Central Banking
Philadelphia Fed’s Harker forecasts only two hikes in 2018
Despite stronger growth and lower unemployment, inflation remains too weak
Denmark selects Oberthur Fiduciaire as banknote supplier
The agreement will last four years, and the first notes printed by the firm are set to enter circulation in 2020
Polish central bank uses YouTube comedy to warn of digital currency dangers
Film runs up over 500,000 views, but some local media criticise lack of transparency
Central banks ‘walking a thin line’, BIS economists warn
Luiz Awazu Pereira da Silva and Jochen Schanz note central banks have little room to respond aggressively to surprises
Explicit wording sought to jolt market expectations, says Carney
Bank of England governor says committee was unusually explicit ahead of November hike to encourage markets to wake up to its signals
Basel Committee weighs opportunities and risks linked to fintech
Regulators should adapt their policies to new risks while not stifling innovation
UK figures reveal 1.47 million people out of work
While the employment rate has continued to rise, the rate of unemployment has increased by the sharpest level in almost five years
Singapore seeks infrastructure investment boost
MAS and ministry of trade and industry to set up an infrastructure office to encourage local and international firms to build Asian infrastructure
Latvian governor attacks bribery ‘lies’
Prime Minister says governor may be target of smear, but banker widens accusations
Swedish inflation falls in January as Riksbank considers first hike
The CPI at fixed interest rates fell to 1.7% in January, compared with forecasts of 1.9%
UK’s Treasury Committee publishes contentious report on RBS
Report had been protected under UK confidentiality laws, but parliamentarians chose to publish it regardless; report highlights “widespread inappropriate treatment” of customers
Carney extols value of clarity of thought and communication
Bank of England governor delivers speech on virtues of a good leader
RBI under pressure from alleged banking fraud scandal
Alleged fraudulent transactions uncovered at Punjab National Bank undermine the firm’s capital position; RBI launches investigation into “increasing incidence of frauds”
Post-crisis fiscal cuts boosted solvency without harming liquidity – DNB paper
Dutch paper uses yield spreads to analyse impact of consolidation announcements on investor perception of government solvency
CPMI flags up need for better cross-border payment options
Current infrastructure offers slow and costly transactions that are hard to track, says Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures
People: Nominations to BoJ; Moghalu mulls presidential bid
Kuroda nominated for fresh term alongside two deputies; former CBN deputy considers bid for Nigerian presidency; Riksbank deputy reappointed
Ireland withdraws Lane’s nomination for ECB vice president
Spain’s de Guindos likely to take up role, but Irish may suggest Lane for the chief economist post
Sarb triumphs over public protector in latest ruling
Mkhwebane ordered to pay opponents’ legal costs as judge rules investigation was “unacceptable”; Absa Bank vindicated in latest ruling
BIS paper uses ‘shadow rate’ to study market expectations
Fan Dora Xia and Jing Cynthia Wu find they can estimate expectations over a longer horizon by using a shadow rate term structure model
ECB orders Latvia to shutter bank over laundering allegations
US Treasury alleges the bank laundered billions of dollars and had links to North Korea
Latvian police detain central bank governor on corruption charges
Rimšēvičs says charges are totally unfounded
Reserve managers made financial crisis worse for central banks – paper
Synchronised withdrawal of funds from commercial banks made central bank stabilisation efforts “more difficult”, IMF paper says
Algo trading harmed market during Swiss franc crash – paper
Algorithmic traders tended to “consume liquidity and reinforce the price disruption”
Three men arrested for fraud at Kenya’s central bank
Men charged with 11 counts of fraud attempted to present $6.25 million in counterfeit Treasury bills