Central Banks
Boston Fed: poor subsidise card payment transfers of rich
Boston Federal Reserve paper shows low income households subsidise the cost of card payment transfers for high income households through higher relative prices
Fed finally set for full complement of governors
Senate Banking Committee okays Janet Yellen for Fed vice-chair; Peter Diamond and Sarah Raskin also approved for Fed board; first time six governors have served the Fed in more than four years
Kosovo’s incarcerated governor hit with fresh charges
Kosovo’s central bank governor Hashim Rexhep charged with allegedly abusing official position and receiving bribes
ECB closes in on inferior collateral with new haircut scheme
European Central Bank’s new discount schedule increases haircuts levied on troublesome collateral, such as asset-backed securities; analysts expect move to discourage pledging of risky assets
Buba’s Sarrazin under racial hatred investigation
German prosecutors launch investigations into racist comments made by Bundesbank executive board member Thilo Sarrazin; central bank maintains silence over controversy
Venezuela’s Merentes announces plans to reopen foreign dollar-denominated bond market
Central Bank of Venezuela president Nelson Merentes says market will accept bonds from South American neighbours
Bank of England – Asset Purchase Facility Annual Report (2009/10)
Asset Purchase Facility Annual Report shows Bank £1.75 billion down on back of decline in value of gilt stock
Fed’s response averted a depression: Blinder
A paper co-authored by former Federal Reserve governor Alan Blinder says the central bank’s extraordinary polices prevented the country from entering a second Great Depression
Bank of Canada: firms don’t smooth inventories
Bank of Canada study shows high costs attached to inventories deters firms from smoothing inventory ahead of countercyclical swings
National Bank of Slovakia – Monthly Bulletin (June 2010)
National Bank of Slovakia’s June Monthly Bulletin shows inflation was lower than expected for the month
RBI attempts to soothe market jitters with more rate reviews
Reserve Bank of India will release four extra monetary policy reviews per year in a bid to keep investors calm; decision brings it in line with bulk of major central banks
Eurozone banks tighten standards as loan demand grows
European Central Bank’s second quarter lending survey shows banks toughening standards for borrowers, reflecting unease from sovereign debt crisis spillover; demand, meanwhile, increases
King parries claims Bank will get too much power
Bank of England governor Mervyn King says creation of the Financial Policy Committee will not make central bank too powerful
King stresses wait-and-see approach to rate-setting
Bank of England governor Mervyn King dismisses suggestions that one or another view dominates rate-setting committee; deputy Charles Bean reiterates question marks over effects of quantitative easing
Policy produces dull but safe banks
In the second of a six-part series on the Japanese economy, Robert Pringle reports from Tokyo on how the crisis has impacted the nation’s global outlook
Central Bank of Turkey – Inflation Report (July 2010)
Central Bank of Turkey’s Inflation Report for July showed lending in credit markets picked up after yields on government debt fell
Expansionary policy commitment redundant: Norges Bank
Norges Bank study says low interest rate rhetoric at central banks ineffective under neo-classical Phillips curve model
Central Bank of Sri Lanka – Annual Report (2009)
Sri Lankan central bank’s Annual Report for last year says country’s escape from high inflation allowed it to focus efforts on growth
CEPR: Central banks stuck in interest rate trap
Centre for Economic Policy Research study says central banks will inevitably end up in a low interest rate trap during a crisis