Speech
Sweden's Nyberg on household debt burden
Speaking at a breakfast meeting in Malmo on Friday 11 February Sveriges Riksbank Deputy Governor Lars Nyberg said households currently have on average debts amounting to 125 per cent of their annual income, which is almost as much as the figure…
IMF's Carstens on transparency and accountability
In the speech 'The role of transparency and accountability for economic development in resource-rich countries' given on 27 January Agustin Carstens of the IMF said transparency and accountability in resource-rich countries are critical for ensuring that…
Spain's Caruana on Basel II: back to the future
In the speech 'Basel II: back to the future' given on 4 February Jaime Caruana of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and Bank of Spain highlights the anticipatory and forward-looking elements of Basel II. The real value of Basel II, he says, will…
Fed's Bies: Behind the scenes at the FOMC
In a speech 'Behind the scenes at the FOMC: How the Federal Reserve determines monetary policy' given on 7 February, Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve said interest rate policy may need to be more accommodative than expected to ensure the economy…
Spain's Caruana on the implementation of Basel II
In a speech given on 18 January to the European Parliament Jaime Caruana of the Bank of Spain outlines the reasons why Basel II matters so much and how it will support the continued safety and soundness of the banking system.
SNB's Blattner on the new banknotes project
In a speech on Switzerland's new banknotes project given on 2 February, Niklaus Blattner of the Swiss National Bank said this step has become necessary because of the development of new technologies and the typically high demands on the design quality of…
Fed's Greenspan on Adam Smith
In a speech titled 'Adam Smith' given on 6 February Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve said that 18th-century philosopher Adam Smith was "a towering contributor to the development of the modern world."
PBOC's Xiaochuan on legal & financial system
In the speech 'Improve legal system and financial ecology' given on 2 December (published 28 Jan) Zhou Xiaochuan of the People's Bank of China told the "Forum of 50 Chinese Economists" that from the perspective of the central bank, he wishes them to work…
Fed's Greenspan on the current account
In a speech on 'Current account' given on 4 February, Alan Greenspan of the Federal Reserve said the dollar's decline and fiscal restraint by the US government may soon begin to reduce the US current account deficit, which stood at a record in the third…
BoE's King on the International Monetary System
In a speech on 'The International Monetary System' given on 4 February, Mervyn King of the Bank of England urged members of the Group of Seven industrial nations to agree "on the nature of the risk" and collaborate with China and India to rebalance…
Richmond Fed's Lacker: Technology & labor markets
In a speech on 'Technology and labor markets' given on 18 January, Jeffrey Lacker of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond said technology improvements, not trade, have been the driving force behind US wage and job trends in recent years.
Bollard on New Zealand's potential growth rate
In a speech on 'New Zealand's potential growth rate' given on 28 January, Alan Bollard of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand said that if we want to see New Zealand's GDP per capita grow at the same rate over the next decade as it did in the previous ten…
Poole on The outlook: Mississippi and the nation
In a speech on 'The outlook: Mississippi and the nation' given on 20 January, William Poole of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis said US price pressures appear well controlled, but the Federal Reserve will move aggressively to protect low inflation…
Fed's Bies on the economy and retirement savings
In a speech on 'The economy and challenges in retirement savings' given on 18 January, Susan Schmidt Bies of the Federal Reserve said she foresaw a moderation of inflationary trends, which would allow the Fed to continue being "measured" in raising…
Sweden's Heikensten on economy & monetary policy
Sveriges Riksbank Governor Lars Heikensten spoke at a meeting on the current state of the economy and monetary policy on 21 Janaury. He said developments in the financial markets are largely in line with the assessment in the previous Inflation Report.
Norway's Bergo on inflation targeting
In a speech on 'The basis for inflation targeting' given on 21 January, Jarle Bergo of Norges Bank said that the lesson from Nobel Prize winners Kydland and Prescott was that economic policy can achieve better results if the authorities can commit…
MAS's Palmer: Innovation in retail payment systems
In the speech 'Fostering innovation and promoting consumer interests in retail payment systems' given on 11 January John Palmer of the Monetary Authority of Singapore said MAS will continue to act as a facilitator for the retail payment industry,…
Nyberg on the Swedish payment market
In a speech on 'Prices and costs in the Swedish payment market' given on 25 January, Lars Nyberg of the Sveriges Riksbank reveals the results of a study into how well the price structure for retail payments reflects the underlying production costs for…
ECB's Gonzalez-Paramo on financial integration
In a speech on 'Financial integration and economic growth. Lessons from the European experience' given on 28 January, Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo of the ECB said in effectively promoting financial integration, Europe has shown that public policies can…
Sri Lanka's Mendis on post-disaster rebuilding
In the speech 'Creating a challenging and stimulating work environment' given on 1 January, Sunil Mendis of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka said that with the magnitude of the disaster, there is no question that our nation needs to be rebuilt. Hence, as…
SF Fed's Yellen on the US economic outlook
In a speech on 'The US economic outlook' given on 20 January, Janet Yellen of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco said US inflation should stay contained this year, while the risks to price stability are well balanced.
ECB's Trichet on communication and transparency
In a speech on 'Communication, transparency and the ECB's monetary policy' given on 24 January, Jean-Claude Trichet of the ECB said hinted that a rise in eurozone interest rates was not likely in the immediate future, despite a pick-up in inflation as a…
Hildebrand on managing the SNB's assets
In a speech on 'Developments in the international financial markets and managing the Swiss National Bank's assets' given on 16 December, Philipp Hildebrand of the Swiss National Bank said the SNB's leeway for investment has extended considerably since…
Sweden's Bergstrom: Investment v capital export
In a speech given on 18 January, Sveriges Riksbank Deputy Governor Villy Bergstrom said in the long-term, the current declining trend in capital formation in Sweden could threaten the upturn in productivity that has been witnessed, and thereby also…