Interest rates
Bank of England holds interest rates steady
As most analysts predicted, the Bank of England held interest rates steady at 3.75 on Thursday 10 April amid continuing uncertainty, reports the Financial Times.
Outlook clouded but inflation to ease: ECB
Even though the war in Iraq has increased uncertainty somewhat the European Central Bank said on Thursday in its monthly bulletin that it expected inflation to drop back below its 2 percent target this year, according to Reuters.
Fed plans emergency economic rescue
With new fears of recession the Federal Reserve may be formulating an emergency economic rescue plan, accordintg to a report by Associated Press. The plan could involve three elements including lending massive amounts of money directly to commercial…
ECB meeting on monetary policy decisions
At Thursday 3 April's meeting, which was held in Rome, the Governing Council of the ECB decided that the minimum bid rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will remain…
RBA holds fire on interest rates
The Reserve Bank of Australia held interest rates steady at 4.75 per cent on Tuesday 1 April in a widely expected move, reported The Australian Financial Review.
Should central banks buy wider range of assets?
An article in the Financial Times on March 28 asks the question many have recently posed. Have central banks run out of ammunition? The fire power in question is of course interest rates as a monetary policy tool. Rates have hit the floor in Japan and…
Swiss rates on hold
The Swiss National Bank kept its key interest rate unchanged and repeated that that it could intervene to stop an appreciation of the Swiss franc, according to a Dow Jones report.
Interest rates unchanged as Fed awaits war
The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Tuesday March 19 in a unanimous vote but left open the possibility of a cut if the economy suddenly worsened, according to a report by Associated Press.
Koehler- Major economies can still ease mon policy
Horst Koehler said in a speech, reported by Channel News Asia, that interest rates still have room to fall further for the world's major economies. He also suggested that fears of a global recession were over-played despite ongoing uncertainty.
Norges Bank Inflation Report, March 2003
REPORT - Norway's central bank published its latest Inflation Report on 5 March. The Bank says the outlook for growth has deteriorated since the October report and there are no signs of an imminent recovery. On the domestic front, the Norwegian economy…
Dissent inside the Eurotower
ARTICLE - This article suggests that even if the ECB cuts interest rates on Thursday, the move will do little to satisfy critics pressing for a reappraisal of the bank's policymaking framework. The article suggests tensions between key ECB officials…
Norway central bank cuts interest rates
Norges Bank, the Norwegian central bank, lowered key interest rates Wednesday by a half-percentage point. The Bank hinted that further reductions may be necessary.
RBA leaves rates steady
The Reserve Bank of Australia left interest rates on hold Wednesday for the ninth month in a row.
BoE's George- pound fall cuts euro entry obstacles
Sir Edward George suggested on Tuesday that the Bank of England's recent surprise cut in interest rates would be "seen as quite dangerous by the ECB". He also suggested the ECB could benefit from a technical subcommittee to make interest rate…
Crow makes the case for higher interest rates
John Crow, the former Bank of Canada chief, suggested that interest rates could increase further as the Canadian inflation rate is close to the upper limit of its target.
IMF says expects rate hike in Canada
The IMF has said Canada may have to increase interest rates as the country is operating close to capacity and inflation presents an increasing danger.
Poland sets new inflation target
The Polish central bank has reduced interest rates and at the same time set a new inflation target. The move is aimed at guaranteeing Poland joins the euro zone at the earliest possible date of 2007.
Edward George says ECB slow on rate cuts
Sir Edward George, governor of the Bank of England, speaking in London today hinted that the ECB had been slow to cut interest rates when he remarked that the ECB is "less proactive" in monetary policy terms than the UK's central bank. CentralBankNet was…
Brazil's interest rate increase wins IMF support
The IMF praised Brazil's central banks decision to increase interest rates saying that the move will help control inflation.
Duisenberg: ECB may cut rates further
Speaking at the weekend Wim Duisenberg suggested the ECB could cut interest rates further and said a weakened outlook for the euro zone economy could reduce inflationary pressures.
Bank of Canada Review, Winter 2002-2003
REPORT - The Bank of Canada published its Review for Winter 2002-2003 on 19 February. The Review contains articles titled Recent Changes to Canada's Financial Sector Legislation, Exchange Rate Regimes in Emerging Markets, Transparency and the Response of…
Brazil raises rates to fight 'virus of inflation'
Brazil's central bank on Wednesday raised interest rates for the second time in a month to curb what new President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva described this week as the "virus of inflation".
Bank of England committee split 7-2 over rate cut
The Bank of England's monetary policy committee voted by 7 to 2 in favour of this month's surprise quarter-point cut in interest rates to 3.75 per cent, minutes of its meeting released on Wednesday showed.
Russia's central bank reduces interest rate to 18%
The Russian Central Bank reduced its refinancing rate from 21% to a record low of 18% from 17 February, having taken into account a slowdown in inflationary growth and the real level of interest rates on the Russian money market.