Opinion

Comment: More autonomy for the PBOC?

The IMF board is plainly split on what attitude to adopt towards China's exchange rate policy but has come out usefully supporting moves to give the People's bank of China more discretion in setting interest rates.

Comment: Sarbanov should be supported

Ulan Sarbanov, governor of the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan, has been placed under house arrest. The accusation against him is that he abused his power during the rule of the deposed president Askar Akayev.

Fed may pause for political reasons

Following the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, the outcome of the Federal Reserve's next FOMC meeting is up for grabs, this article published on Tuesday 6 September suggests. The answer isn't just a question of policy, politics may be involved as…

Comment: Time for central banks to modernise

During the last 20 years, most central banks have been given much more policy autonomy and independence. Along with this have come pressures for more accountability and transparency. This is entirely appropriate as independence and accountability should…

Asia can fight speculators without its own IMF

The Indonesian authorities plan to seek $6 billion in standby funds from Japan to bolster the country's depleting foreign reserves has seen the Indonesian currency slump to a four-year low, this article published on Tuesday 6 September reports.

Comment: Smaghi calls for fiscal synchronisation

Writing in the Financial Times on September 8, Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a member of the ECB's executive board, called on member states to improve the synchronisation of the their budgets in order to strengthen the economic governance of the Euro area.

U.K. interest rates are heading for a decline

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee will decide on UK interest rates this Thursday. This article published on Wednesday 7 September suggests there will no surprise when the MPC leaves interest rates unchanged at 4.5 per cent, but rates are…

News from SIBOS banking conference

Jean-Michel Godeffroy, director general of payment systems at the European Central Bank, was at the centre of several key debates at the SIBOS conference in Copenhagen on Wednesday 7 September.

Fed may raise rates even after Hurricane Katrina

According to this article published on Tuesday 6 September, the outcome of the next Federal Reserve meeting scheduled for two weeks from today, is not a foregone conclusion, for the first time in nearly two years.

Why Indonesia must consider abolishing rupiah

This article published on 1 September asks what is the good of having a monetary authority when it can't protect the purchasing power of the currency it issues? The crisis of confidence surrounding Indonesia's rupiah is prompting some analysts to ask if…

Comment: Bank of Italy reforms

As pressure mounts on the Italian prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, to take definitive action in the ongoing saga surrounding the position of Bank of Italy governor, Antonio Fazio, market analysts will also have one eye on some of the more fundamental…

Greenspan the 'risk manager'

The recent Jackson Hole conference provided another peek into the mind of a central banker who has kept Wall Street guessing for two decades, this article writes. The essence of Greenspan's approach, it says, is to anticipate and accommodate possible…

Oil price rise leads to C-word use in Asia

This article published onb Friday 2 September says that when respected and sober Asian economists start using the word 'crisis' in reference to surging oil prices it's time to take them seriously.

Comment: Risks in housing finance

Personal debt levels in the UK and USA are at record highs, while savings rates have fallen to record lows. As concerns grow over the risks posed to financial stability and economic performance, central banks and regulators are having to consider how…

Comment: UK's 50-year indexed gilt

The UK will combine two growing trends in sovereign debt issuance when it issues the world's first 50-year index-linked gilt in November.

Greenspan's legacy - 'Greatest central banker'

This article published Monday looks at a paper presented at the recent conference held by the Kansas Fed in Jackson Hole. Although the paper criticises that "much of the secret of Greenspan's success remains a secret" - according to the article this is…

Comment: How to account for gold?

Opinions on whether gold is a good investment for central banks vary, but what is beyond dispute is that the different methods of accounting for gold in their balance sheets and income statements is a source of endless confusion.

Money separates European Central Bank from Fed

According to this article published on Tuesday 30 August, in the old days, bond traders had a singular, stock response to a surge in oil prices and the onset of natural disasters, such as hurricanes: Sell Treasuries.

Comment: Summer roundup

For subscribers returning to their offices after the summer break - and for anybody wishing to catch breath before the autumn season - here is a check list of topics that have bubbled to the surface recently and are likely to remain of concern to central…

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