Monetary Policy
Communist Laos admits failures in managing economy
The secretive communist Laotian government said on Mar 13, 2001 it had mismanaged the economy over the past five years, triggering hyperinflation and a tumbling currency.
Financial Innovation and Monetary Transmission
SEMINAR - The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is hosting a conference titled "Financial Innovation and Monetary Transmission" from Apr 5-6, 2001. This seminar will offer insight into how the enormous changes that are going on in the financial sector…
Recent US data 'quite encouraging' - BoE George
Central bankers from the Group of l0 industrialized nations believe a pick-up in the U.S. economy during the second half of this year "remains the most likely outcome," Eddie George, current chairman and head of the Bank of England, said on Mar 12, 2001.
BoF forecast Finnish inflation above euro-zone avg
Finnish inflation would stay above euro-zone levels and buoyant domestic demand could feed price pressures though the overall inflation outlook had improved, the central bank said on Mar 12, 2001.
Argentine peso peg to include euro,yen-Cavallo
Former Argentine Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo, who reportedly has been offered the job of central bank chief, said in a press interview he favored alterations to foreign exchange policy.
Effect of booming economy on US trade deficit
RESEARCH PAPER - The robust growth of the U.S. economy between 1996 and 1999 spurred U.S. demand for foreign goods and contributed to a surge in the U.S. trade deficit. An analysis by the New York Fed of the effects of the expansion on the trade balance…
Fed's Ferguson-monetary policy unhurt by mergers
A global wave of financial mergers and acquisitions in the 1990s, totaling 7,500 deals valued at about $1.6 trillion, has not affected central banks' ability to set interest rates, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson said Mar 9, 2001.
India's Jalan says bias to cut rates remains
The governor of India's central bank, which cut interest rates twice in recent weeks, said he continues to have a bias toward easing rates.
On the Long and Short of Central Bank Independence
This paper by Alberto Musalem of the International Monetary Fund finds that higher central bank independence increases fiscal discipline and results in lower inflation. However, it finds that higher central bank independence does not necessarily lead to…
Euro entry means democracy deficit-Swedish cbanker
Swedes would be less able to call the people who decide their monetary policy to account if the country joined the EU's single currency, the deputy governor of the country's central bank said on Mar 8, 2001.
Bank of England holds rates at 5.75% for now
The Bank of England left its key interest rate steady at 5.75 percent on Mar 8, declining to cut rates despite a deteriorating global economic outlook.
Solomons stares into economic abyss- cbank chief
The Solomon Islands is just weeks away from economic collapse, with a real risk the South Pacific nation will simply disintegrate, the country's central bank governor, Rick Houenipwela, warned on Mar 7, 2001.
US rebound likely later this year-McDonough,Moskow
William McDonough and Michael Moskow, in separate speeches on separate continents, said on Mar 8 that a rebound was likely later in 2001.
Yen crashes to 20-month lows against dollar
The yen fell beyond 120 to the dollar for the first time in 20 months on Mar 7, 2001 as expectation grew that Japan would tolerate a weaker yen to bolster its flagging economy.
Berlin cbank president opposes ECB rate cut-paper
The European Central Bank shouldn't move to cut interest rates before euro-zone inflation reaches 2.2%, Landeszentralbank president Klaus-Dieter Kuehbacher said in an interview.
RBA cuts official cash rate by 25 bps to 5.50%
The Reserve Bank of Australia announced on Mar 7, 2001 it had cut the official cash rate target to 5.50 per cent, from 5.75 per cent, but was criticised for past policy mistakes by the prime minister.
Fed says U.S. economy grew sluggishly early 2001
The U.S. economy grew at a "sluggish to modest" pace at the start of the 2001, helped by slightly stronger consumer spending as retailers cut prices to clear their shelves, the Federal Reserve said on Mar 7, 2001 in its Beige Book.
Impact of macro news announcements on exch rates
Andrew Clare and Roger Courtenay from the Bank of England have written an interesting paper titled "Assessing the impact of macroeconomic news announcements on securities prices under different monetary policy regimes". The study investigates whether the…
Bank of Canada cuts key rate to 5.25 pct from 5.75
The Bank of Canada on Mar 6, 2001 cut the bellwether bank rate to 5.25 percent from 5.75 percent,and the overnight rate to 5.0 percent from 5.5 percent, saying weakening confidence could delay the economy's recovery in the United States and damage Canada…
S.Africa still unaware of new MPC policy-Mboweni
South African markets are still not fully aware of the fact that the central bank has introduced a new monetary policy regime which focuses on inflation targetting, central bank governor Tito Mboweni said.
Kazakh cbank says lower taxes boon for economy
Kazakhstan's central bank on Mar 6, 2001 welcomed an order by the president to cut key taxes and said this was likely to slash inflation, boost bank loans to the economy and help sustain the Central Asian state's growth.
CNB Board members backed Feb 22 rate cut by 6-1
Six members of the CNB Board voted in favour of the cut in the two-week repo rate by 0.25 percentage points to 5 pct, and one member was in favour of leaving rates at their current level, according to the minutes of the CNB Board meeting held on Feb 22…
Central Bank of Iceland Q1 monetary bulletin
The Central Bank of Iceland published it quarterly Monetary Bulletin on Mar 6, 2001. There is an overview of economic developments in Iceland and the measures taken to slow the economy. There is also an article by chief economist Mar Gudmundsson on…
Contribution of IT to productivity growth-BoJ
Yoshihito Saito from the Bank of Japan International Department has written a paper "The Contribution of Information Technology to Productivity Growth-International Comparison". This paper examines the following: (1) the contribution of IT to labor…