Central Banking
Austria's Tumpel-Gugerell tipped for ECB post
A report said the Austrian government is expected to officially submit Austrian central bank vice-governor Gertrude Tumpel-Gugerell's name in the next few days as the country's candidate to succeed Finland's Sirkka Hamalainen on the ECB's Executive Board.
No such thing as a free (or cheap) lunch at IMF
The International Monetary Fund will stop subsidising its cafeteria from 1 May. Part of the problem was World Bank staff flocking in from across the road for cheap nourishment.
CentralBankNet Monday Special Feature
SPECIAL FEATURE - In this weeks special feature CentralBankNet looks at the recent court case which the BIS lost requiring them to pay more money to their small shareholders. The episode labels the BIS as "mean" and bought continued criticism of the BIS…
Knight on financial system stability
SPEECH - In the speech Bank of Canada Senior Deputy Governor Malcolm Knight talks about the importance of financial system stability and the close link between the latter and good economic performance.
Zambia's Fundanga on combating money laundering
SPEECH - In the paper 'The role of the banking sector in combating money laundering' Caleb Fundanga of the Bank of Zambia said at the Bank of Zambia, our challenge is to recognise that technology and globalisation has given money launderers an…
Interest rate warning on euro entry
Bank of England MPC member Kate Barker has called into question the economic case for joining the euro citing "difficulties in the European policy background and problems with the UK exchange rate".
ECB plans for reform may run into problems
Plans to reform the European Central Bank, including cutting the voting power of smaller European Union member states, are expected to run into trouble this week. Some Finnish MPs claim Paavo Lipponen, their prime minister, assured them that the Bank of…
Japan central bank keeps dismal view on economy
Japan's central bank kept its bleak view of the economy unchanged for the fourth-straight month in a report Monday that said growth was hampered by weak domestic consumption and volatile exports.
Indonesia names 3 possibles for central bank chief
Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri has submitted to parliament three experienced central bankers as choices to replace central bank governor Sjahril Sabirin when his term expires in May.
Chavez calls for fixed interest rates
President Hugo Chavez said Sunday interest rates should be fixed to reverse Venezuela's deteriorating economic situation, just days after he imposed exchange controls and price controls for the same reason.
German economy stagnant, says Bundesbank
Germany appeared to move a step closer to a new recession Monday when the Bundesbank estimated that the euro zone's biggest economy contracted slightly in the fourth quarter of last year.
Duisenberg may have to extend stay at ECB
There have been calls for European Central Bank (ECB) president Wim Duisenberg to extend his stay at the head of the bank due to questions over the fate of his successor.
European Parliament Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - ECB - steady as she goes despite uncertainty, says Wim Duisenberg, 17 February.
Is Japan ready to reflate?
ARTICLE - When the Japanese prime minister says he wants a "deflation fighter" at the Bank of Japan, he may not be referring to monetary policy at all. This article says the Japanese consensus view - one shared by Mr Koizumi and Masaru Hayami, the BoJ's…
Duisenberg testimony at the European Parliament
SPEECH - In testimony before the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament Wim Duisenberg of the European Central Bank said said Monday that the ECB's already accommodative monetary policy will help support an expected…
Bies on financial markets and corporate governance
SPEECH - In the speech 'Financial Markets and Corporate Governance in the United States and Other Countries' Susan Bies of the Federal Reserve said as the United States goes forward, even if transparency through corporate financial reports improves,…
Stevens on the economic outlook
SPEECH - In the speech 'The Economic Outlook' Glenn Stevens of the Reserve Bank of Australia said Australia still faces a difficult environment abroad. Uncertainty is high internationally at present, and confidence subdued. It is to our advantage,…
Bank of Japan Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - Announcement of the Monetary Policy Meeting decisions (unchanged), 14 February.
Venezuela's Zavala - No for ex trading until March
According to Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) Director Domingo Maza Zavala, foreign exchange trading will continue to be suspended until the end of February to allow government and Central Bank officials enough time to implement the controls.
Russian gold reserves reach another record high
Russia's gold and foreign exchange reserves totalled 50.2bn dollars as of 7 February, compared with 49.3bn as of 31 January, First Deputy Chairman of the Russian Central Bank Oleg Vyugin told journalists.
Prodi urges more flexibility on Pact
European Commission president, Mr Romani Prodi, has called for more flexible rules governing the 12-nation euro zone, amid warnings that war on Iraq could throw the region's economy further off course. Prodi famously referred to the Pact as 'stupid'…
Poland to join euro zone in 2007- finance minister
Finance Minister Grzegorz Kolodko reiterated that Poland could meet Maastricht convergence criteria in 2005 and join the euro zone in 2007.
Noyer mentioned as potential ECB candidate
CentralBankNet learns that former European Central Bank vice president Christian Noyer may be in line to take over from Wim Duisenberg as president of the ECB in July if Jean-Claude Trichet is unable to take up the position.
Bank of France strike begins with 62% not working
At least 62 per cent of the 8,000 branch employees of France's central bank, the Banque de France, stopped work Thursday in protest against plans to trim the bank's branch network.