Central Banks
People: Bank of Portugal appoints ‘temporary’ chief economist; Bank of Spain reveals pride in ECB hire
Isabel Horta Correia named head of economics and research ‘under temporary assignment’ at Bank of Portugal; Ramón Quintana praised by Bank of Spain for ECB success
ECB appoints four SSM department heads
New directors general include a former secretary-general of the BCBS and hires from the central banks of Spain and Finland; ECB endorses Sabine Lautenschläger for its executive board
Israeli paper finds ‘prolonged decline’ in Nairu
Researchers at the Bank of Israel utilise the Phillips and Beveridge curves to estimate the country’s non-accelerating inflation rate of unemployment between 1998 and 2012
Fed minutes reveal QE wind-down balancing act
Reduction in monthly asset purchases of $10 billion meant to signal slow rather than quick tapering; thresholds becoming less relevant as economy improves
ECB 'strengthens' guidance but keeps policy on hold
Mario Draghi says December’s inflation drop was ‘broadly as expected’ and did not warrant a knee-jerk response; places additional emphasis on governing council’s forward guidance
European Commission pushes for Sepa deadline extension
Michel Barnier defies the Eurosystem by pushing for a six-month extension to the February 1 deadline for migration to the Single Euro Payments Area
Hungary minutes show calls to slow rate of cuts
Hungarian monetary policy council decided in December to again cut rates by 20 basis points, but two members argued it was time to slow the rate of easing
Robert Pringle’s Viewpoint: Janet Yellen - that honeymoon feeling
Comparing what the new Fed chief should do with what is likely
Polish paper says monetary policy transmits mainly through real sector
Researchers at the National Bank of Poland build a structural vector-autoregression model that includes both fiscal and monetary policy
People: Maldives nominates female governor; Uribe takes over from Carstens on BIS body
Local bank executive nominated after former governor's sudden resignation; Colombia governor Uribe takes over from Agustin Carstens on BIS Americas council
Turkish banks 'sound' despite 'significant increase' in non-deposit funding, central bank says
Lenders' asset quality and capital adequacy high enough to withstand shocks according to new financial stability report; liquid FX assets cover 'half' of sector's short-term external debt
Riksbank board grappling with ‘genuine policy dilemma'
Minutes show last month's cut in interest rate was preceded by considerable apprehension, with one board member describing it as his ‘most difficult' decision to date at the central bank
RBI committee wants a bank account for every adult by 2016
A report on financial inclusion released by the Reserve Bank of India calls for all residents to have a universal bank account, and an electronic payment point within a 15-minute walk
People: Lautenschläger for ECB board; IMF's García set for Chile central bank
EU leaders nominate Bundesbank deputy, in charge of banking supervision, to take German spot on ECB executive; Chile's IMF director to join national central bank; and more
Yellen approved as Fed chairwoman
US Senate approves Janet Yellen as Federal Reserve's first female chair, in closest vote to date; adjusting unconventional policies to improving economic conditions ‘greatest challenge', says analyst
HKMA backs public ownership as resolution tool
Proposals for new resolution regime in Hong Kong include the temporary public ownership of failed financial institutions in the proverbial toolbox
Singapore intensifies efforts to cut banknote waste
Monetary Authority of Singapore unveils a social networking campaign that encourages the public to refrain from giving brand new banknotes to each other at Chinese New Year
Philippines governor unperturbed by inflation surge
Amando Tetangco insists the inflation environment is ‘manageable’ despite annual CPI almost doubling in the past four months; central bank hits target for fifth consecutive year
Bernanke looks back on his time at the top
Fed chairman, who steps down on February 1, offers his take on an array of issues, including the long-term implications of asset purchases, central bank accountability and financial stability reforms
New York Fed's Dudley lists presidential attributes
The president of the New York Fed need not be an economist, says Dudley; they must, however, be open-minded, pragmatic and have a strong research team behind them
Flug turns Bank of Israel focus to financial stability
Central bank's 'workplan' for 2014 centres on financial stability reforms; governor tells Knesset that stress tests show banking system is strong, but operating efficiency remains low
Bank of Italy share capital revalued
Italian government revalues central bank’s share capital at €7.5 billion; ECB rebukes finance ministry for jumping the gun