Central Banking
IMF's Carstens on transparency and accountability
In the speech 'The role of transparency and accountability for economic development in resource-rich countries' given on 27 January Agustin Carstens of the IMF said transparency and accountability in resource-rich countries are critical for ensuring that…
Spain's Caruana on Basel II: back to the future
In the speech 'Basel II: back to the future' given on 4 February Jaime Caruana of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and Bank of Spain highlights the anticipatory and forward-looking elements of Basel II. The real value of Basel II, he says, will…
Atlanta Fed's Guynn says FOMC language may change
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Jack Guynn said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that the bank may soon need to remove the word "measured" from its policy statement regarding interest-rate increases.
IMF analysing options on gold
The International Monetary Fund is currently preparing a report on the possibility of selling or revaluing a portion of its gold reserves and the IMF staff analysis of the options will be eagerly awaited.
ECB's Liebscher says rates need not increase
European Central Bank council member Klaus Liebscher said in an interview he sees no reason to increase interest rates as a "weak" labour market helps bring down inflation.
EU's Juncker supports US comments on deficit
Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker said in a television interview Wednesday that U.S. pledges to reduce its budget deficit are a step in the right direction.
Flexibility in liquidity target says BOJ's Suda
Speaking on Wednesday Bank of Japan Policy Board member Miyako Suda said the central bank may need to be more flexible regarding its liquidity target when cash demand is low in the market.
Roubini and Setser predict end of Bretton Woods 2
Nouriel Roubini and Brad Setser have released a new paper prophesising the end of the so-called "Bretton Woods 2" system within the next two years.
Cost of UK's fight to stay in ERM
Britain's Treasury has released internal papers giving various estimates of the cost of intervention before and during "Black Wednesday" in 1992
Is the IMF's mandate still relevant?
In an article published on 1 February IMF Managing Director Rodrigo de Rato said that although the world has changed dramatically since the Bretton Woods Agreement of 1944, the IMF's role remains as vital as ever.
BoF's Noyer says French GDP forecast plausible
In an interview on Monday 7 February, Bank of France governor Christian Noyer said the government's 2.5 per cent forecast for GDP growth in 2005 is plausible, although economists have suggested the figure is too optimistic.
Fed's Bies: Behind the scenes at the FOMC
In a speech 'Behind the scenes at the FOMC: How the Federal Reserve determines monetary policy' given on 7 February, Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve said interest rate policy may need to be more accommodative than expected to ensure the economy…
Deutsche Bundesbank Monthly Report, December 2004
The Deutsche Bundesbank's December 2004 Monthly Report said growth in the German economy faltered in the third quarter of 2004.
Spain's Caruana on the implementation of Basel II
In a speech given on 18 January to the European Parliament Jaime Caruana of the Bank of Spain outlines the reasons why Basel II matters so much and how it will support the continued safety and soundness of the banking system.
ECB's TARGET2 Progress Report
The ECB published a progress report on TARGET2 on 8 February. The report considers three main issues - service, pricing and migration to TARGET2. These issues were decided upon by the Governing Council on 16 December 2004.
Russia's euro reserves increase
The euro now accounts for one third of Russia's foreign currency reserves, a top official from Russia's central bank said on Tuesday 8 February.
Iraq to earn income on reserves via NY Fed account
The central bank of Iraq is to be allowed to open a deposit with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York which will earn it millions of dollars in vital interest income, US Treasury Under Secretary John Taylor said on Tuesday 8 February.
ADB chief urges flexible exchange rates for China
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday 7 February, the head of the Asian Development Bank urged China to adopt a more flexible currency exchange system, saying that removing the yuan's peg to the US dollar would be good for both Beijing and its neighbours.
Takenaka calls for money supply increase
Economic and fiscal policy minister Heizo Takenaka said the Bank of Japan and the government should work together to increase money supply growth to end more than six years of deflation.
SNB's Blattner on the new banknotes project
In a speech on Switzerland's new banknotes project given on 2 February, Niklaus Blattner of the Swiss National Bank said this step has become necessary because of the development of new technologies and the typically high demands on the design quality of…
Fed's Greenspan on Adam Smith
In a speech titled 'Adam Smith' given on 6 February Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve said that 18th-century philosopher Adam Smith was "a towering contributor to the development of the modern world."
RBA Statement on Monetary Policy, February 2005
The Reserve Bank of Australia published its February 2005 Statement on Monetary Policy on 7 February. After a strong year in 2004 the world economy retains momentum, with growth continuing to be led by the United States and China, the report says.
IMF paper on currency crises
This IMF Working Paper tests the implications of a number of theoretical models that attempt to highlight the dynamics behind currency crises. The empirical findings provide support for the view that a deterioration in economic fundamentals and the…
Book review - Samuel Brittan's 'Against the flow'
Samuel Brittan has been one of the Financial Times' leading columnists for nearly thirty years. This recently published book collects together the most important of his writings from the last three decades.