Monetary Policy
Argentina's Cavallo criticizes central bank-media
ARGENTINA - Argentine Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo criticized the central bank on Apr 5 for keeping too tight a lid on bank deposits, arguing the lack of liquidity was partly responsible for high interest rates.
BOK appoints two new assistant governors
SOUTH KOREA - Choi Chang-ho, 54, director of the monetary policy department of the Bank of Korea, and Lee Jae-wook, 55, director of the international department, were promoted on Apr 4 to assistant governors of the central bank.
Optimal monetary policy in a currency area
ARTICLE - Pierpaolo Benigno has written an paper "Optimal monetary policy in a currency area" for the Centre for Economic and Policy Research. The author concludes that the European Central Bank should give a higher weight to inflation in the countries…
Spain's Caruana-eurozone inflationary risks remain
SPAIN - Bank of Spain Governor Jaime Caruana said Apr 4, 2001 that inflationary risks in the euro zone are easing but continue to exist.
RBA Stevens optimistic on economic growth
AUSTRALIA - Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor Glenn Stevens said on Apr 5, 2001 there is genuine uncertainty about Australia's short-term economic outlook, but he expected a return to normal rates of growth, possibly by mid-2001.
Norway c.bank keeps interest rates on hold
NORWAY - Norway's central bank kept interest rates on hold on Apr 4, 2001 and reaffirmed a neutral outlook for rates, in line with analysts' forecasts, after four hikes in key rates in 2000.
Bank of England cuts interest rates by 0.25%
UNITED KINGDOM - The Bank of England cut interest rates by another quarter point on Apr 5, 2001, bowing to pressure from tumbling stock markets and weakening economic data.
BoE Plenderleith comments on sterling bond market
SPEECH - In a speech to a conference organised by the Association of British Insurers on Apr 2, 2001, Ian Plenderleith, executive director of the Bank of England and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee, reviews developments in the sterling non-gilt…
What central banks can and can't do-RBNZ Don Brash
SPEECH - The Reserve Bank of New Zealand's Governor Don Brash is urging people to be realistic about what monetary policy can achieve. Speaking to the Trans-Tasman Business Circle in Sydney, Dr Brash said that "In recent years ... the public have come to…
Financial stability, deflation, & monetary policy
CENTRAL BANK RESEARCH - This working paper by Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond economist Marvin Goodfriend explores the relationship between financial stability, deflation, and monetary policy.He says that monetary policy is a fundamental source of…
Malta cbank predicts steady growth-annual report
MALTA - The Maltese economy is expected to grow between four percent and 4.5 percent in 2001 after 3.8 percent in 2000, central bank governor Michael Bonello said on Apr 3, 2001.
Australia cuts interest rates by 0.5%
AUSTRALIA - Australia's central bank on Apr 4, 2001 cut interest rates by half percentage point to boost consumer confidence and limit the impact of a global slowdown. It was the third reduction at board meetings in a row.
SNB's Bruno Gehrig speech on the euro
SPEECH - Bruno Gehrig, vice-chairman of the Swiss National Bank, gave a speech on Mar 27, 2001 in front of the Swiss Chamber of Industry and Commerce of the Southern Upper-Rhine Region about the euro two years on and its impact on the Swiss economy and…
IMF Koehler urges ECB to cut interest rates
EUROPE - International Monetary Fund Managing Director Horst Koehler called on the European Central Bank on Apr 2, 2001 to cut interest rates in order to help a slowing euro-zone economy.
BoJ new board member against targeting exch rate
JAPAN - The newest member of the Bank of Japan's Policy Board said on Apr 2, 2001 she was neither a monetary policy hawk nor a dove, but questioned whether orthodox policy could loosen deflation's debilitating grip on the economy.
CFA franc withstood Ivorian turmoil - central bank
IVORY COAST - The CFA franc used by eight West African states stood up well to the turmoil in Ivory Coast after a December 1999 army coup and remains a solid currency, the head of the countries' common central bank said on Mar 31, 2001.
Central bank independence in Poland from 1924-26
ARTICLE - In an article in Public Budgeting & Finance, Gail Makinen from the Congress Library looks at the success of Poland's 1924-26 stabilisation plan. She concludes that a balanced budget may be more important to achieving price stability than…
Credibility of Colombia's exchange rate target
ARTICLE - In a fairly technical article in the Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Arturo Jose Galindo from the Inter-American Development Bank analyses the credibility of Colombia's exchange rate target zone. His results suggest that there is…
Trichet casts doubt over ECB rate cut on Apr 11
EUROPE - Following a Franco-German meeting of finance ministers and central bankers, fresh doubt was cast on the prospects for an interest rate reduction when the ECB next meets on Apr 11, 2001.
RBI dividend up 52% contains fiscal deficit
INDIA - A steep increase of over 51 per cent in the dividend payouts by Reserve Bank of India will help the Indian government to contain the fiscal deficit within 5.1 per cent.
Hayami justifies radical monetary easing in March
JAPAN - Bank of Japan Governor Masaru Hayami on Mar 30, 2001 raised the spectre of weak demand tipping the world's second-largest economy into a destructive deflationary spiral.
Brazil cbank forecasts inflation at 4.8% in 2001
BRAZIL - Brazilian inflation, as registered by the IPCA index, should reach 4.8 percent in 2001, above initial forecasts but within government targets, the central bank said Mar 30, 2001.
Iceland considering inflation target for two years
ICELAND - Iceland adopted an inflation target on Mar 28, 2001. Mar Gudmundsson, chief economist of the central bank, said to CentralBankNet that discussions about an inflation target had been going on for two years.
Zambia cbank-debt relief conditions must be met
ZAMBIA - Zambia's central bank warned on Mar 30, 2001 that the southern African country faced a very difficult environment if it failed to meet conditions for a $3.8 billion debt relief package.