Central Banks
Birr plunges 15% as Ethiopia devalues currency
Move aims to tackle “severe” forex shortage; IMF recommends higher interest rates and more flexible exchange rate
FOMC split over inflation forecasts, minutes show
Participants expressed concern that low inflation this year might reflect not only transitory factors
London-based banks face ECB Brexit power grab
Drive to supervise swaps books from Frankfurt threatens cross-border balance sheet management
IMF cautions global vulnerabilities put growth at risk
Fund calls central banks to provide needed monetary support while tackling underlying threats
Bahamian central bank proposes law change to cap government debt holdings
New legal framework for Bahamas central bank would enforce “comprehensive” limits on government debt; holdings of long-term government debt stand at 12.52%
Emerging market incomes continue to grow despite trade impacts – Lagarde
Trade has not impacted emerging markets as negatively as their advanced counterparts, Lagarde says, as incomes continue to grow
BoE introduces new counterfeit initiative for ‘front line of defence’
New checking scheme will employ “targeted training” for cash handlers while retailers will help central bank gather data on current practices
Stressed banks may hamper deleveraging in eurozone periphery – ECB paper
Researchers use data on more than 400,000 companies and 900 banks from seven eurozone countries
Japan’s ineffective efforts at monetary easing
A study of the natural rate of interest indicates the Bank of Japan’s QQE may not have been as accommodative as claimed, Sayuri Shirai argues. The failings appear to be related to effectiveness, rather than scale
Swing pricing can help ease liquidity pressure – BIS paper
Open-ended mutual funds can mitigate the risk of “self-fulfilling” runs by using the pricing technique, researchers say
Fed policy has had bigger impact on global liquidity since 2009
A 25bp rate cut causes a cross-border lending growth to rise of two percentage points, versus 0.8 before the crisis, researchers find
Danish central bank critical of fiscal easing plans
As growth accelerates and inflation rises the economy risks overheating, the central bank says
DNB warns of overheating in Dutch housing market
Government should raise borrowing limits and reduce mortgage interest tax relief – DNB
Fed should have adopted BoE approach to mortgage lending – Tarullo
BoE’s approach to leveraged lending aimed to prevent “hard stop”, Cunliffe says; caps on mortgage lending were enforced by UK central bank in 2014
Irish firms must plan for ‘hard Brexit’, central bank official says
The UK’s exit from the single market is within the “planning horizon”, says Gerry Cross
Ethiopia launches ‘first of its kind’ swap agreement with Sudan
Central banks to swap $16 million under new agreement designed to strengthen financial co-operation and ease Ethiopia’s foreign exchange pressures
IMF recommends Spain take a tougher approach on NPLs
Fund advises central bank to set up a group to oversee public asset management company Sareb
Bank of Canada paper studies capital control motivations
Researcher designs policy rule to study whether capital controls are imposed with “mercantilist” or “macro-prudential” motivations
ECCB strategic plan aims for ‘transformation’
Eastern Caribbean must address high unemployment and low growth, governor says
IMF: global recovery is broad but incomplete
Fund ups its growth forecasts but says many are missing out; Maurice Obstfeld urges policymakers to take action while “times are good”