Central Banking
Global imbalances still on the rise, IMF paper shows
Though efforts have been made to cut current account imbalances since the financial crisis, ‘stock imbalances' continue to grow, find Milesi-Ferretti and Lane
Widening fix window won't solve forex benchmark issues, industry tells FSB
Broad support for reforms proposed by Debelle- and Fisher-led working group, but industry also makes a variety of alternative proposals
Hungarian ruling party condemns ECB ‘pressure' on behalf of foreign banks
ECB concerned that new rules requiring banks to compensate Hungarian borrowers over foreign exchange loans could hit parent banks and threaten European financial stability
Timor-Leste SWF hits 40% equities allocation
Timor-Leste petroleum fund quarterly report shows returns still exactly in line with benchmark; equity allocation hits 40%
Rajan urges ‘direct cash transfers' to poor people
RBI governor says transfer system would give the poor ‘choice and respect' and break the links between poor public service, patronage and corruption
Lithuania takes delivery of first euro coins
1,740 tonnes of coins must be minted ahead of currency switchover on January 1; delivery is supervised by police under special agreement signed in May
National Bank of Ukraine warns of FX trade restrictions
Ukraine's central bank has been forced to intervene to smooth currency volatility, and warns ‘administrative measures' may follow; rules on reserves have been relaxed, however
IMF paper finds ‘robust' relationship between exchange rate flexibility and external adjustment
Using a data set of bilateral exchange rate regimes, study revives Milton Friedman's argument that a flexible rate facilitates external adjustment
US and Europe more vital for Australian trade than thought
Australian goods being exported to western markets indirectly via east Asia, skewing statistics, according to paper using ‘complementary' estimates of value-added trade
Malta denies granting refuge to Libyan governor
Central Bank of Libya confirmed Saddek Elkaber has sought sanctuary in Malta ‘for months', Libyan news site reports; minister claims governor ‘runs the bank' from island
Ghana requests IMF bailout to bridge fiscal deficit
IMF deputy director will send a team to Accra early next month to initiate discussions; Ghanaian cedi is world's worst performer so far this year
IMF paper finds ‘puzzling' result from capital controls
Controls to stop capital inflows deflect them to other countries, the paper finds, but are rarely met with copycat measures in recipient countries
Stanley Fischer upbeat on US productivity potential
Fed vice-chair says productivity cycles are ‘extremely difficult to predict'; emphasises possibility that productivity will continue to rise in line with historical average
Norway governor sees greater role for central bank in new 'Nibor' framework
Øystein Olsen sees greater powers for Norges Bank over the interbank rate framework, which has 'obvious weaknesses' and should be overhauled 'as soon as possible'
Angola SWF joins London-based international forum
Angolan sovereign wealth fund joins London-based International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds; Kazakh fund granted associate membership
ECB publishes ‘manual' explaining eurozone banks' comprehensive assessment
Publication of the manual ‘demonstrates ECB's commitment to transparency' on how it is conducting the ‘rigorous' assessment of the eurozone's biggest banks
Emerging market governors favour Fed policy normalisation, says MAS’ Menon
MAS head Ravi Menon says most emerging market central banks want to see the Fed normalise policy, China is at an inflection point and Singapore could lose out from new OTC derivatives rules
Fed survey says 40% of US households still struggling to make ends meet
A third of respondents said they were ‘somewhat or much worse off' than before the financial crisis, while a fifth are spending more than they earn
New York Fed study finds Puerto Rico emigration has not led to 'brain drain'
Island's population has been falling for a decade due to emigration, but share of college graduates has increased as low-skilled workers are leaving in greater numbers
Central Bank of Hungary buys $1.8m vacation home
Rural ‘castle hotel' boasts swimming pool, beer pavilion and a bowling alley; will be used for ‘recreation purposes' by staff and create local jobs, bank says
Time for clock synchronisation – regulators
Global regulators assess the need for a central reference clock to aid investigations into alleged abuse of financial markets
Minneapolis Fed paper challenges New Keynesian ‘liquidity trap'
New model challenges dominant view of post-crisis monetary policy, claim Minneapolis Fed economists
Bank of Japan expects inflation to remain short of target for ‘some time'
BoJ policy board votes to continue expanding monetary base by ¥60-70 trillion annually; effects of recent decline in demand ‘expected to wane gradually'
Mexico’s Carstens hails Fed’s communication on tapering
Augustin Carstens says Fed has ‘gone out of its way’ to spell out timing and dangers of adjustment; calls on Europe and Japan to ‘depend less on monetary policy’