News/Monetary Policy
BoE's Wadhwani sees UK inflation below 2.5% target
UK - Bank of England monetary policy committee member Sushil Wadhwani said he expects UK inflation to stay below the 2.5 pct official target over the next two years.
BOJ downgrades assessment for 6th month running
JAPAN - The Bank of Japan (BOJ) on Monday downgraded its assessment of Japan's economy for the sixth straight month, saying personal consumption is gradually weakening due to the negative effects of sluggish industrial production on employment and income.
Japan gov't to work with BOJ to tackle deflation
JAPAN - The Japanese government's key policy-setting panel has decided that the government will coordinate policies with the Bank of Japan in an effort to come up with solutions to tackling persistent deflation, according to a memo from the panel's…
Trichet sees 0.3% growth in France in 4th quarter
FRANCE - Bank of France Governor Jean-Claude Trichet expects French economic growth at 0.3% in the fourth quarter of 2001, following estimated 0.3% growth in the third quarter, according to an interview Monday in French daily newspaper La Croix.
Plenderleith: 11 Sep shows fin system resilience
UK - Bank of England executive director Ian Plenderleith said Monday that the world financial markets had done a "fantastic job" in withstanding the shocks following the 11 September attacks on the U.S.
Central bank of Greece goes live with finance kit
GREECE - Trema, the premier provider of financial technology, today announced that Bank of Greece has gone live with Finance KIT after completing the second phase of the implementation project, making it the first central bank to benefit from Trema's pre…
IMF mulls approach on terrorist funding
USA - Pressure from the US to act on terrorist financing has generated a debate within the International Monetary Fund on how it should respond.
OECD forecasts recovery
The OECD's forecasts, while acknowledging that the world may already be in recession, suggest that the recession may not be prolonged and it still expects a sharp recovery next year. "I don't see this as a severe global recession," Chief Economist…
Euro on show in Beijing
An exhibition entitled "The Euro Is Here" has opened at the China Numismatic Museum in Beijing.
NZ's Brash wary of deflation
Speaking at a roadshow aimed at small businesses today the Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Donald Brash stressed that deflation was just as much a concern as inflation with regard to defining price stability.
BOJ reluctant to ease monetary policy
Bank of Japan Governor Masaru Hayami signalled reluctance to loosen monetary policy, doubting that it would have any effect.
NZ res bank won't replace departing dep gov
NEW ZEALAND - The Reserve Bank of New Zealand isn't planning to fill the vacancy about to be created by the departure of one of its deputy governors, Murray Sherwin, officials said Wednesday.
Three cheers for the euro?
The euro received three notes of approval today from the the People's Bank of China, the IMF and the OECD.
Buba's Welteke sees no '01 recession in Germany
GERMANY - Germany's economy is not in a recession and will grow at a small rate "above zero" in 2001, Deutsche Bundesbank President Ernst Welteke told German daily Frankfurter Rundschau in an interview conducted 22 October, but published on Friday.
Hungary's nat bank launch euro info campaign
HUNGARY - The National Bank of Hungary will launch an information campaign on 15 November to help Hungarian individuals to smoothly change their cash holdings in the 12 outgoing European currencies, estimated to be worth some HUF 70bn,NBH vice president…
DUMA won't deprive Russia's c bank of independence
RUSSIA - During a meeting of the working group of the Duma for the bill on the Central Bank on 12 November, deputies failed to come to agreement as to which body, the National Banking Council (NBC) or the Board of Directors, would govern the Central bank.
Central bankers in Ottawa
ECB Council member Ernst Welteke, although saying that monetary policy was appropriate for the eurozone at present, warned of the dangers of money being too loose given the lag for effects to be realised.
November gloom in Japan
Despite leaving monetary policy on hold last week, the Bank of Japan downgraded its assessment of the economy on Monday, expressing concern about the impact of declining exports and output on incomes and consumer spending.
Brussels more confident of successful euro switch
EUROPE - With euro notes and coins less than 50 days away, the European Commission yesterday expressed optimism about a successful changeover from national currencies. The latest monthly Eurobarometer survey registered growing understanding of the single…
Germany may recover soon from economic shock
GERMANY - A German survey yesterday provided the first sign that the shock to economic confidence in the eurozone after the 11 September attacks in the US might be short-lived.
O'Neill: IMF forecast "off by a lot"
US - Responding to the drastically revised growth forecasts for the US in 2002 US Treasury secretary disagreed saying the forecast was "off by a lot".
Japan leaves rates unchanged
JAPAN - As expected, the Bank of Japan made no change to its monetary policy today, following its two-day meeting.
Britons still hold £540m in eurozone currencies
UK - Britons are hoarding more than £540m-worth of eurozone currencies, but only half the population realises the cash will be impossible to spend after February.
Russia c bank tightens banks' gold export controls
UK - The Central Bank of Russia published a directive Thursday obliging commercial banks to submit information on their export of gold ingots to the State Customs Committee within 10 days of the metal leaving the country.