Central Banking
Romania cb prepares for cap account liberalisation
The National Bank of Romania (BNR) is preparing to fully free the capital account by cutting the interest rates to the national currency leu deposits, the Capital weekly reported in its latest issue.
China appoint Yu Yongding to monetary policy board
The People's Bank of China has formally announced the appointment of Yu Yongding to its monetary policy committee to replace Li Yang as the only financial expert on the 13-member board, XFN-Asia reported.
Bank of Estonia - Annual Report 2003
The Bank of Estonia has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2003. The Baltic and Central European countries continued their brisk preparations for EU accession in 2003, the annual report says. Changes were made in tax systems and their…
Papademos at the Euro Banknote Design Exhibition
In a speech at the Opening of the Euro Banknote Design Exhibition given on 11 August, Lucas Papademos of the ECB said our common currency, the euro, whose creation has inspired the many attractive designs that are on display here, also stands for a…
Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey, Aug 2004
According to the firms surveyed for the Philadelphia Fed's Business Outlook Survey, August 2004, activity in the manufacturing sector continues to expand, but the pace of growth is slower than last month. However, participants' optimism for general…
NZ's Bollard on the property sector
In the speech 'What's happening in the property sector?' given on 2 September, Alan Bollard of the RBNZ reminded investors in property - rural, industrial and commercial, and residential - that property markets are inherently subject to cycles and market…
HKMA's Yam on century-old treasures
In a speech on 'Century-old Treasures' given on 2 September, Joseph Yam of the HKMA officiated at the launch of a special set of 'Hong Kong Currency' stamps. He said this is a particularly memorable occasion as it is the first time that Hong Kong has…
ECB press conference with questions and answers
At the ECB's press conference on Thursday 2 September, after holding eurozone interest rates unchanged, Jean-Claude Trichet said looking ahead, the conditions for a continuation of the recovery remain in place. We expect the economic recovery in the euro…
Buba's Stark sceptical on budget pledge
The Bundesbank believes the German public deficit, set to exceed EU limits for the third year in a row this year, will again be higher than the European Stability and Growth Pact allows next year, the financial daily Boersen-Zeitung reported.
Tuma defends CNB's independence
Czech National Bank Governor Zdenek Tuma on Wednesday 1 September defended the central bank's independence and rejected public comments by government officials arguing against a recent increase in interest rates.
PBOC says looser macro controls risk overheating
China's central bank governor, Zhou Xiaochuan, warned on Thursday 2 September in a statement on the People's Bank of China website that Beijing risks another round of economic overheating if it relaxes its macro administrative controls too early.
Fukui says Japan headed toward sustainable growth
Japan's economy is moving toward sustainable growth, Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui said on Thursday 2 September, pledging to maintain interest rates almost at zero while pumping money into the financial system.
Guynn on responding to global competitive pressure
In the speech 'Responding to global competitive pressure' given on 25 August Jack Guynn of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta said a recent dip in U.S. growth will likely prove temporary and should not alter a Federal Reserve plan to gradually raise…
RBNZ issues Statement of Intent
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has made public a Statement of Intent which outlines the Bank's plans for the period 2004 to 2007. This Statement of Intent has been prepared as a pilot document for an accountability obligation that will be required of…
Basel and the cyclical behaviour of bank capital
In this Bank of Canada Working Paper "The New Basel Capital Accord and the Cyclical Behaviour of Bank Capital" the authors conduct a counterfactual simulation of the proposed rules under the new Basel Capital Accord (Basel II).
African central bankers to meet
Bank of Uganda (BOU), German Technical Cooperation and the Swedish International Development Agency will host central bank executives from eastern and southern Africa during a conference aimed at forging a stable financial system.
UAE central bank's assets grow 9.5%
The UAE Central Bank has reported a 9.5 per cent increase in its assets during the first half of 2004 to Dh59.6 billion from Dh54.5 billion at the close last year.
IMF chief urges Argentina to resolve debt plan
The head of the International Monetary Fund urged Argentina on Tuesday to complete a $100 billion debt restructuring to sustain its recovery from economic crisis.
ECB may raise inflation forecast
The European Central Bank will revise slightly upward its 2004 and 2005 inflation forecasts in its new quarterly economic projections, central bank officials in the euro zone have told Reuters.
Russia may increase euro reserves
Russia's Central Bank may increase the euro component of its hard currency reserves, according to First Deputy Bank Chairman Alexei Ulyukayev.
BoE's Bean on global demographic change
In a speech 'Global demographic change: Some implications for central banks' given on 28 August, Charles Bean of the Bank of England said that although central banks will need to adapt to the changes brought about by an ageing population, for the most…
Fed's Greenspan on global demographic change
In a speech on 'Global demographic change' given on 27 August, Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve warned that an ageing U.S. population will strain public finances and hurt the economy without swift fixes to the safety net, such as raising the age for…
RBA's Macfarlane on Asia and Australian growth
In a speech on 'Geography, Resources or Institutions?' given on 25 August Ian Macfarlane of the RBA said the growth of Asia had contributed substantially to Australia's economic performance by helping reduce its isolation from world economic activity.
Russian central bank misses profit target
The Russian Central Bank missed its target for paying profit to the federal budget by 1.5 billion rubles in the first half of 2004, according to Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Shatalov on Tuesday 31 August.