Central Banking
Fed's Olson on regulatory relief
In testimony on 'Regulatory relief' given on 21 June, Mark Olson of the Federal Reserve said that Congress should give the Federal Reserve more flexibility in setting reserve requirements and allow it to pay interest on balances held by depository…
BoE's King on the UK economy
In his Mansion House speech given on 22 June, Mervyn King of the Bank of England said there are both upside and downside risks to the outlook for UK inflation and policymakers will react promptly to whichever one materialises.
Regulators probe King speech leak
UK City regulators are investigating a sharp rise in futures trading a few hours ahead of Bank of England governor Mervyn King's speech to Bradford business leaders last week.
Top China economist calls for yuan appreciation
The Chinese government should actively move on its yuan exchange rate adjustment and appreciate the value of the currency by 5-10%, the Beijing Morning Post reported, citing Zhang Shuguang of the Chinese Academy of Social Science.
Greenspan warns against trade sanctions on China
Fed chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress in testimony on Thursday 23 June that no credible evidence exists that a move by China to revamp its exchange rate system would benefit US manufacturing or jobs.
Venezuela approves central bank reform law
Venezuelan lawmakers gave initial approval late Tuesday 21 June to a bill that would allow President Hugo Chavez to access up to $5 billion in reserves held by the central bank.
BOT denies spending $3-4bn on intervention
Bank of Thailand governor M.R. Pridiyathorn Devakula has conceded the central bank had intervened in the market to support the baht, but denied it had spent up to US$3-4 billion on intervention.
Discussion topics from Central Banking conference
Central Banking Publications hosted the first conference on Sovereign Asset and Debt Management on June 20-21, where over 20 speakers and 100 participants discussed trends and challenges in how countries manage their national balance sheet.
HKMA Quarterly Bulletin, June 2005
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has published the June 2005 issue of its Quarterly Bulletin. This issue contains the regular Half-Yearly Monetary and Financial Stability Report, which analyses recent external and domestic influences on Hong Kong's…
Bundesbank's Weber on the IMF
In closing remarks to the Joint IMF-Bundesbank Symposium given on 8 June, Axel Weber of the Deutsche Bundesbank said the IMF is an indispensable engine to improve the functioning and stability of the international monetary system.
Norway's Gjedrem on inflation targeting
In the speech 'Experiences with inflation targeting in Norway and other countries' given on 7 June, Svein Gjedrem of Norges Bank said in light of the experiences of different countries in the last 10-15 years, he is confident that flexible inflation…
Bank of England MPC Minutes, 8 & 9 June
The minutes from the 8 and 9 June meeting of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee published on Wednesday 22 June showed policy makers voted 7- 2 to keep interest rates unchanged this month, with Charles Bean and Marian Bell preferring a 0.25%…
ECB's Mersch says rates 'perfectly appropriate'
European Central Bank council member Yves Mersch said current interest rates are correct and that Italian calls to leave the euro would be a recipe for turmoil.
Eurozone hampered by lack of reform, not rates
Bank of France governor Christian Noyer said it is not the level of European Central Bank interest rates which is hampering eurozone growth, but rather it is the lack of structural reform.
Official says pressure on yuan won't bring change
China said it would not bow to political and speculative pressures to adjust the value of its currency, as US officials prepared to testify about the impact of China's fixed exchange rate on the US economy.
Euro dip not caused by EU rejection says Liebscher
The euro hasn't been affected by the crisis facing the European Union following the rejection of its proposed constitution, the governor of Austria's Central Bank said on Tuesday 21 June.
RBA to open emergency back-up office
The Reserve Bank of Australia is to get a $38 million back-up office complex in an outer Sydney suburb in case an emergency shuts its city head office.
Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey, Jun 2005
According to the firms surveyed for the Philadelphia Fed's Business Outlook Survey, June 2005, activity in the region's manufacturing sector weakened. This represents a decline from the moderate performance in May.
Bank of England Inflation Attitudes Survey, May 05
The Bank of England published its May 2005 Inflation Attitudes Survey on 20 June. 62% of respondents thought the inflation target was 'about right', the highest response rate for this question since the survey began.
Sveriges Riksbank Inflation Report, No. 2, 2005
Sweden's central bank, the Sveriges Riksbank, published its Second Inflation Report for 2005 on 21 June. The bank also announced it had decided to lower the repo rate from 2 per cent to 1.50 per cent. It said over the coming years UND1X inflation is…
Bundesbank's Weber on bank relationships
In the speech 'Bank relationships, financial integration, and monetary policy' given on 3 June, Axel Weber of the Deutsche Bundesbank said traditionally continental European financial systems have been dominated by bank relationships and credit financing.
Norway's Gjedrem on price stability
In the speech 'Price stability is not self-generating' given on 7 June, Svein Gjedrem of Norges Bank said one lesson to learn from the pitfalls of projecting or trend-extending economic variables is that it is very difficult to predict developments in…
IMF's Rato sees no rush on China yuan rate
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Rodrigo Rato said there is no need for China to make its currency convertible in a single step, although a more flexible yuan exchange rate would benefit China and other countries.
Malaysia's Zeti says inflation may nudge higher
Bank Negara Malaysia governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz was reported as saying on Tuesday that inflation could edge higher before tapering off later this year.