Debt Management
IMF paper on lending resumption after default
The IMF Working Paper "Lending resumption after default: Lessons from capital markets during the 19th century" mines the experience of capital markets during the 19th century to propose an alternative way of interpreting international default episodes.
Comment: Transparency in EU bond markets
As a rule, transparency in government activities, in regulation and in financial markets is encouraged and regarded as a positive thing. But when it comes to the way governments sell bonds, the authors of a recent study suggest that increasing…
Comment: Central bank governance
Seigniorage revenues have become more important to central banks as many of these institutions are feeling the squeeze financially. How these revenues are spent depend critically on sound governance structures and independence. These are the conclusions…
Changes to RBNZ's Bond Lending Facility
In consultation with the New Zealand Debt Management Office, The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced Friday 21 July that, as from Monday, it will make the following changes to its Bond Lending Facility.
A bond that insures against instability
According to this article published by the Financial Times on Monday 10 July, there has been increasing interest in creating bonds linked to the growth of a countrys' GDP.
RBA paper on optimal monetary policy
The RBA Discussion Paper "Optimal monetary policy with real-time signal extraction from the bond market" sets up a model where the central bank uses real-time data from the bond market together with standard macroeconomic indicators to estimate the…
Israel's Fischer on The Paris Club at Fifty
In the speech 'The Paris Club at Fifty' given on 14 June Stanley Fischer of the Bank of Israel said the Paris Club has become concerned that countries that have received debt relief are borrowing heavily from other official lenders, who are not members…
HKMA's Choi on the debt market of Hong Kong
In the speech 'The debt market of Hong Kong - What can we offer to investors?' given on 13 June Y.K. Choi of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said there are a few fundamental factors which make Hong Kong an ideal place for the bond market.
Treasuries' safe-haven status faces growing threat
According to this article published Wednesday 17 May, long-term threats to the status of Treasury bonds as a safe haven are gathering even as global investors pour money into U.S. government debt.
Shrinking central bank asset buys worry for dollar
Foreign central banks' net purchases of U.S. assets have slumped to a mere $1.6 billion, the lowest in a year, according to this article published Monday 15 May.
Asia's savings glut keeps its bond markets tiny
According to this article published Wednesday 10 May, it is a puzzle why global investors hold almost no debt denominated in Asian currencies when they snap up fixed-income securities that pay in Uruguayan pesos or Brazilian reais.
Comment:Government debt offices gear up for change
Government debt offices play a vital role in managing the cost and risk of government borrowing and in the development of the domestic financial system, but they are frequently overlooked. A recent survey looks at the trends towards concentrated…
New York Fed's Foreign Exchange Operations Report
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Treasury and Federal Reserve Foreign Exchange Operations quarterly report for January-March 2006, published 4 May, the U.S. monetary authorities did not intervene in the foreign exchange markets during…
Chinese official calls for cut in debt holding
China should stop buying U.S. Treasuries and take measures to reduce its holdings in those bonds, a Hong Kong newspaper on Tuesday 4 April quoted a high-ranking Chinese official as saying.
Joint external debt website launched
The Bank for International Settlements, the International Monetary Fund, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Bank announced on Thursday 30 March that they are jointly launching a new website.
Comment: The 'yield conundrum' revisited
Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, made it clear in a speech earlier this week that he is no closer than his predecessor, Alan Greenspan, to making sense of the 'yield conundrum'.
Term structure transmission of monetary policy
According to this December 2005 Kansas City Fed Working Paper, the sensitivity of bond rates to macro variables appears to vary both over time and over forecast horizons.
Bernanke says derivatives make economy resilient
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in a response made public on Wednesday 15 March to a senator's question that derivatives were being well-managed and had bolstered the US economy's resilience to shocks in recent years.
NY Fed welcomes derivatives commitments
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York said on Monday 13 March it welcomes the new commitments by 14 major market participants to continue their progress toward improving the infrastructure that supports the credit derivatives markets.
China considering expansion of HK yuan business
The Chinese government may allow Hong Kong companies to issue yuan-denominated bonds and settle trade transactions using the yuan, in order to expand yuan business in the city, Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China (PBoC) said, according…
IMF upholds sanctions against Zimbabwe
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund met Wednesday 8 March to review Zimbabwe's overdue financial obligations to the Fund and consider the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe.
IMF paper on banks during the Argentine crisis
According to the IMF Working Paper "Banks during the Argentine crisis: Were they all hurt equally? Did they all behave equally?" published February 2006, the simple answer to both questions in the title is: No.
Japan's debt straitjacket is out of style
Amid the euphoria over the end of deflation and a likely change in the Bank of Japan's policy, this recent article says it's easy to forget that Japan remains addicted to borrowed money.
Comment: Zimbabwe's mystery repayment
Two weeks ago the Zimbabwean government managed to avoid expulsion from the IMF by paying off a large chunk of its debt to the Fund. However, the source of the forex-depleted government's finances remains a mystery.