Emerging markets
Central Bank of Brazil raises rates for fifth time in row
Unanimous vote hikes Selic rate to 9.5% – 2.25 percentage points higher than in April - in effort to combat inflation; Reserve Bank of India, meanwhile, provides financial system with more liquidity
‘Unprecedented' US rate normalisation is global economy's biggest challenge, says IMF
Overshooting interest rates prompted by Fed taper may expose substantial financial weaknesses in both advanced and emerging countries, warns stability report; shadow banking of particular concern
IMF’s Blanchard flags ‘yet another transition’ as emerging markets struggle
IMF chief economist admits emerging market economies have performed worse than expected; calls for central banks to focus on credibility and dismisses US default as a ‘tail risk’ event
IMF proposes automatic stabilisers to guard against hot money flows
World Economic Outlook suggests countries can shield themselves from instability caused by volatile capital flows if they foster an environment allowing residents to easily invest overseas
Emerging market volatility not a sign of crisis, says Malaysian supervisor
Emerging markets are much better prepared to deal with foreign investment outflows than in the past, says Securities Commission Malaysia chairman
Bank of Mexico deputy welcomes QE taper
Manuel Sánchez singles out downshift in yield curves pushing domestic interest rates for different maturities to all-time lows as the biggest effect of lax monetary conditions on emerging economies
Indonesia raises rates in unscheduled meeting to rescue the rupiah
Bank Indonesia raises interest rates in attempt to slow the fall in the value of the rupiah; observers fear the move will hit economic growth
Capital flows are 'fickle' and always have been, paper finds
Capital flow volatility is a fact of life for all economies at all points in time, say IMF researchers, who point out that bigger advanced economies are best placed to deal with ebb and flow
EM central banks in a bind as capital volatility set to worsen
Central banks in the biggest emerging market economies are bracing for ever faster outflows of capital if tomorrow's FOMC minutes continue to point to US monetary tightening
EM central banks should take cue from ‘the best in the world', says RBI governor
Duvvuri Subbarao also highlights the historical differences in mandates between EM and advanced economy central banks
Reserve Bank of India announces measures to bolster weakening rupee
In tightening move, RBI raises its Marginal Standing Facility rate to 10.25% with 'immediate effect'; currency value rebound is expected to be short-lived
IMF cuts global growth forecast as capital outflows hit EM economies
Global growth is projected to remain slightly above 3% in 2013; fund says risks of a longer growth slowdown in emerging market economies ‘have increased'
QE1 and QE2 operated in opposite directions, ECB researchers find
Researchers at the European Central Bank find that QE1 triggered a portfolio rebalancing out of EMEs into US equity and bonds, while QE2 acted in the opposite direction
Fed researchers find little QE impact on emerging market capital flows
Discussion paper finds Fed’s quantitative easing has not had a statistically significant impact on net capital flows to emerging markets, although behaviour changed post-crisis
Policy-maker prudence can't help early warning efficacy, IMF paper finds
Working paper finds parametric early-warning systems are preferable to non-parametric; greater prudence lets policy-makers call more crisis episodes correctly, but at the cost of more false alarms
IMF paper examines emerging market counter-cyclical monetary policy
Emerging markets should target inflation for its counter-cyclical benefits as well as output variability, researchers find
G-20 report says move from stabilisation to growth requires ‘difficult balancing act’
G-20 meeting report urges carefully calibrated fiscal tightening to ‘nurture’ recovery; backs accommodative monetary policy and says emerging markets should use rapid growth to build buffers
IMFC advocates ‘pragmatic’ approach to resisting capital flows
Committee of the IMF says easing by advanced economies is justified; emerging markets should use a variety of tools to lean against the resulting capital inflows
Lagarde highlights emergence of ‘three-speed’ global economy
IMF managing director says differences between regions are ‘starker than ever’ as emerging markets leave many advanced economies behind
Norway’s SWF sees large returns after ‘major strategic changes’
Annual report for 2012 reveals pension fund saw second-best performance since its creation; investments diversified away from Europe and into emerging markets
Perception of EM risk reduced by central bank safety net, say investors
Large foreign exchange reserves held by emerging market central banks makes investing in those countries attractive, say panellists at FX Invest Europe
Dutch paper says foreign banks can help or harm developing markets
Working paper finds foreign-owned banks in developing countries can provide cheaper and higher quality financial services, but may also transmit shocks across borders
IMF board split on quota reform options
Disagreement among IMF executive board members over whether more emphasis on emerging markets is needed, with ‘considerable support’ for increasing weight of GDP in quota formula
IMF predicts chequered growth performances in 2013
Updated World Economic Outlook forecasts wide disparities between countries’ growth performances in the next year; overall estimates revised down since October