Central Banking
Fed's Bies - Gauging war impact may take some time
Fed board member Susan Bies said on Monday 31 March thatit was difficult to separate out the effect of war on the economy compared to other fundamental economic issues, Reuters reports. It could take a few months for a clear picture to emerge as to what…
SARB may block access to banking information
Governor of the SARB Tito Mboweni told South Africa's parliament on Friday that he may seek to prevent confidential banking information entering the public domain, reports Business World
Russian gold reserves may rise one-third in 2003
Russian central bank first deputy governor Oleg Vyugin said on Monday that the new oil price forecast could see the central bank increase its reserves by US$14bn during the year, according to a report by ITAR-TASS news agency.
Bank Negara Malaysia - Annual Report 2002
The Central Bank of Malaysia has published its Annual Report for the year ended 2002.
Richmond Fed's Broaddus: Economy will weather war
Richmond Fed president Alfred Broaddus has said economic recovery in the US will be strong enough to ride out the Iraq war. The economy should be "solid enough" to withstand current shocks, he said.
Callum McCarthy confirmed as FSA Chairman
UK Chancellor Gordon Brown today (1 April) announced that Callum McCarthy has been appointed as Chairman of the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
Jordanian c b approval needed over Iraqi funds
Jordan's central bank has told banks to secure its authorisation before allowing the withdrawal of funds from Iraqi accounts. AFP reports that the governor of the central bank of Jordan said the measures would help guarantee the security of the banking…
NIESR; euro 'would boost economic growth' in UK
Influential think tank, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research has said that UK entry to the euro would boost economic growth significantly over the long term, according to a report in the Financial Times. Main benefits would be the…
BoE's George on Islamic banking
In a speech to the Islamic Home Finance Seminar Sir Edward George of the Bank of England said Islamic banks could set up in the UK offering a wide variety of financial products compliant with Muslim law. He also said progress made on developing Sharia…
ECB's Constancio: Little room to move on rates
Bank of Portugal chief Vitor Constancio said the war in Iraq poses the threat of global recession and that little room for manoeuvre exists in the way of interest rate easing at the moment.
Greenspan on community economic development
In a speech on 'Community economic development' Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve said in the quest to do good for our society's most vulnerable populations and communities we must embrace the challenge to develop objective and quantifiable standards…
Complexities of Basle 2
An article in the Financial Times reports that the Basle bank capital accord is being stifled by complexity. Though central bankers and supervisors have worked hard on Basle 2, a US decision to apply the standard to a mere handful of banks has revived a…
Mexico tightens monetary policy
Mexico's central bank tightened monetary policy on Friday March 28, according to a report in the Financial Times. The bank does not change interest rates but uses a mechanism known as the "corto" which limits the amount of liquidity available to the…
Call for further anti-deflation measures from BoJ
Heizo Takenaka, Japan's chief financial regulator, has called for further anti-deflation steps to be taken at the Bank of Japan's next meeting in early April. According to Asahi Shimbun, Takenaka said on Sunday 30 march that increasing the volume of…
Finance Minister on Bank of France reorganisation
The French finance minister, Francis Mer, has given assurance that the expected reorganisation at the Bank of France will not involve redundancies, according to Le Figaro.
ECB: no requests for Duisenberg to stay
Contrary to some reports the ECB has said it has no knowledge of any official request to Wim Duisenberg for him to stay on as president, according to Reuters.
Another term as governor for RBA's Macfarlane?
The Australian Treasurer, Peter Costello, speaking on Sunday 30 March intensified speculation that Ian Macfarlane would be given a second seven-year term as governor of the RBA saying he has obviously discharged his duties 'very finely', according to a…
New chairman of UK FSA
Callum McCarthy, a former executive at Barclays Bank and currently chief executive of the UK's energy industry regulator Ofgem, is expected to be named as the next chairman of the UK's Financial Services Authority, reports the Financial Times. The report…
Fed's Olson on the Regulatory Relief Act
In a speech on 'Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2003' Mark Olson of the Federal Reserve endorsed legislation that would make it easier for banks to open branches in other states. The ban on opening new branches gives savings associations an…
Chicago Fed National Activity Index, February 2003
CFNAI Shows Economic Growth Slowed in February - In February, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) fell below zero again after briefly turning positive in January. The monthly index came in at -0.62 in February, following January's upward…
RBA Payments System Board Annual Report 2002
The Reserve Bank of Australia issued its Payments System Board Annual Report on 28 March. The Report said the Board has embarked on a major reform of card networks that is intended to allow market mechanisms to operate more effectively in the Australian…
Reserve Bank of New Zealand Bulletin, March 03
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand published its quarterly Bulletin for March 2003 on 28 March. The latest issue contains five articles covering a broad range of central banking issues. Articles include 'The output gap and its role in monetary policy…
Should central banks buy wider range of assets?
An article in the Financial Times on March 28 asks the question many have recently posed. Have central banks run out of ammunition? The fire power in question is of course interest rates as a monetary policy tool. Rates have hit the floor in Japan and…
Battle over Brazil central bank's autonomy
A battle may develop over the central bank of Brazil's moves towards independence, according to a report by United Press International. The party of President Lula is trying to push through a bill in support of central bank autonomy. But about half the…