Central Banking
IMF paper refines measurement of monetary policy transmission
Working paper breaks monetary policy into endogenous and exogenous changes, finding this is an important distinction for explaining variations in policy transmission across banks
Japan delays cross-border rules amid US and European uncertainty
Equivalence and substituted compliance issues must be resolved quickly, or financial markets will be affected, says Kono at Japan FSA
Bullard says inflation must pick up before asset purchases can be slowed
St Louis Fed president says future of QE should depend on inflation developments; suggests FOMC is more likely to taper than increase asset purchases
Bank of Japan ¥2tn intervention fails to halt Nikkei slump
BoJ moves to calm bond volatility as Bernanke comments and China data spook Japanese markets
Fed minutes hint at end to era of expansion
A number of participants would like to adjust asset purchases downwards as early as next month, pending positive economic data
Bernanke remains dovish in face of stability threats
Fed chairman says low interest rates are providing significant benefits to growth and heading off ‘incipient’ deflationary pressures; hints QE could be reduced soon, but only if data allow
Israeli committee split over rate cut, minutes reveal
Governor Stanley Fischer used casting vote to keep May rate cut to 25bp after half the monetary committee called for a sharper reaction to tackle the appreciating shekel
IMF says forward guidance could reinvigorate UK monetary policy
IMF statement on UK economy suggests Bank of England provide assurances that rates will stay low until economic recovery 'reaches full momentum', to combat diminishing impact of monetary policy
BIS paper finds higher US bank taxes may have only moved stability risk
Research into higher taxes imposed on wholesale funding by US banks finds they did reduce reliance on short-term borrowing, but says risks may simply have been pushed into foreign banks
National Bank of Hungary optimistic on SME lending
Hungarian central bank releases latest financial stability report; suggests new funding-for-growth scheme will lead to a recovery in lending this year
Norges bank governor justifies taking ‘a few years’ to increase inflation
Øystein Olsen says it is appropriate for central bank to tolerate below-target inflation; does not want to risk the build-up of financial imbalances
Central Bank of Ireland stresses importance of long-term bank profitability
Irish macro-financial review highlights need for banks to support the real economy with credit at sustainable rates; increases in bank profitability also necessary for long-term sustainability
Riksbank deputy appointments boost easing hopes
Martin Flodén and Cecilia Skingsley selected as new deputies; seen to shift the executive board in a more ‘dovish’ direction and increase the chances of a rate cut
Kuroda says JGB volatility not hitting the real economy
Bank of Japan governor says central bank may take action to address spike in Japanese government bond yields but does not expect any significant impact on real economy yet
Dudley calls for new plan to avoid market overreaction when Fed heads for the exit
New York Fed president pours cold water on suggestions of an imminent exit from QE, but says the FOMC needs to rethink its ‘stale’ plan on how an exit will ultimately be accomplished
Carney hails Canada's 'massive and disciplined' crisis response
Bank of Canada governor, soon to replace Mervyn King at the Bank of England, says stimulus will be withdrawn in Canada 'appropriately as threats diminish'
Maldives annual report finds inflation back in check after 2011 devaluation
Monetary Authority of the Maldives annual economic review describes tough year for the tourism-dependent country, but the dollar-pegged currency is appreciating to the upper end of its band
UK inflation fall takes markets by surprise
Analysts say bigger-than-expected drop in price rises gives Bank of England more room for manoeuvre on monetary policy, but no change is still expected at the next MPC meeting
Fed’s Bullard recommends QE for ECB's next move
St Louis Fed president and FOMC voter says quantitative easing has worked in the US and Japan, and could be made to work in Europe on a GDP-weighted basis
BoE opens up its macro models in push for transparency
Bank of England publishes details of its main macroeconomic models as part of drive for transparency prompted by Stockton Review; models to be adapted and developed to eradicate errors
German banks adopt Step2 for domestic payments
EBA Clearing reveals seven German banks will use the Step2 payments system to process and clear their domestic payments, converting in the second half of 2013
Riksbank risk survey reveals rate-rise fears
Participants in Sweden’s fixed-income and forex markets raise concerns over interest rates rising faster abroad than at home; unemployment data fuels call for a rate cut in the near term
RBA minutes show rate cut decision made in spite of home loans growth
Australia's monetary policy decision-makers judged it was time to use ‘some of the scope' they have to loosen monetary policy, given the steady inflation outlook
RBI executive director sees emerging threats to Indian banking
Deepak Mohanty warns of problems on the horizon, including deteriorating asset quality, high interest margins and the need to build capital buffers