy issued its second official statement since the transcripts of Governor Fazio's conversations were leaked to the media; this time, a one-line response to an article in the Corriere della Serra, an Italian daily.
RBI eyes Saturday mornings off
The Reserve Bank of India is considering a proposal to change its working hours, by scrapping weekend work and moving to a five-day working week.
Fukui positive on economy, inflation
In a statement before a parliamentary committee on August 2, the governor of the Bank of Japan, Toshihiko Fukui, spoke of the country's improving economic situation and how the central bank's policies were adapting.
Comment: A controversial Central Banking feature
About two weeks after its publication, the current issue of Central Banking has suddenly been receiving wall-to-wall coverage in some sections of the UK media. But what was intended as a sober, objective and balanced appraisal of some of the problems of…
National Bank of Ukraine berates banks
The National Bank of Ukraine has issued a strongly worded warning against to domestic banks engaging in "improper conduct" in foreign exchange markets.
Zimbabwe teeters on the edge of Fund exit
Zimbabwe's deteriorating economy means it faces the risk of expulsion from the IMF, as a team from the Fund arrived on August 22 ahead of the September meeting at which a decision will be made.
Hungary continues to cut rates
The National Bank of Hungary cut its key interest rate on 22 August for the seventh time in 2005, from 6.75% to 6.25%. The 50 basis point cut was the latest in a cycle of decreasing rates which began in November 2003, and was larger than markets were…
Privatisation plans fall short - Serb central bank
The National Bank of Serbia warned the government against reneging on its IMF commitments, in a press release issued on August 19 which criticised the government's progress in privatising the oil industry.
Basel II may feed volatility
Despite recognising that the new Basel accord is "widely viewed as a much needed effort to deal with the shortcoming of the current system", a recent working paper by the Bank of England (BoE) raises new concerns about how the accord may exacerbate…