Interest rates
ECB's Padoa Schioppa sees no more cuts now
ITALY - Tommaso Padoa Schioppa, a member of the European Central Bank's council, said he doesn't see the euro-zone central bank cutting interest rates again in the foreseeable future, according to an interview with La Repubblica Saturday.
Argentine ctrl bk moves to fight drop in deposits
ARGENTINA - Argentina's central bank will order local banks to repatriate $1.9 billion of the loan loss reserve funds they have deposited in a Deutschebank account in New York City to inject more funds into the nation's money markets and keep interest…
Czech nat bank critical of gov't pressure on rates
CZECH REPUBLIC - Czech National Bank Governor Zdenek Tuma Thursday criticised Prime Minister Milos Zeman and Finance Minister Jiri Rusnok for publicly urging the central bank to cut interest rates in recent weeks.
Inflation no longer a threat to eurozone
EUROPE - Wim Duisenberg, president of the European Central Bank, said yesterday, Thursday, the bank's decision to cut interest rates by 50 basis points to 3.25 per cent reflected both a need to prop up battered confidence, and the bank's belief that…
FOMC: 'Mild and short contraction' of US econ seen
US - Federal Reserve policymakers expect a "relatively mild and short" U.S. recession, but they're inclined to keep cutting interest rates to banish the prospect of a nastier downturn, minutes of their recent policy meetings suggest.
News release from the Bank of England
NEWS RELEASE - Bank Of England Reduces Interest Rates by 0.50% to 4.0%, 8 November.
Federal Reserve cuts rates to lowest since 1961
UNITED STATES - Struggling to reverse the slide in the U.S. economy, or at least to slow it, the Federal Reserve cut short-term interest rates on Tuesday by half a percentage point, to 2 percent, the lowest level since the 1960s.
Australia leaves interest rates unchanged
AUSTRALIA - Australia's central bank has opted to keep its interest rates unchanged on Wednesday despite the US Federal Reserve cutting its key overnight rates by 50 basis points to its lowest level in 40 years.
Australian economy stronger than US - Costello
AUSTRALIA - Australian Treasurer Peter Costello said Wednesday that a decision by the Reserve Bank to keep interest rates steady after its board meeting Tuesday isn't surprising given the country is in the midst of an election campaign.
Credit card issuers to benefit from Fed rate cut
USA - Issuers of credit cards, hurt by concerns the weakening economy will ramp up charge-off rates, may get a respite from the latest round of interest rates cuts by the Federal Reserve.
Fed expected to cut rates by another half-point
US - The US Federal Reserve is poised to cut interest rates today for the tenth time this year, extending its most aggressive rate-cutting campaign in recent history amid yet more evidence of proliferating weakness in the world's economic power.
Buba Welteke - ECB rate policy no hinder to growth
GERMANY - The European Central Bank's interest rates aren't an obstacle to growth, long-term and real interest rates are low and the ECB must avoid letting long-term inflation expectations build up, Deutsche Bundesbank President Ernst Welteke repeated,…
Fed's Smith - Rates dominate credit card pricing
US - The Federal Reserve's director of consumer affairs told a house panel Thursday that interest rates have come to dominate pricing practices for credit cards in recent years, although there is little systematic information about other aspects of card…
India rates hit lowest level since 1970s
INDIA - Interest rates in India have slid to their lowest rate for almost 30 years after the country's central bank - Reserve Bank of India (RBI) - cut interest rates by half a percentage point.
ECB voting reform urgently needed economists claim
UK - The way in which the European Central Bank sets interest rates needs to be reformed urgently in order to prepare for enlargement of the European Union, a group of leading economists said.
Several ECB members wanted 11 Oct rate cut: Report
GERMANY - Several members of the European Central Bank's governing council wanted to cut interest rates at its 11 October meeting in Vienna, according to a report to be published late Monday in French daily Le Monde.
NIESR report - UK to avoid slide into recession
UK - The UK will weather a sharp global slowdown and there is no reason to cut interest rates further, according to a leading think-tank.
Canada cuts rates to lowest level in 40 years
CANADA - The Bank of Canada surprised the markets by cutting interest rates by three-quarters of a point to the lowest level in 40 years on Tuesday.
ECB leaves interest rates on hold
EUROPE - The European Central Bank has left interest rates unchanged at 3.75% on Thursday.
Expectations of rate cut up in ECB monthly report
GERMANY - The European Central Bank yesterday strengthened expectations that it will cut interest rates soon by saying the eurozone faced moderate inflationary pressures but continuing risks to economic growth.
Ecofin mins press rate cut case - ECB receptive
LUXEMBOURG - Euro zone finance ministers kept the heat on the European Central Bank to lower interest rates yesterday, Monday 15 October - and there are signs that central bankers may be sympathetic to their views.
BoE's Clementi says "clear downside risk" to rates
UK - Bank of England deputy governor David Clementi said on Friday there were "clear downside risks" to UK interest rates due to the slowing world economy, made worse by September's attacks on the United States.
B of E's George predicts 3-year downturn
UK - Sir Edward George hinted last night in a speech that he would back further cuts in interest rates and warned the global economic slowdown could last for three more years.
Poland's Miller denies plan to curb central bank
POLAND - Poland's Prime Minister designate Leszek Miller denied in a radio interview that his future coalition government had agreed to curb the central bank's independence if it does not cut interest rates by 600 basis points over the next six months,…