Quantitative easing
Top Fed officials speak out to calm markets
Two Federal Reserve governors and the New York Fed president emphasise a change in monetary policy will be driven by data, not the date; further easing remains a possibility
Fed's Stein clarifies unemployment ‘threshold' for rate change
Permanent FOMC voter seeks to provide extra clarity over Bernanke statement last week; emphasises that interest rates could stay at rock-bottom even if unemployment falls to 6.5%
Caruana backs Bernanke taper timetable but warns banks to prepare for volatility
BIS general manager says Fed chairman Ben Bernanke was right to signal a tightening of monetary policy but warns stress tests will be needed to prepare banks for an increase in volatility
BoE MPC member says QE has worked, and exit need not cause turbulence
David Miles says opponents of QE are overly pessimistic, and research he has been conducting suggests it ‘might well be part of an optimal monetary policy strategy'
QE was ‘a step in the dark’, Rajan tells BIS
Former IMF chief economist says decision to engage in quantitative easing was based on little evidence and influenced by politics, while the full consequences remain unclear
Central banks need to start tightening policy, says BIS
The Bank for International Settlements says easy monetary policy has reached the end of what it can usefully do, warning that continuing QE will exacerbate risks and delay necessary reforms
Fed's monetary policy deviates from best practice, says Bullard
Fed monetary policy has deviated from central bank best practice and should be used ‘to meet policy objectives, not calendar objectives', says St Louis Fed president
QE1 and QE2 operated in opposite directions, ECB researchers find
Researchers at the European Central Bank find that QE1 triggered a portfolio rebalancing out of EMEs into US equity and bonds, while QE2 acted in the opposite direction
Central banks laying the seeds for ‘crisis in fiat money’, says UK MP Baker
Chair of UK parliamentary group for economics says a sharp correction in developed world sovereign bond prices could spark a collapse in confidence and challenge the sustainability of fiat money
BoJ minutes show concern over bond market pressure ahead of QE taper
Members at the May meeting of the Bank of Japan’s policy board agreed on the need for a ‘flexible’ approach to bond purchases as fears over the end of QE in the US push up long-term rates
NALM Americas 2013: Panellists play down expectations of QE wind-down
Central bankers think it unlikely the US Federal Reserve will wind down its quantitative easing programme – but some acknowledge an exit could hit emerging markets hard
Navigating an exit from accommodative policy is ‘an art and not a science’
Participants at CEPR forum debate the challenges central banks must deal with when withdrawing unconventional policies; some express concern over rising asset prices
Fed researchers find little QE impact on emerging market capital flows
Discussion paper finds Fed’s quantitative easing has not had a statistically significant impact on net capital flows to emerging markets, although behaviour changed post-crisis
Lagarde says QE risks are real, but bubbles are not forming yet
IMF managing director says accommodative policy should remain in place in advanced economies, but clear articulation of an exit strategy will be needed to avoid a repeat of 1994's ‘brutal exit'
ECB taken to task over SME finance in Central Banking debate
Participants in latest Central Banking On Air debate accuse central banks of 'unreasonably neglecting' SME funding difficulties; question whether the type of assets central banks hold is important
Fischer gives high marks to Bernanke and Draghi
Outgoing Bank of Israel governor Stanley Fischer believes the world owes a great debt to Fed chairman Ben Bernanke and praises ECB president Mario Draghi; says Israel can live with side effects of QE
Bank of Israel’s outgoing chief, Stanley Fischer, on the challenges of central banking
Stanley Fischer believes his work as governor of the Bank of Israel is done. He tells Chris Jeffery about the reform process in Israel as well as the challenges facing the world economy and the IMF
Kansas City Fed article finds markets anticipated QE announcements
Article in the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s latest economic review says that markets foreshadowed changes in asset purchase programme; may have affected long-term interest rates
BIS warns central bank easing is fuelling equity markets
The latest quarterly review released by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) finds that markets are ‘under the spell’ of central banks
ECB's Cœuré says international liquidity must be allowed to flow
The risks from financial protectionism outweigh those of negative spillovers that currently dominate the global debate, argues ECB executive board member Benoît Cœuré
IMF gives its verdict on Abenomics
Article IV statement gives ringing endorsement to QQE in Japan; says ‘spillovers' may have adverse near-term effect on neighbours, but will be offset by benefits of economic strength in Japan
Volcker calls for end to inflation targets
Former Fed chairman tells New York audience the Fed must have the 'backbone' to exit QE before it is too late; says no need for a 'specific target or target zone' for inflation
Fed research digs deeper into operation of QE
Working paper looks at the composition of investors selling assets in the Federal Reserve’s quantitative easing programmes, finding evidence for a ‘preferred habitat’ theory of transmission
Fed minutes hint at end to era of expansion
A number of participants would like to adjust asset purchases downwards as early as next month, pending positive economic data