Central Banking
Fed’s Yellen moots higher capital requirements for US banks
Janet Yellen says Basel III capital requirements may not be enough to end the too-big-to-fail problem; sizes up risk in the shadow-banking sector
IMF gives its verdict on Abenomics
Article IV statement gives ringing endorsement to QQE in Japan; says ‘spillovers' may have adverse near-term effect on neighbours, but will be offset by benefits of economic strength in Japan
St Louis Fed president launches new household financial stability research centre
James Bullard unveils new research centre that will focus on understanding links between household balance sheets, the overall performance of the US economy, and stability and upward mobility
New IMF paper finds fiscal consolidation boosts poor country growth in medium term
New VAR methodology leads researchers to conclude that fiscal consolidation hurts low-income countries less, and for a shorter period
EC recognises member state fears that FTT will hurt clearing
Tax liability could send CCPs "directly into insolvency" warn Czech officials in leaked document
Bank of Spain says slump reached ‘nadir’ in 2012
Annual report says recovery is in progress and should continue this year, but depends crucially on continued internal adjustments and the external setting
IMF paper proposes ‘more ambitious’ benchmark design
Working paper calls current benchmark designs ‘a legacy from history’; proposes own design to better represent actual wholesale funding costs
Protesters claim victory in ECB ‘blockade'
'Blockupy' movement targets central bank in anti-troika protest at austerity and democratic deficit
Euribor and Eonia submission panels to be split
European Banking Federation says banks will have to re-apply to be on each panel to ensure only those active in the markets participate; confirms banks may be forced to make submissions
Vietnam bad bank to stimulate growth in NPL-ridden banking sector
Vietnam central bank aims to put banking sector on a stable footing to support growth, by taking non-performing loans into state-run 'bad bank'
Volcker calls for end to inflation targets
Former Fed chairman tells New York audience the Fed must have the 'backbone' to exit QE before it is too late; says no need for a 'specific target or target zone' for inflation
Colombian governor warns Latin America could be hit hard by end of US QE
José Darío Uribe says past instances of monetary policy tightening in the US have caused crises in Latin America, but argues the region is better prepared this time around
Bank of Greece report optimistic that banking sector has ‘weathered the storm’
Monetary policy report for 2012-13 says confidence is gradually returning as banks make repairs, deficits are reduced and the stabilisation programme remains ‘well on track’
IMF paper dissects 'remarkably stable’ US inflation
Working paper examines factors behind favourable inflation performance in the US following the Great Recession, identifying three main causes
UK consumers drop cash in move towards mobile payments
British Retail Consortium says cash usage fell sharply last year, while research by VocaLink finds a strong uptake of mobile payments by consumers, though retail payments are still dominated by cash
ECB links ‘fragile’ financial stability to weak macroeconomy
Latest financial stability review says stress has ‘fallen markedly’ but vulnerabilities persist; ECB is most concerned about the impact of a further decline in bank profitability
RBNZ could ‘scale up’ forex intervention
Reserve Bank of New Zealand governor Graeme Wheeler signals willingness to sell more NZ dollars to combat currency appreciation; house price increases put central bank in policy ‘bind’
HKMA's Chan identifies inherent flaws in risk models
HKMA chief questions the use of financial models in risk management; argues the inability of models to account for irrationality is a major defect
Pressure builds on ECB as figures show no lending growth
OECD and the European Commission call on the European Central Bank to do more, as ECB figures show lending to the eurozone's productive economy continues to shrink
IMF warns China on rapid growth of social financing
Article IV consultation urges China to tighten prudential standards to rein in fast credit growth and rebalance economy away from investment; growth forecast trimmed again
BoJ’s Kuroda highlights 'increasing attention' on capital controls
Bank of Japan governor notes greater understanding of volatile capital flows as a channel for financial shock transmission; says banking union may be plagued by 'financial trilemma'
Bank of Mexico paper backs credit multiplier as amplification mechanism in DSGE
Working paper finds that credit multipliers do produce the amplification effects expected of them in a DSGE model and are not failing as some suggest
BoE deputies warn of slow policy coordination
Charlie Bean says eurozone periphery will weigh on demand for ‘some time’ as wage and price adjustments are needed; Tucker highlights trade-off between speed and balance in global regulation
Bank of Thailand rate cut aims to boost demand, not weaken baht
BoT makes clear its move was driven by disappointing economic growth, and not aimed at weakening the currency as the government would like