Eurozone
Paper explores whether governments prefer under-capitalised banks in crises
Governments may prefer banks to be weakly capitalised as this increases the likelihood they will act as buyers of last resort for domestic debt; paper considers impact on regulation
Eurozone banking sector less reliant on central bank funding, ECB report says
Commercial banks relied less on central bank financing in 2014 and only achieved ‘moderate’ extension of credit; shadow banking sector becomes increasingly important
European banks ‘lagging behind’ in re-thinking strategies, Bundesbank board member says
European commercial banks have been too slow in adapting to a changed regulatory environment and low interest rates, says Andreas Dombret of the Bundesbank
Countries under credit stress should ‘front-load’ fiscal consolidation, says ECB paper
Front-loading will bring confidence effects, the working paper suggests
ECB sparks bank tug-of-war over debt eligibility
The European Central Bank may force local regulators to choose whether banks can use senior debt for TLAC or to access its liquidity programme – setting G-Sibs against regional banks
ECB working paper links tight credit conditions to large investment cancellations
Industries most reliant on bank debt in eurozone worst hit by negative bank credit supply shocks, ECB paper finds
External debt is Greece’s perennial Achilles heel, economists warn
Cycles of external debt and dependence are ‘perennial themes’ for Greek crises since 1829, and other countries may be similarly vulnerable, Carmen Reinhart and Christoph Trebesch argue
Carney wants ‘clear principles’ to safeguard non-euro members
Bank of England study of EU membership finds union has broadly contributed to ‘dynamism’ in the UK economy, but imposition of regulation from afar may not suit UK needs
Polish governor criticises five presidents’ report
Marek Belka says proposals contain ‘some good ideas’ but are ’timid and vague’ about what should be done in the longer-term; speaks alongside Ewald Nowotny at Warsaw conference
ECB watching oil and euro closely for inflation risks
Deflation has become less likely in the eurozone since the implementation of quantitative easing, but falling oil prices are pressing on inflation expectations, governing council says
IMF working paper explores spillovers between United States and eurozone
Spillovers from the eurozone to the US have been ‘considerable’ since 2014, reflecting policy easing in Europe, IMF paper notes
Cyber attacks could represent systemic threat, warns Ireland’s Roux
A string of cyber attacks on financial institutions could start a ‘domino effect’ that triggers a financial crisis, so firms need to improve their defences, deputy governor says
People: FCA names COO; RBA shuffles assistant governors
Financial Conduct Authority announces Georgina Philippou as COO; Michele Bullock named assistant governor for business services in Australia; and more
Draghi: too early to judge impact of global events on eurozone inflation
Mario Draghi says slowing growth in EMs, strong euro and weak commodity prices have ‘renewed downside risks’ to outlook; Peter Praet says eurozone still ‘going through correction phase’
ECB paper traces roots of falling financial integration
Policy interventions beyond traditional capital controls may have ‘unintended’ impact on financial integration, including some macro-prudential measures based around currency
First Target2 data release sheds light on imbalances
Data on cross-border eurozone financial flows gives clarity as to the sharply different directions funds have been travelling, with Germany still comfortably the most popular destination
ECB sees house prices undergoing ‘sustainable’ recovery
European Central Bank says eurozone housing markets appear to have undergone necessary corrections, in article released ahead of Economic Bulletin
Danièle Nouy targets greater regulatory harmonisation
Supervisory board chair highlights efforts taken to harmonise regulatory framework in Europe but stresses more must be done; says SSM is ‘working very well’ as it approaches first anniversary
BoJ’s Shirai explains why negative rates fit Europe better than Japan
Policy board member Sayuri Shirai says impact of rates varies according to market structure, noting differences in the type of investors and credit conditions in the jurisdictions
ECB concerned by impact of draft German law on supervision
European Central Bank suggests proposals could impact consistency across the banking union and its own supervisory discretion in response to Federal Ministry of Finance
Former COO of BNP nominated as Banque de France governor
François Villeroy de Galhau picked by French president to succeed Christian Noyer as central bank head; past experience includes BNP Paribas and French treasury
German reforms did not create eurozone imbalances, paper finds
German model illustrates the positive effect of structural labour reforms between 1999 and 2008 on GDP, consumption, investment and employment, but also the eurozone more widely
ECB paper makes case for Bayesian model averaging in stress-test models
Working paper highlights the differences between using Bayesian model averaging and a series of handpicked equations
Finland governor donates month’s pay to help refugees
Erkki Liikanen will donate €10,000 to the Red Cross to help refugees; Mario Draghi says any European should be ‘horrified by the tragic loss of life happening on our doorstep’