Interest rates
Rate round-up
Swiss, New Zealand, Korean and Peruvian central banks all opt to hold rates
SARB will not be nationalised: Treasury
South African finance minister Pravin Gordhan dismisses talk of placing the central bank under state ownership, condemns shareholders’ tactics to force state takeover
BoE’s Barker on the future of policymaking
Kate Barker draws on her nine years of service at the Bank of England to highlight some of the challenges facing policymakers
Malaysia hikes as recession ends in emerging Asia
Bank Negara Malaysia raises its key rate by a quarter percentage point, citing stronger than forecast growth results in emerging Asia
Nigeria slashes deposit rate to ease lending
Central Bank of Nigeria knocks 100 bps off deposit rate and extends quantitative easing programme to promote lending to the real sector
Australia hikes on further evidence of recovery
Reserve Bank of Australia raises cash rate to 4% as Stevens says economy in the clear
Fiscal cuts must precede monetary tightening: IMF
International Monetary Fund notes fiscal consolidation is by far the biggest concern; suggests central banks maintain large balance sheets for time being
Fed presidents play down discount hike
Regional Fed presidents William Dudley, Dennis Lockhart and Janet Yellen deny that rise in discount rate equates to the end of accommodative policy
Hungarian rate falls to record low
National Bank of Hungary rate-setters slice a quarter point off key rate, now at all-time low
Jordan cuts to boost growth
Jordanian central bank shears half a percentage point off its key overnight deposit rate to stimulate the flagging domestic economy
Fed’s discount rate hike jolts markets
Federal Reserve firms exit strategy by lifting the rate at which it lends to banks by a quarter percentage point, markets teeter
Russia cuts on carry trade concerns
Bank of Russia chops a further 0.25% off its key refinancing rate and intervenes in currency markets on worries of rouble strength
When to exit?
In Central Banking’s second webinar, sponsored by BNP Paribas Securities Services, Charles Goodhart, Lucrezia Reichlin, Paul Mortimer-Lee and Gabriel Stein discussed when central banks should raise rates
Bank of Korea – Monetary Policy Statement (February)
South Korean central bank’s February statement shows the worries of a Greek default played a part in its maintenance of a loose policy stance
RBA justifies surprise hold
Reserve Bank of Australia says decision to keep cash rate at 3.75% came on back of success of previous hikes
Governors back greater role for monetary aggregates
Christian Noyer, Glenn Stevens and Duvurri Subbarao say more attention must be paid on monetary aggregates
Hungary split on size of cut
Minutes of the Hungarian central bank’s January meeting reveal that three members wanted a larger cut than was ultimately implemented on the threat of disinflation
China surprises with second reserve requirement hike
People’s Bank of China ups its reserve requirement ratio by 0.5 percentage points to drain excess liquidity from system
Fed’s Kohn: don’t underestimate interest-rate risk
Federal Reserve’s Don Kohn says it is crucial interest-rate risk does not undermine the safety and soundness of the most important lenders
Kuwait makes surprise 50bp cut
Central Bank of Kuwait trims half a percentage point off key rate in the face of low inflationary pressures and to encourage lending to non-oil sectors
Rate round-up: bulk of central banks hold
Rate decisions this week see a slew of institutions maintain policy stance
Bank holds rates, halts asset purchases
Bank’s rate-setters stand pat, pointing to a clash of pressures between inflation and anaemic growth; ex-MPC members concur
Fed is best in crisis, says British think-tank
The Federal Reserve’s credit easing operations have fostered a quicker recovery than in the UK and eurozone, research finds
Norway puts rate rises on ice
Pause in exit strategy as recovery “takes hold”, inflation likely to fall