Central Banks
Opposition from big banks to RBA interchange fee curb
Large commercial banks and payments providers warn of damaging impact of regulating interchange fees, but smaller challenger payment systems are broadly in favour
Currency shifts could create ‘dilemma’ for Asian economies
IMF regional economic outlook warns policy-makers could face an ‘uncomfortable trade-off’ between external competitiveness and financial stability
EU risks have intensified, supervisory authorities warn
Risks have worsened since mid-2014, European supervisory authorities say; report recommends including costs arising from misconduct sanctions in future stress tests
Yellen says stability risks ‘not elevated’
Fed chair tells Christine Lagarde she does not see ‘the precursors of a financial crisis’, but singles out high stock valuations as a ‘potential danger’
IMF paper studies interest rate spreads in Pacific Island countries
Economic size, inflation, the quality of bank balance sheets and banking sector concentration influence interest rate spreads in Pacific Island countries, finds working paper
Lift-off for ASX Aussie dollar swap clearing business
Volumes jump in the first three months of the year following revamp of Sydney bourse's clearing incentive scheme
Legal assistance cost Bank of Portugal €2 million in 2014
Bank of Portugal reveals €2 million cost of legal assistance with its intervention in BES, an act it describes as ‘an unprecedented effort to safeguard financial stability’
Ingves draws lessons from Sweden’s economic history
Riksbank governor emphasises the close link between financial stability and monetary policy, while promising to take further action ‘with force’ if necessary
Deeper markets in WAEMU could boost policy transmission
Research published by the IMF finds the transmission of monetary policy is impeded by ‘shallow’ financial markets in the West African Economic and Monetary Union
Gieve: BoE rate hike likely to hinge on election outcome
Former deputy governor John Gieve says victor in May 7 poll will impact BoE’s tightening decision; panellists warn of high uncertainty as no party likely to win outright majority
NBER paper challenges Rey’s monetary policy dilemma
Authors find evidence to support the continued existence of a traditional monetary policy trilemma, casting doubt on Hélène Rey’s theory that the trilemma has broken down
SNB posts record loss in first quarter
Reported total loss is around $32 billion after strong franc weighs on value of central bank's euro reserves
Thailand relaxes capital controls
Bank of Thailand announces measures to make it easier for residents to invest abroad and for foreigners to trade bahts
RBA paper finds high social cost to counterfeiting
Researchers try to put a figure on how much counterfeit banknotes cost the economy; Australian economy suffers from lower counterfeiting than elsewhere
Bundesbank’s Dombret wants more ‘proportional’ supervisory teams
Executive board member says the joint supervisory teams in Europe should be proportionate to the size and significance of the banks they supervise
BIS paper analyses carry trades in Latin America
BIS working paper analyses currency carry trades in Latin America, the attractiveness and visibility of which have suffered in part due to regulatory changes
San Fran Fed research analyses link between inflation targeting and growth
In an economic letter, two researchers find developing economies tend not to experience the same short-term bump in growth rates as advanced economies after adopting a target
Australian dollar jumps despite RBA rate cut
Australian central bank cuts benchmark interest rate to 2%; governor Stevens says currency depreciation 'necessary' amid falling terms of trade
Early contenders emerge as Irish governor announces departure
Central Bank of Ireland governor announces intention to retire later this year, with a handful of names already surfacing as possible successors
Japan shows signs of inflation rebound
Inflation creeps back into positive territory after hitting zero in February, as research by the Bank of Japan suggests inflation may have moved to a new, higher trend
Argentina cabinet chief rejects analysis in IMF report
Argentina needs ‘tighter macroeconomic policies, a weaker exchange rate and less microeconomic distortion,’ argues IMF outlook; cabinet chief dismisses analysis
BIS’s Caruana wants monetary policy to tackle stability and 'spillbacks'
The international monetary and financial system would be a lot safer if central banks set monetary policy with an eye on financial stability and cross-border impacts, BIS general manager says
Fed’s Mester calls for more work on monetary policy and financial stability nexus
Loretta Mester sets out three priorities for research on the consumer credit markets in the United States at conference in Philadelphia