Central Banking
BoE economists mine tweets for early-warning indicator
Central bank put its work on ‘text mining’ and big data to work during Scottish independence referendum in an attempt to create an early-warning indicator for bank runs
Swedish regulators press government for clearer powers
Heads of Riksbank, FSA and National Debt Office call for government to speed up implementation of new legislation on macro-prudential powers, but minister says it could take until next year
Argentine central bank denies falsification as presidential challenger attacks governor
The conservative challenger in Argentina’s presidential election has attacked the central bank’s governor while the bank has denied newspaper charges of falsifying US dollar trading figure
New York Fed researchers shine light on process of giving policy advice
Economists including head of research explain the process of briefing William Dudley ahead of FOMC meetings
People: Wilson follows Harker to Philadelphia Fed; ESM promotes two
Patricia Wilson follows Joseph Harker to the Philadelphia Fed to take over as chief of staff; ESM promotes risk and economic analysis deputies to top jobs; and more
China should ‘rein in’ vulnerabilities, IMF warns
Economy faces challenge in balancing reform and growth, with IMF warning of growing risks in the financial system and need for further rebalancing
Iranian deputy points to economic turnaround since Rouhani took office
Deputy governor says central bank has managed to impose new discipline on the economy, but sees room for improvement in the broader Islamic world
HLA could incentivise systemic activity – Swiss Re
Swiss insurer's head of governmental affairs says crude measures might have unintended consequences for systemic risks
Iceland’s Guðmundsson sees role for IMF as arbiter of capital flows
Small open economies are being forced to take sub-optimal actions to defend themselves from capital flows, and while global ‘rules of the game’ are far off, IMF monitoring could be a first step
RBA’s Kent seeks to explain divergent labour and growth outcomes
Assistant governor says range of factors may have contributed to a unexpectedly strong performance of Australian unemployment, even as growth remains subdued
IMF presses for Greek debt relief as Eurogroup meets
Fund official says decision must be taken on debt relief before IMF will consider providing new funds; leaked document suggests ECB and Commission are concerned about sustainability
Serbian central bank resumes monetary easing
The National Bank of Serbia cut interest rates by 50bp in a bid to revive a fragile economy
Weidmann wary of monetary policy ‘being further co-opted’
Bundesbank president makes case for changes to institutional framework underpinning the monetary union, calling for discussion of ‘Maastricht plus’ and political union
FSB offers China advice on tackling shadow banking risks
Peer review team led by BoE’s Jon Cunliffe recommends establishing an inter-agency group to coordinate surveillance, among other measures designed to reduce shadow banking risks
Lithuanians pick World Bank to manage portion of assets
Lithuania’s central bank awards its first external asset management contract to the World Bank in policy shift that paves way for ‘bigger reliance’ on corporate bonds and global equities
Mexican board split on July rate decision
Minutes from the July 30 board meeting show three board members voted to hold the key rate at 3%, with one member favouring a 25bp hike and another absent
SNB reveals launch date for delayed banknote series
Roll-out of ninth banknote series to begin next year; new notes believed to include unique security features but central bank is being tight-lipped in the run up to the launch
Asian central banks opt for different strategies in wake of China devaluation
Philippines and Korea hold fire on interest rates as currencies plunge while Taiwan looks for way to ease under the radar
Public support works when big and well-aimed, study finds
Large-scale public sector support operations for distressed borrowers work best when they are large and have strong conditionality, according to DNB paper
Bank of Russia steps up withdrawal of banking licences
Russia’s central bank has increased the number of licenses it withdraws from banks and insurance companies, which one analyst attributes to widespread systemic problems
IMF paper finds standard risk metrics perform poorly with low financial depth
Authors find ‘excess credit’ is a better early warning indicator for financial instability than credit-to-GDP where countries have limited financial depth
Markets regain confidence after PBoC officials intervene
Yi Gang and Zhang Xiaohui step in to reassure markets, helping to reverse some of the renminbi’s fall; Asian currencies also slide and Bank Indonesia takes action
Sarb research updates forecasting model
Refinements to central bank’s semi-structural general equilibrium model aim to better reflect the South African economy over the inflation-targeting period
Eurozone inflation ‘may well have’ reached turning point
ECB governing council members suspect underlying inflation reached a turning point earlier this year, but feel it is too soon to say for certain, accounts from July meeting show