Economics
Lagarde raises doubts over Greek reform package
Troika institutions give Greek bailout package the go-ahead, but IMF managing director says current reform framework ‘is not conveying clear assurances’ in many areas
Greek crisis meeting gets go-ahead despite German challenge
A meeting of the Eurogroup will take place Friday after Greece yesterday sought a six-month bailout extension, but Germany has moved quickly to challenge the proposed compromise
Haldane says ‘cocktail’ of psychology and sociology behind divergent growth
BoE chief economist draws on history, sociology and psychology – as well as economics – in seeking to explain why growth rates differ so widely
Bundesbank says German recovery is faster than expected
Monthly report highlights ‘remarkable’ rebound of German economy, leading forecasts to be revised upwards; oil and euro depreciation behind the boost
IMF paper finds weak link between Islamic banking and financial inclusion
Empirical link between Islamic banking and financial inclusion ‘tentative and relatively weak’; researchers suggests ways financial inclusion could be better served by sharia-compliant banks
Latest round of Greek bailout talks collapses
Discussions over extending Greece’s bailout collapsed late last night after the country's finance chief Yanis Varoufakis rejected a plan by the Eurogroup to continue with the current programme
Minneapolis Fed research criticises China's 'quid pro quo' policy
Staff report finds ‘significant impact’ on innovation and welfare from China’s continued policy of exchanging market access for technology – good for China, but not for advanced economies
Banque de France paper tackles ‘elasticity of poverty’
Researchers examine the extent to which growth in different sectors translates into a reduction in poverty for countries in Africa; commodity-driven economies particularly bad for the poor
Growth of finance sucks skill from real economy, BIS paper warns
Financial growth crowds out real growth by drawing skilled labour away from other industries, with R&D hit particularly hard, a working paper by Stephen Cecchetti and Enisse Kharroubi finds
Japan at a turning point but liquidity risks loom, say panellists
Panel at Japan Securities Summit including BoJ’s Takehiro Sato believes Japan’s ‘certain, coordinated and creative’ policy mix will deliver the first turnaround in 20 years
G-20 leaders plan to scrutinise reform efforts
Leaders reaffirm commitment to reforms designed to raise global growth two percentage points and agree ‘robust monitoring framework’; OECD says reform progress has been patchy
Sama governor calls for subsidy cuts
Fahad Al-Mubarak says the Saudi Arabian economy is being hampered by various inefficiencies, including excessive subsidies on energy and water
ECB publishes new economic bulletin
The first in the new series, introduced to ‘mirror’ new governing council meeting cycle, features an assessment of the Chinese economic outlook
Czech paper examines link between financial variables and macroeconomy
Financial variables ‘particularly relevant’ in explaining Czech macroeconomic developments in the lead-up to and during downturns, researchers find
Researchers find evidence of ‘European unemployment cycle’
Working paper published by The Netherlands Bank separates the different origins of unemployment in Europe, finding the continent- and country-level factors most influential
Basel Committee: Microfinance firms may far exceed supervisory capacity
Some banking supervisors may be struggling to cope with the vast number of small firms they are expected to oversee, finds a survey of the interaction between financial inclusion and regulation
BIS paper argues debt overhang is ‘leading cause’ of sluggish growth
Paper by Stephanie Lo and Ken Rogoff finds debt overhang is the main factor behind countries struggling to recover from crisis, but high leverage may obscure other factors at play
Syriza reaction: Exit fears overblown but bitter struggles to come
Economists respond to Greece’s new Syriza-led coalition government with mixed feelings, but see an exit from the euro as unlikely despite the coming north-south confrontation
Colombian paper examines synchronisation of economic cycles in Latin America
Central Bank of Colombia working paper finds there is ‘not a high’ level of synchronisation between a sample of seven Latin American countries
Productivity performance sparks uptick in US entrepreneurship, finds Boston Fed paper
‘Modest improvement' in 2012 and 2013 follows a 'significant decline' in firm creation after the financial crisis to the lowest level since 1977
UK’s FCA declares success in nudging savers towards new products
Occasional paper presents results of trial involving over 20,000 consumers to see if they could be encouraged to seek higher returns; produced ‘notable difference’ in behaviour
Lower productivity behind growth slowdown in African middle-income countries, IMF paper finds
Slowdown in total factor productivity 'largely responsible' for weaker growth in small middle-income African economies, authors argue
DNB paper calls for ‘fundamental overhaul' of Dutch pensions system
Central bank says current system has ‘opaque redistributive elements that are difficult to justify' and puts some generations ‘at a disadvantage in favour of others'
Bundesbank paper: German banks use specific loan loss provisions counter-cyclically
Banks increase level of loan loss provisions during upswings and decrease them during downturns, authors find; contrasts with results from other countries