Central Banks
Draghi reasserts ECB’s willingness to act
Mario Draghi says there cannot be any limit to how far the ECB is willing to deploy its instruments within its mandate, after easing package meets with lukewarm reaction on markets
French and German central banks cut inflation projections for next two years
Falling energy prices main factor in downward revision of German and French central banks’ projected inflation rates for 2016 and 2017
Consensus key for moving forward in Greece, says central bank
Bank of Greece stresses need for ‘unobstructed’ implementation of creditor agreement, as it publishes latest interim report on monetary policy
Argentina’s president elect aims to dismantle complex capital controls
‘Macri-economics’ could consist of unwinding capital controls, boosting export competitiveness and unifying exchange rates, but it will be a challenge, observers say
Policy-makers need better models and data on bank and non-bank links, Fischer says
Data on a range of activities remains ‘inadequate’, while research has only shed ‘partial light’ on issues surrounding troubled financial institution during the crisis, Fischer says
Bloomberg to chair FSB’s climate change task force
Financial Stability Board says industry-led task force will develop recommendations for consistent climate-related financial risk disclosures; ex-New York City mayor to chair group
Shift to single currency increased volatility of money growth, paper argues
The shift to European monetary union had a major impact on the volatility of money growth rates in the eurozone, a working paper from the Banque de France argues
Ex-governor calls for tighter cap on government borrowing from Malawi central bank
Former governor campaigns for greater operational independence of the Reserve Bank of Malawi and further protection against fiscal dominance
RMB now second most used payments currency between China and Japan
The Chinese currency more than doubles share of payments between China/Hong Kong and Japan in two years, eclipsing US and Hong Kong dollars while yen retains number one spot
BoJ’s Kiuchi wants to reduce flow of QQE
Board member says reduced flow of asset purchases would help relieve ‘excessive pressure’ on the Japanese government bond market and make monetary policy more ‘sustainable and stable’
Riksbank deputy open to scrapping CPI as target variable
Quirks of Swedish CPI make it awkward for use as the monetary policy target variable, Per Jansson says; bringing back tolerance band also a possibility
Bank of Israel unveils real-time payments plan
New payments infrastructure will support push for advanced electronic payments; committee chair identifies plans for wide range of payments improvements, including real time
Bank of Russia presents strategic plan for financial sector
Bank of Russia aims to create financial ombudsman, update regulatory regime and develop bond market as part of first strategic development plan
ECB extends asset purchases to March 2017 or beyond and cuts deposit rate
European Central Bank will continue buying assets until at least March 2017 as part of latest easing package; Draghi describes deposit rate as ‘driver’ of policy as council cuts it to -0.3%
Sarb deputy sees opportunity for reserve managers in Fed hike
Daniel Mminele encourages reserve managers to focus on the ‘investment horizon’ to take advantage of higher yields in the wake of Fed action
Advice can affect clients' mortgage choices, says BIS paper
Banks may ‘steer’ households towards certain mortgage types; distorted information has a stronger affect when prices are not adjusted
Yellen signals growing confidence ahead of Fed decision
Fed chair expects some key headwinds to inflation to diminish next year; continued improvements in labour market and stable expectations help ‘bolster’ her confidence in a return to target
Domestic euro users bear highest shoe leather costs, Bank of Italy paper finds
Euros circulate widely outside the eurozone, transferring some costs to foreigners – but the effect is small relative to the popularity of the euro as a global currency