Eurozone
Bini Smaghi says ECB rate may rise further
ECB board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi told La Repubblica in an interview published Tuesday 23 January that the ECB's rate is "still accommodating" and may have to rise further if growth expectations are confirmed to avoid excess liquidity.
Stark on monetary policy: a view from the ECB
In the speech 'Objectives and challenges of monetary policy: a view from the ECB' given on 19 January Jurgen Stark of the ECB said the ECB retains the freedom to move interest rates whenever it considers it necessary to control inflation pressures,…
Ministers concerned over settlement plan - report
European finance ministers have raised doubts about the European Central Bank's plan to provide its own settlement system for eurozone securities transactions, the Financial Times reported Monday 22 January.
ECB denies Trichet, Juncker, Almunia meetings plan
The European Central Bank denied a report on Monday 22 January which claimed Jean-Claude Trichet, Eurogroup chief Jean-Claude Juncker and EU commissioner Joaquin Almunia had agreed to hold informal meetings on the sidelines of the ECB's monthly press…
ECB's Liikanen says inflation remains a big risk
European Central Bank Governing Council member Erkki Liikanen said there were still upside risks to inflation in the eurozone, Finnish national broadcaster YLE reported Sunday 21 January.
Bini Smaghi on global capital & monetary policies
In the speech 'Global capital and national monetary policies' given on 18 January Lorenzo Bini Smaghi of the ECB said central banks must be careful not to overreact to declines in real bond yields, which may reflect special factors related to…
Europe's club of nations needs a rule change
According to this article by Zdenik Tma, governor of the Czech National Bank, first published by the Financial Times on 4 January, ERM-2 rules might have been perfectly legitimate in the past, but today they are outdated and -counter-productive.
ECB Monthly Bulletin, January 2007
The European Central Bank published its January 2007 Monthly Bulletin on Thursday 18 January. In the report the ECB said it will continue to monitor all economic developments very closely to ensure that euro zone inflation remains under control.
EU's Almunia positive on 2007 inflation
European Union Monetary Affairs commissioner Joaquin Almunia said Thursday 18 January eurozone growth and inflation should be roughly in line with 2006 figures this year thanks largely due to a positive outlook for Germany.
Stark says ECB criticism has little support
European Central Bank board member Juergen Stark said in a speech on Wednesday 16 January that criticisms of the ECB by some politicians have very little support and are simply a reflection of some countries' failure to adapt to monetary union.
ECB paper 'Adjusting to the euro'
In this ECB Working Paper the authors argue that, for a group of converging economies of the European Union, participation in the euro area has been associated with easier access to financing by domestic economic agents.
ECB says pan-euro settlement system to cut costs
The European Central Bank said Tuesday 16 January it believes the implementation of an integrated securities settlement system in the euro zone could cut settlement costs by up to 90%.
ECB's Tumpel-Gugerell at the Euro conference
In a panel intervention at the Euro conference hosted by Banka Slovenije given on 15 January Gertrude Tumpel-Gugerell of the ECB said now that it has adopted the euro, Slovenia needs to adapt to the absence of an independent monetary and exchange rate…
ECB's Trichet at € conference Slovenia
In his keynote address at the "€ conference Slovenia" given on 15 January Jean-Claude Trichet of the ECB said Slovenia will enjoy the general benefits of participation in the single currency area, such as no exchange rate risks with respect to its most…
Sweden's Persson on monetary policy
In the speech 'Monetary policy - experiences and thoughts on the future' given on 13 January Kristina Persson of the Sveriges Riksbank said two professors, Francesco Giavazzi and Frederic Mishkin, have examined how well the Riksbank has succeeded with…
ECB paper on the US housing market
The ECB Working Paper 'Regional housing market spillovers in the US: lessons from regional divergences in a common monetary policy setting' seeks to quantify the importance of state-level housing price spillovers and interest rate shocks to house price…
Merkel worried by debate on ECB independence
German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke out on economic issues in an interview Saturday 13 January, defending the independence of the European Central Bank against euro critics and calling for closer ties with the US.
ECB says 265,000 counterfeit euro notes detected
The European Central Bank said Friday 12 January a total of 265,000 counterfeit euro banknotes were removed from circulation during the second half of last year.
Trichet says 'very close monitoring' on price risk
European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet told a press conference on Thursday 11 January that the ECB will act in a "firm and timely manner" to ensure price stability but did not reintroduce a commitment to exercise "vigilance" on inflation…
Germany's Steinbrueck defends ECB independence
Germany said Thursday 11 January it would not put up with any change in the independence of the European Central Bank.
OECD says ECB rates still below neutral level
The OECD said Thursday 4 January European Central Bank interest rates are still below a 'neutral' level and continue to stimulate activity in the euro zone.
ECB member bank buys gold
The Daily Telegraph in London reported Wednesday 3 January that a member of the European Central Bank system had begun buying bullion, the first such purchase in years.
Israel's Fischer on dollarization
In the speech 'Dollarization' given on 15 December Stanley Fischer of the Bank of Israel asks if dollarization, including full dollarization, should be avoided, why join EMU?
ECB's Tumpel-Gugerell on TARGET2-Securities
In the speech 'TARGET2-Securities meeting with market participants' given on 18 December Gertrude Tumpel-Gugerell of the ECB said safe and efficient clearing and settlement systems are essential for the overall functioning of the financial market and for…