Central Banks
Updated 50 Bermuda dollar banknote enters circulation
New 50 Bermuda dollar banknote issued by Monetary Authority; includes new image of a longtail bird and reworked prefix on the serial number
Bank of Korea strikes melancholy note in policy announcement
South Korea notes struggling economic scenes both at home and abroad; MPC decides to hold benchmark rate as a consequence
Banque de France predicts output contraction in Q3
Survey on Industry and Services shows French businesses expect growth to contract by 0.1% in third quarter of 2012; figures show steady deterioration in sentiment since mid-2010
National Bank of Hungary divided over policy stance
Minutes of the National Bank of Hungary’s July monetary policy meeting show disagreement among council members over rate decision; vote split 5:2 in favour of hold
Governor of Bangladesh Bank discusses increasing workforce
Atiur Rahman says Bangladesh must 'make the most' of low dependency ratio in population over next 10 years; urges pursuit of job-creating growth strategies
Bank of Israel report warns of further downward revision to growth
Monetary policy report for first half of 2012 shows continuation of moderate growth but says if current indications of a slowdown do not change, the forecast will have to be revised down
King says black clouds remain over UK economy
Governor of the Bank of England reveals lower growth prediction for UK; inflation also expected to fall but King denies country faces a lost decade
Bernanke stresses importance of Fed independence
Chairman of the Federal Reserve highlights provisions in place to safeguard independence of the US central bank; discusses common fiscal authority for Europe
Indian government appoints new RBI director
Arvind Mayaram appointed as new member of Reserve Bank of India’s central board of directors; becomes one of two government representatives on the board
Irish financial accounts highlight increase in government liabilities
Quarterly financial accounts for Ireland show levels of government liabilities rising to historic peak; household debt declines slightly over the quarter
SNB reveals scale of latest foreign exchange purchases
Swiss National Bank posts large increase in foreign exchange holdings from June to July; purchases represent efforts by central bank to prevent safe-haven flows into country
Banque de France paper highlights risks of financial markets opacity
Researchers find imperfect information on financial intermediaries’ exposures encourages risk-taking; suggest low interest rates and ‘gambling for resurrection’ raise systemic risk
Governor of Bank of Ghana becomes vice-president
Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur sworn in as deputy to president John Dramani Mahama; no news on replacement at the helm of the central bank
Senior official exodus continues at National Bank of Serbia
Chairmen and two members of the National Bank of Serbia’s Council of the Governor resign in protest at amendments to central bank law; parliament appoints Jorgovanka Tabakovic governor
Kenyan governor under fire over banknote printing contracts
Njuguna Ndung’u faces second public attack from politicians this year; latest complaint concerns handling of tender process for printing Kenyan banknotes
National Bank of Belgium paper studies effect of shocks on US trade balance
Working paper analyses link between shocks to the marginal efficiency of investment and the US trade balance; argues this constitutes a significant element in forecasting US trade fluctuations
Central Bank of Ireland paper outlines changes to country’s European funding
Quarterly bulletin examines Ireland’s reliance on funding from Europe; highlights a decline in borrowing from Europe and an increase in Target2 liabilities
Israel’s Fischer expresses hope that living standards will overtake the West
Stanley Fischer says growth in Israel remains reasonable and above that of the West; warns government must press ahead with agreed fiscal measures to create ‘position of strength’
Australia and Sri Lanka leave rates on hold
Reserve Bank of Australia and Central Bank of Sri Lanka highlight worsening economic conditions around the world as they announce benchmark rates will remain unchanged
Serbian vice-governor resigns as amended central bank law passed
Bojan Marković follows Dejan Šoškić and quits central bank; amendments to central bank law passed despite opposition from IMF, European Commission and World Bank