Central Banking
Prizes of Romanian central bank for 2001
ROMANIA - The Romanian Central Bank awarded on 31 July its prizes for the year 2001 to prominent figures in the economic and cultural life, who, through their scientific activity and their exceptional original works, made an important contribution and…
Chief to IMF office in Seoul
SOUTH KOREA - Paul Grunwald has been appointed as chief of the IMF office in Seoul, South Korea.
Politician says Koizumi agrees to ask BOJ to ease
JAPAN - Senior ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Hideyuki Aizawa said 1 August he and Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi agreed on the need to call for the Bank of Japan to ease further.
Progress in the Italian Banking System
SPEECH - The Governor of the Bank of Italy, Antonio Fazio, gave a speech on 3 July at the Italian Bankers' Association, Annual Meeting.
Speech by Svein Gjedrem of Norway's central bank
SPEECH - Speech by Central Bank of Norway Governor Svein Gjedrem at The Norwegian School of Management's Centre for Monetary Economics, 7 June.
Reflections on the Capital Goods Overhang
SPEECH - Remarks by Vice Chairman Roger W. Ferguson, Jr. before the Charlotte Economics Club, Charlotte, North Carolina, 18 July.
Central Bank of Tunisia - Annual Report 2000
ANNUAL REPORT - The Central Bank of Tunisia has published its Annual Report 2000.
Bank set to defy rate cut calls
UK - The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is widely expected to leave UK interest rates unchanged, despite a mixed picture for the British economy. The MPC began its monthly meeting today, 1 August, and is due to reveal its interest rate…
Hungarian bank says June deficit was misprint
HUNGARY - The National Bank of Hungary said on 1 August that the figure of EUR129.2 million for the June current account deficit, published in its quarterly inflation report 1 August, was a misprint.
Lebanon needs stable currency - Bank governor
LEBANON - A stable currency is needed for successful privatisation of state-owned companies, Banque du Liban (Central Bank of Lebanon) Governor Riad Salameh said on 30 July.
Armenia's top officials must declare their income
ARMENIA - The Armenian parliament has passed a law on the declaration of income and property by high-ranking officials, including the central bank, in Armenia.
New currency law not seen hurting Russian reserves
RUSSIA - The reduction in the amount of hard currency companies are obliged to exchange for roubles is not expected to have a major impact on the forex market nor prevent the central bank from building up it foreign currency reserves, dealers said on 31…
Manila c bank says no need to print more money
PHILIPPINES - There was no danger that monetary authorities would be forced to print more money to pay for government debts, Philippine central bank governor Rafael Buenaventura said on 31 July.
One-off costs of euro conversion estimated
ARTICLE - Research published today by Bannock Consulting shows that the total cost to UK business of converting to the euro are in the region of £10.3bn. Adding in the British Bankers Association estimate of £1 bn for the banking sector and Bannock…
Bank of Estonia - Annual Report 2000
ANNUAL REPORT - The Bank of Estonia has published its Annual Report for 2000.
Central Bank of Aruba - Annual Report 2000
ANNUAL REPORT - The Central Bank of Aruba has published its Annual Report 2000.
World Bank names two new country directors
US - The World Bank yesterday, 30 July, named two new country directors for Thailand and the Philippines.
Croatian payment settlement institute to be axed
CROATIA - The Croatian Payment Settlement Institute (ZAP) is to be abolished. Its functions will be divided between the central bank and commercial banks.
World Bank hires senior adviser to president
US - The World Bank has appointed Yukio Yoshimura as senior advisor to the president of the World Bank Group, James Wolfensohn.
Iran's central bank governor returned to office
IRAN - Iranian President Mohammad Khatami is scheduled to announce his second cabinet next week. Unofficial reports say that Khatami's next cabinet would not have serious changes in its political makeup, despite the change in characters.
Bank's legal might cited as grounds for appeal
UK - The fact that orders by the Bank of Thailand to financial institutions carry the equivalent weight of the law could serve as the basis for an appeal by the government in the Pin Chakkaphak extradition case.
Markets now more resistant to contagion - BIS head
INTERVIEW - Painstaking efforts to strengthen the international financial system are beginning to pay off with global markets resisting contagion from worries over Argentina's debt, according to the general manager of the Bank for International…
BIS International Banking Statistics - Q1 2001
EUROPE - The latest report by the Bank for International Settlements reveals a significant increase in lending to offshore centres in the Caribbean last year, which could be the result of increased hedge-fund activity.
Credit card growth blamed for spiralling debt
AUSTRALIA - The proliferation of credit cards has contributed to the bad management of personal debt, according to NRMA Building Society research.