Central Banking
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
BoK holds policy following RMB drop
Won bounces back from four-year low as Korean central bank keeps rates on hold following Chinese devaluation
Academic takes over at Bosnian central bank
The governing board of Bosnia’s central bank chose board member and economist Senad Softić to serve as the new governor
Greek memo reveals commitments necessary to access bailout funds
Leaked document shows string of ‘prior actions’ government must complete before it can access up to €86 billion of euro funds
ECB paper finds fiscal targets are useful for forecasting
Ex-ante fiscal targets can convey useful information to forecasters despite the possibility of bias, researchers find
RBA’s Lowe weighs impact of wealth redistribution
Growth in land and house prices has raised and redistributed wealth in Australia, with implications for monetary policy and financial stability
Central Banking poll respondents back 'Grexit'
In a narrow majority 87 out of 155 readers say Greece should adopt a new national currency; asked about a variety of monetary systems, most backed a free-floating regime
Labour markets need good training policies, NY Fed president says
Federal Reserve of New York President William Dudley says monetary policy can help labour markets recover but that good training and placement policies are key to workforce development
IMF offers PBoC cautious approval as renminbi slide continues
Fund urges China to aim for free float in next few years; PBoC insists there is 'no basis' for prolonged slide in currency as yuan falls for a second day
Bank of Russia presses ahead with rating agency plans
Russian central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina says banking sector is ‘safe’ and economy will soon have its own financial ratings agency and electronic payment system
UK regulators spare Co-op Bank £120m fine
Bank of England and FCA ‘censure’ the troubled bank for multiple failures including not being open with regulators, but drop a £120 million fine on financial stability grounds
PBoC opens renminbi up to market forces
Latest move towards liberalisation appears to be aimed at meeting criteria for inclusion in SDR basket, but also provides stimulus to flagging economy
Change to broken benchmarks years away, say industry commentators
After the FCA produced a review criticising banks for not learning the lessons of Libor and forex, observers predict no major benchmark reform until efforts co-ordinated with industry
RBI paper explores challenges in public debt management
Research identifies a ‘narrow investor base’ as one hurdle and considers how to encourage greater participation from retail investors in the market for government securities
Lockhart says Fed liftoff is ‘close’
Atlanta Fed president highlights ‘cumulative evidence’ of economic recovery and says he is willing to sanction the first rate increase in the face of ‘mixed data’
Sarb governor airs concerns over inflation expectations
Lesetja Kganyago says the five-year inflation expectations of analysts, business people and trade unionists are ‘uncomfortably close’ to top end of inflation target
Icelandic paper looks for early-warning signals across past crises
Working paper identifies six clusters of financial crises in the country since 1875; finds macroeconomic variables give a ‘more robust warning signal’ than financial alternatives
CLS develops cleared FX settlement service with LCH.Clearnet
Designed specifically for central counterparties and cleared FX products, the service aims to minimise risk in the industry
Uganda raises rates again to tackle inflation risks
Bank of Uganda hikes its policy rate to head off inflationary pressures but analyst warns the move will be ineffective unless overnight rates on the interbank market respond