Central Banking
Solans on Eurosystem's role in financial markets
In a speech on 'The role of the Eurosystem in financial markets' Eugenio Domingo Solans of the European Central Bank said the job of a central banker is to make sure that the economic party is sustainable in the long term. I should like to toast this…
Kohler proposes Takatoshi Kato as new IMF deputy
IMF Managing Director Horst Kohler proposed the appointment of Takatoshi Kato as Deputy Managing Director on 9 October. Kohler said: "Mr. Kato is no stranger to the workings of the Fund having spent a large part of his career in high level positions…
Gramlich: Update on the Predatory Lending Issue
In his speech 'An Update on the Predatory Lending Issue' Edward Gramlich of the Federal Reserve said the effect of local laws aimed at stopping predatory lending - high-cost home loans to unsophisticated borrowers with spotty credit - was still unclear. …
Monetary policy in a changing environment
This was the theme of a series of papers presented at the Autumn Central Bank Economists' Meeting held at the BIS in Basel on 14-15 October 2002. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss challenges that central banks have faced in the current…
More secure, colourful $20 note makes its debut
"After months of seeing them roll off of the presses, I am honored to spend the first new $20 bill in my hometown of Washington, D.C.," said James Brent, the chief of the office of currency production in the U.S., on 9 October.
Mboweni against Africa's single currency proposal
SARB governor Tito Mboweni has said he is against the idea of the rand being adopted as Africa's single currency when the African Monetary Union is established, according to a report by SABC News. Mboweni said it would be much better to start afresh,…
Japan shows quantitative easing works- Fed's Poole
St Louis Fed president William Poole said in the latest edition of the Regional Economist publication, reported by Reuters, that "Japan showed us that a central bank has more than one tool to work with", although many thought Japan had run out of…
Central bankers debate Basel II delay in Madrid
The central bankers and bank supervisors charged with creating a new regime for bank capital were due to meet in Madrid on Friday 10 October to decide whether to postpone the implementation of the rules, according to the Financial Times. The issue was to…
Bank of Japan eases monetary policy
The Bank of Japan voted to ease monetary policy slightly on Friday 10 October. according to a report by CNN Money. In an unexpected move the BoJ raised the ceiling of its account balance target by two trillion yen ( $18.33 billion ) to a range of 27…
Zimbabwe withdraws travellers' cheques
The Zimbabwean government has ordered the withdrawal of its travellers' cheques, according to Business Day, barely two months after they were introduced to remedy the country's cash shortage. A senior central bank official said on Thursday 9 October that…
ECB shake-up in response to staff discontent
The European Central Bank is to reshuffle its management in response to claims that the eurozone central bank is becoming too bureaucratic, the Financial Times reports. Feelings inside the bank's Eurotower headquarters in Frankfurt have been running high…
Nigeria threat to sue UK over seized £3m
The Nigerian government has called on the UK to return £3m ($5m) it says was stolen from the Nigerian central bank, the Financial Times reports. The matter concerns three suitcases of cash seized at Heathrow airport and kept by the UK Treasury, as it was…
Interview with Iraq's central bank governor
In an interview on Friday 10 October, published by Reuters, Iraq's central bank governor Sinan al-Shibibi said that donors should not be deterred from giving money by differences between the US and World Bank on how much aid Iraq can put to good use. …
ECB says euro rise not a threat to growth
ECB governing council member Matti Vanhala said on Thursday 9 October that the euro's strength was not "a significant hindrance" to eurozone growth and the dollar's weakness would help to "fix global imbalances", according to the Financial Times…
Crunch meeting for Caruana - Special Feature
CentralBanknet's Monday special feature focuses on the Basel Committee's current crunch meeting in Madrid and the key issues for Jamie Caruana's chairmanship.
Fed's Bies on the Current State of the Economy
In her speech 'Comments on the Current State of the Economy' given on 8 October, Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve said recent indicators suggest the pace of economic activity has picked up, the banking system is healthy, corporate financial…
ECB Monthly Bulletin, October 2003
The European Central Bank published its October 2003 Monthly Bulletin on 9 October. The report said for the near future, risks to the main scenario of a gradual recovery appear to be broadly balanced. However, some risks to the sustainability of economic…
Krueger speech to African central bank governors
In a speech at a luncheon for African Central Bank Governors given on 23 September Anne Krueger of the IMF said that achieving macroeconomic stability is a prerequisite for durable growth. It is not, of course, enough. From my contacts with African…
BoE holds UK interest rates steady at 3.5 pct
As most analysts predicted, the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged for the third month running on Thursday 9 October at 3.5 per cent, Reuters reported.
Bulgarian Parliament elects new central bank chief
Ivan Iskrov was elected governor of the National Bank of Bulgaria on Thursday 9 October after Parliament approved the appointment by 140 votes to 50 with 20 abstentions, according to a report by Bulgarian News Network
Swiss National Bank calls for deregulated economy
In his debut speech, reported by the Financial Times, the Swiss National Bank's board member for financial markets, Philipp Hildebrand, called for broad deregulation of the domestic economy to tackle unemployment and protect the country's long-term…
RBA credit card reforms: Visa/Mastercard to appeal
Visa and Mastercard said on Thursday 9 October that they would appeal against last month's Federal Court ruling which upheld credit card reforms by the Reserve Bank of Australia, according to a report by Dow Jones. Visa said that the RBA regulations give…
Uzbek currency to become convertible, 15 Oct
Uzbekistan's government has announced that the currency will become convertible from 15 October, Interfax reports. An IMF mission ascertained that the government and the central bank have fully implemented all measures agreed upon under a joint plan of…
ECB hits out at France and Germany
The European Central Bank called for "complete compliance" with the EU's stability and growth pact in its monthly report released on Thursday 9 October, according to Expatica. The ECB said the pact was vital to success of the single European currency,…