Growth
Bank of Canada holds rates steady
Governing council decides to keep benchmark rate at 1%; says modest tightening of monetary policy may be justified if recovery continues
Bernanke blames Europe and fiscal cliff for stalling recovery
Chairman of the Federal Reserve says two main risks to economic improvement in the US are eurozone woes and looming fiscal cliff; urges lawmakers to act promptly
Governor of Bank of Papua New Guinea discusses mixed economic outlook
Loi Bakani gives overview of economic developments in Papua New Guinea; notes strong economic growth but warns of risks posed by declining exports and rising government debt
Philippines central bank paper analyses effect of remittance flows
Working paper considers macroeconomic impact of flows of remittances into Filipino economy; identifies number of benefits but also potential risks to competitiveness
Acting head of forecast department chosen in Vietnam
Nguyen Do Quoc Tho appointed as acting general director of the Monetary Statistics and Forecast Department at the State Bank of Vietnam; department last month published positive growth figures
RBI official highlights problematic international regulations
Reserve Bank of India executive director examines impact of converging banking regulation on India; suggests global rules may have positive spillovers, but must be tailored to domestic economy
China growth slows for sixth consecutive quarter
Figures published by National Bureau of Statistics of China show year-on-year GDP growth of 7.6% in second quarter of 2012; growth has been steadily slowing since beginning of 2011
ECB paper models policy interaction
Working paper examines the benefits of co-ordinating monetary and macro-prudential policies; finds separation of regimes can damage macroeconomic stability
Eurosytem and Mediterranean central bankers gather in Morocco
Central bankers meet to discuss economic and financial developments, monetary policy implementation and macro-prudential policies and financial stability
IMF’s Lagarde warns on global growth
Managing director says next week’s assessment of world economy will bring bad news with regard to growth; urges increased co-operation to renew economic recovery
National Bank of Serbia annual report reviews policy changes
Annual monetary policy report highlights shift in mid-2011 towards monetary easing in Serbia; says pressure from food prices caused inflation to repeatedly overshoot target in first half of year
Bank of Finland paper evaluates confidence indicators in forecasts
Discussion paper analyses the link between measures of confidence and growth forecasting in the Russian economy; finds not all measures improve accuracy of forecasts
ECB paper studies sovereign debt and growth links
Working paper studies relationship between different levels of sovereign debt and growth; finds increasing debt only boosts short-run growth up to a certain threshold
BoE paper quantifies output gap estimation errors
Bank of England discussion paper models accuracy of output gap estimations based on OECD data; argues that absolute size of revisions to estimates does not improve over time
Bank of Korea finds slight increase in North Korean GDP for 2011
Estimates by Bank of Korea suggest North Korean GDP grew by 0.8% in 2011; represents first year of positive growth since 2008
Mexican deputy governor weighs challenges facing economy
Bank of Mexico’s Manuel Sánchez examines effect of capital inflows and eurozone problems on Mexican economy; says growth expected to continue at a moderate rate
Slew of central banks hold rates amid economic uncertainty
Riksbank, National Bank of Poland, Reserve Bank of Australia and Central Bank of Colombia all keep policy rates unchanged; central banks offer mixed message on global economy
Sarb makes $60m loss due to costs of forex intervention
South African Reserve Bank suffers loss in fiscal year 2011/12 due to cost of forex activities; governor describes economic challenges in coming year as ‘daunting’
Bangladesh governor stresses importance of SMEs
Atiur Rahman sets out steps to encourage growth of exports by small and medium enterprises; says central bank is active in promoting financial inclusion and supporting business infrastructure
Vietnam central bank statistics show positive outlook
Statistics published by the State Bank of Vietnam highlight steady economic recovery; nevertheless, central bank says “strong efforts” necessary to hit annual growth targets
IMF paper examines Japan’s emergence from lost decade
Working paper considers reasons behind a surge in Japanese exports in 2001; finds domestic productivity growth most important factor
BoJ Tankan survey shows increased business confidence
Tankan short-term economic survey reports overall increase in manufacturing confidence; forecasts further increases in next quarter
Zambian governor calls for action on SME finance
Bank of Zambia governor says policy-makers should do more to encourage financial flows to small and medium scale enterprises; examines benefits and risks of extending funding to these firms
National Bank of Hungary predicts stagflation
Quarterly inflation report projects growth contraction in 2012; says inflation is likely to persist above target due to government tax increases