Monetary Policy
Fed's Poole says preemptive Fed action crucial
St. Louis Federal Reserve President William Poole said on Tuesday the US central bank should monitor underlying causes of inflation such as money supply growth to help prevent price pressures from flaring up.
Central Bank of Nigeria slashes minimum rediscount
For the third time this year, the Central Bank of Nigeria has slashed the minimum rediscount rate from 16% to 14%, in a bid to encourage banks to reduce their lending rates.
Iran growth rate at 5%, says central bank
Iran's central bank governor said the economic growth rate stood at 5% in the current Iranian year, state radio reported on Tuesday.
ECB may intervene again - still upward price risks
The European Central Bank is ready to intervene again in foreign exchange markets if it deems it to be necessary, Bundesbank president and ECB governing council member Ernst Welteke said Tueday.
Guatemala moves towards opening up greenback use
Guatemala's ruling Republican Front (FRG) on Tuesday presented a bill to Congress proposing the liberalisation of the country's foreign exchange markets, as the first step toward dollarising the Central American economy.
BOE: Joining euro means return to tax and spend
Sir Eddie George, the governor of the Bank of England, said that the government would have to rely more on taxation and spending policy to control the economy if Britain joined the euro.
Bank of Japan can learn from Sweden on inflation
In a letter to the editor in Financial Times today, Professor Lars Jonung argues that the Bank of Japan can learn from the Riksbank in adopting a zero inflation target.
Stiffer tests for future Eurozone members -Welteke
Ernst Welteke, president of the Bundesbank, has raised concerns about whether the countries preparing to join the European Union in the next few years would be ready to become members of the EU's single currency.
IMF says Turkey policy on track
The International Monetary Fund said in a statement released on its website that the Turkish government's IMF-supported economic programme was on track and is expected to remain so.
Euro has been a success - Banque de France Trichet
Bank of France governor Jean-Claude Trichet said Monday that the euro has been a success since its launch. In a speech in Tokyo, Trichet said that the single European currency has been both a technical success, and a "benchmarking" success - in that the…
Hungary's lower reserve rate seen positive
The National Bank of Hungary said it would cut its effective mandatory reserve rate to 7% from 11% as of 1 February. Analysts said that this would improve the competitiveness of the banking sector, boost growth and stimulate investment.
Bank of Israel cuts key rate 0.2% for December
The Bank of Israel said on Monday it would reduce its key lending rate by 0.2% point to 8.2% effective December 1, the eleventh rate cut in a year.
Polish MPC hits at budget, rate outlook unclear
Poland's monetary policy council raised doubts on Monday about its readiness to cut interest rates next year, when it said the government's plan for cutting the budget deficit relied on "unrealistic" targets.
Pakistan cenbank appoints seven primary dealers
Pakistan's central bank on Monday appointed seven banks as primary money market dealers for the government securities, five months after it announced plans for the new system.
New Czech central banker says sees no big changes
Incoming Czech central bank governor Zdenek Tuma does not expect to make any big changes when he takes over the CNB this week, the daily Mlada Fronta reported.
Sri Lankan economy records moderate growth
Sri Lanka's economy has recorded a moderate growth of some 4.5% during the first nine months of this year, according to the island country's central bank.
Kenya banks try to head off interest rate controls
Kenya's commercial banks have offered to reduce interest rates on their loans in a move aimed at persuading parliament not to introduce tight controls on lending rates.
Economic cooperation between Eurozone and Japan
Sakuya Fujiwara, deputy governor of the Bank of Japan, said at a conference that the Japanese economy was on its way to recovery, although significant structural reforms still needed to take place.
Issing says uncertainty over US economic outlook
European Central Bank member Otmar Issing said investors have become more cautious on the outlook for the dollar and that the U.S. economy is slowing faster than Europe's, an Italian financial paper reported on Saturday.
Euro weakness must be seen in context - Schioppa
European Central Bank council member Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa on Saturday said that the euro's current weakness needed to be judged in light of historical exaggerations in currency swings.
Greek banks to meet ECB reserve regulations
The Bank of Greece said on Friday that effective from 1 January 2001 Greek banks will have to meet European Central Bank regulations on their required reserves.
Polish central bank says no rate cut in Q1 2001
Polish central bank President Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz said on Friday she did not see scope for interest rate cuts in the first quarter of next year but hoped there was room for a cut by the end of the first half of 2001.
Economic integration in the Korean peninsula
Marcus Noland, senior fellow at the Institute for International Economics, has written a paper called "Economic Integration in Koreas: Prospect and Risks" for the ICAS autumn symposium 2000 in Washington, DC.