Unemployment
Central banks need to be wary of ‘new’ monetary policy trends
Policy-makers are reappraising the role of independent central banks pursuing inflation targets. Bernd Braasch1 encourages them to use sound evidence to inform their judgements
San Francisco Fed dissects long-term unemployment
Long-term unemployment has ‘persisted remarkably’ since outset of recession; should disappear over time as economic activity increases
National Bank of Denmark expects recovery
Central bank says domestic demand and GDP growth will improve in 2013; existing unemployment should not have lasting impact
Bank of Spain charts economy’s downward acceleration
Data for fourth quarter show economy continuing to spiral downward, with contractions in growth and demand gaining pace
Bank of Israel paper advocates inflation sacrifice when wages are rigid
Research says controlling inflation requires a greater sacrifice of economic output and employment when there are frictions in the labour market
Book notes: First Principles: Five Keys to Restoring America's Prosperity
The author's premise is that the best way to understand the problems confronting the American economy is to go back to the first principles of economic freedom upon which the country was founded
Fed’s Beige Book finds ‘measured’ improvement despite hurricane damage
Survey of economic sentiment maintains cautious optimism in the US in face of hurricane damage and rising fears over ‘fiscal cliff’
Fed paper presents improved model of inflation and unemployment
Authors develop a bivariate model that they believe improves upon univariate benchmarks
Banque de France plans to reduce regional presence
French central bank outlines development goals for 2020; set to decrease the number of regional sites, will lose up to 2,000 staff
Fed’s Bernanke looks beyond broad market indicators
Fed chairman warns key aggregate metrics can miss economic pain felt by individuals and households; encourages development of economic measures to better assist with policy decisions
IMF calls for further action to repair Spanish economy
Article IV report praises ‘major policy actions’ by Spanish government, but says further efforts must be made; Fund also encourages progression of European measures
Regional Fed presidents express fears over economic recovery
Charles Evans and Eric Rosengren warn about struggling economic recovery; focus on employment figures as key indicator of persistent problems in the US
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
Bundesbank raises 2012 growth prediction
German central bank records marginally more positive growth expectation for the economy this year; still harbours significant concerns on key issues such as unemployment
Finland’s Liikanen discusses causes of youth unemployment
Bank of Finland governor examines causes of youth unemployment in Europe; says labour market functioning will be important determinant of recovery speed
Philadelphia Fed reports slowing manufacturing growth
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia releases May 2012 Business Outlook Survey; finds slower manufacturing growth
Central Bank of Cyprus governor warns austerity is not enough
Panicos Demetriades calls on government to work alongside the central bank in getting the economy back on track; acknowledges impact the crisis in Greece is having on Cyprus
Draghi calls for growth to top the agenda for eurozone
ECB president Mario Draghi calls for 'growth compact' to complement fiscal compact in eurozone; says individual countries need to meet responsibilities on fiscal consolidation
IMF research links wage growth and unemployment in South Africa
Fund working paper asserts link between wage rate growth exceeding productivity growth and rising unemployment in South Africa
Governor of Bangladesh Bank discusses working population ratio
Atiur Rahman says Bangladesh must prepare for when the large working population becomes elderly
NY Fed paper examines workforce skill across US
Staff paper finds different skill sets in different regions of the country; urban areas have more workers with ability to generate ideas and solve complex problems
BIS working paper studies inflation dynamics
Bank for International Settlements researchers investigate inflation dynamics in the presence of informal labour markets
Israel releases latest economic update
Inflation over whole of 2011 was 2.2%; country reached vicinity of full employment in the first half of last year
Wickman-Parak on limitations of unemployment gap in setting policy
Riksbank deputy governor Barbro Wickman-Parak says role of resource utilisation and unemployment gap in monetary policy decision-making should not be overstated