Central Banking
Eurosystem reveals rules on national asset holdings
ECB publishes an agreement governing the size of ‘non-monetary policy holdings’ at national central banks in the eurozone; aggregate net financial assets totalled €490 billion at end-2015
BIS data sheds light on complex shift in global liquidity
There are signs global liquidity might be going into reverse for emerging markets; digging into the data shows situation is more complicated than aggregate figures imply
Research considers why macroeconomic announcements impact asset prices
A working paper published by the ECB weighs the ‘intrinsic value’ of macroeconomic news announcements in the US, finding timing is crucial to maintaining it
Ukraine governor reveals move towards inflation targeting
Ukraine’s central bank is already setting policy with an eye on an inflation target while it awaits a formal mandate, its governor says; banking ‘cleanup’ is ‘near the finish line’
BoJ report spells out reasons for dissent on negative rate
Board members had wide range of concerns over cutting rate below zero, including communication challenges, risk of financial instability and danger of triggering a global race to the bottom
Caruana marks out dangerous nexus between debt, oil and the US dollar
BIS chief points to interactions of dollar borrowing by emerging markets, US rate hikes and the oil price, as latest data suggests world may be balanced on the edge of a drop in global liquidity
Illiquidity, concentrated bond holding raise volatility – paper
The volatility of financial market price shocks in the Bund and taper tantrums was aggravated by illiquidity and concentrated holdings of bonds, working paper finds
Italian banking episode shows supervision working well, Nouy says
Handling of problems with Italian banks shows regulators have the right systems in place, Danièle Nouy says; there might be skeletons, but they are ‘not in the cupboard’
IMF staff urge caution on Kyrgyz de-dollarisation plans
Central bank plans to support borrowers with foreign currency exposures, but IMF team warns this must be backed by other policies; action also needed on central bank independence, it says
Weaker shareholder liability need not mean more risk-taking, Riksbank paper finds
Study of abolition of double liability in Canada finds bank riskiness did not increase; authors suggest weaker incentives for shareholders were offset by closer scrutiny by depositors
ECB’s Angeloni wants analysis of macro-prudential measures ‘at some stage’
Supervisory board member says analysis will be important in the future, partly because it will help identify ‘scope’ of potential ECB actions
Clock ticking on Georgian governor appointment
Georgian central bank governor's term expires on February 26, but it is unclear who will hold the post moving forwards; vice governors could also change later in the year
Riksbank pushes for FSA to gain stronger tools amid delays
Amortisation requirement looks set to enter force in June, but more powerful tools for Swedish FSA may be delayed; government says negotiations take time, and it fears triggering crisis
Draghi says ‘risk of side effects’ will not stand in ECB’s way
Mario Draghi says the European Central Bank will not be deterred by the ‘unintended consequences’ of its asset-purchase programme, ahead of a key March governing council decision
Lagarde looking for ways to bolster global safety net
IMF head wants to address ‘fragmented and asymmetric’ safety net that has emerged since the 2008 financial crisis, noting the fund will consider the issue over the next few months
Buch enters reservation on common deposit guarantees
Bundesbank deputy says safeguards must be put in place before a eurozone deposit guarantee scheme can be established, even as Draghi welcomes progress on the scheme
GDP lag overcome with nowcasting, Sarb paper says
Nowcasting will assist policy-makers understand path of real economic activity, authors say, finding model outperforms others significantly
NBIM reports clarify demands for high ethical standards
Norwegian SWF expects firms it invests in to address a broad range of long-term risks, including the need to meet high ethical standards; publishes expectations document on human rights
Carney says rate hold was ‘easy decision’ after 9-0 vote
‘Super’ Thursday becomes ‘subdued’ Thursday as BoE revises growth, inflation and unemployment forecasts down; policy on hold
People: ECB names new budget and finance head; long-serving Fed director to retire
Roberto Schiavi will become ECB’s director general budget and finance in March; Fed’s Louise Roseman to retire as director of reserve bank operations and payment systems; and more
Market discipline ‘key pillar’ of RBNZ toolkit, article says
Article in latest Reserve Bank of New Zealand bulletin insists new requirements have not come at the expense of market discipline – they are both ‘key pillars’ of regulatory toolkit
Irish central bank’s consumer protection plan focuses on firms’ culture
Central Bank of Ireland unveils priorities for protecting consumers of financial services in 2016; focal points include firms’ culture, with more on-site inspections promised
Bailey to move to FCA by July regardless of EU vote
BoE deputy governor gives deadline for move to the FCA, where he will become chief executive; questioned on the risks surrounding the UK referendum
Low income households ‘highly’ vulnerable to changes in interest rates, paper shows
Banks and regulators require the use of ‘richer’ information to understand consumer debt, a Central Bank of Chile paper finds; new model would help evaluate economic policies