Monetary Policy
Brazilian inflation hits eight-year high
Inflation soared to an eight-year high in November, as Brazil's currency continued to weaken ahead of the transition to a new government next month.
Turkish central banker determined to hit CPI goal
Turkey's new government has little opportunity to alter economic targets under a program of reforms backed by the International Monetary Fund, the country's central bank governor said in an interview Friday.
Argentine central banker offers resignation
Argentine President Eduardo Duhalde said on Friday he would talk to Central Bank chief Aldo Pignanelli next week about Pignanelli's offer to resign.
B of E's George wary of Euro over-regulation
The governor of the Bank of England sounded a veiled note of caution about the European Union on Friday when he presented his vision of how European integration would move forward.
US Treasury secretary O'Neill resigns
President George W. Bush's economic team was in disarray on Friday after Paul O'Neill, US treasury secretary, and Lawrence Lindsey, White House economic adviser, announced their resignations.
Moskow on the economic outlook
SPEECH - In the speech 'Economic Outlook' Michael Moskow of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago said following the Federal Reserves recent half point interest rate cut that, the low-inflation environment has allowed us to maintain an accommodative…
Bank of England Maintains Interest Rates at 4.0%
The Bank of England held rates steady on Thursday after warning of a sharp correction in UK house prices, risks to inflation and minutes from the last meeting showed the MPC moving further away from an easing bias.
ECB Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - Monetary policy decisions, 5 December.
Euro rates slashed to boost growth
Mounting fears over the sluggish eurozone economy have prompted the European Central Bank (ECB) to cut its key interest rate by a half-point, to 2.75%. There have been strong hints in the weeks since the last meeting from governing council members that…
Sveriges Riksbank Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - Repo rate lowered 0.25 percentage points to 3.75 per cent, 5 December.
Sweden reduces interest rates again
Sweden's central bank cut its key repo rate on Thursday for the second time in three weeks, saying it expected inflation to fall below its two percent inflation target as industrial activity deteriorated.
Japan's Takanaka says inflation defeat difficult
Japan's Economy Minister Heizo Takenaka kept up the pressure on the Bank of Japan Thursday to further ease monetary policy. But, as we have previously reported, the Bank is keen to add further stimulation with board member Hidehiko Haru saying last week…
Central Bank of Russia boosts assets 24%
The Central Bank of Russia boosted assets 23.8% in the first ten months of 2002 from 1.713 trillion to 2.120 trillion rubles, including a rise of 2.8% in October, the Central Bank balance sheet shows.
Hayami - Monetary policy a kind of targeting
Bank of Japan Governor Masaru Hayami Thursday dismissed calls for the BOJ to set a target for inflation, saying the central bank didn't have the tools to make such a target credible. A senior politician Taku Yamasaki, said on Wednesday, 'at the very…
China's central bank pledges to keep dollar peg
China's central bank governor has vowed to keep the yuan pegged to the U.S. dollar even as surging foreign investment and a widening trade surplus boost demand for the Chinese currency.
Moderate may head Brazil's central bank
The debate over who will take charge of Brazil's central bank continues as we hear that a moderate economist is going to be appointed by the incoming leftist government to head the Banco Do Brasil, a Brazilian newspaper reported Wednesday. The outgoing…
ECB Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - Review of the quantitative reference value for monetary growth, 5 December.
Monitoring the European Central Bank - Update
RESEARCH - Surviving the Slowdown, Monitoring the European Central Bank Update No. 4, December 2002, authors include David Begg and Paul De Grauwe. MECB 4 describes the challenge for monetary policy and assesses the ECB response. Interest rates fell much…
ECB rate cutting far too slow says report
ECB watcher David Begg had some harsh words to say on the ECB's recent performance, but offered a little sympathy for a central bank that is not allowed to take the credit when it deserves it.
Stevens on Inflation, Deflation and All That
SPEECH - In the speech 'Inflation, Deflation and All That' Glenn Stevens of the Reserve Bank of Australia said the word 'deflation' carries too much emotive baggage and a 'deflation trap' would pose a bigger concern. Australia would be one of the last…
Ferguson on Economic Progress and Small Business
SPEECH - In the speech 'Economic Progress and Small Business' Roger Ferguson of the Federal Reserve focused on economic status of minority Americans. He then turned to the role of small businesses in the US economy, drawing on research on small business…
Welteke on EMU - Experience and Outlook
SPEECH - In the speech 'European Monetary Union - Experience and Outlook' Ernst Welteke of the Deutsche Bundesbank said that in principle, all the Maastricht criteria, including the exchange rate criterion, have to be met before a country can join the…
RBA leaves rates unchanged as expected
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) left interest rates unchanged Wednesday as the shaky global outlook overshadowed a reactively strong domestic economy. After its final meeting for 2002 the RBA left the cash rate at 4.75 per cent.
Economic Perspectives, Fourth Quarter 2002
REPORT - The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago has published its regular quarterly journal of in-depth articles reporting on the Bank's economic research for the Fourth Quarter 2002. This edition includes an article 'Sorting out Japan's financial crisis'.