Federal Reserve System
Policy-makers could use fraud patterns as economic indicator – paper
Positive relationship exists between bank fraud and the macroeconomy, Chicago Fed risk specialist finds, suggesting fraud could offer an early warning sign of crisis
Latin American countries may be especially exposed to US monetary policy, paper finds
These economies may be more vulnerable than most emerging markets to the normalisation of US monetary policy, claims a Bank of Spain paper
Fed picks McKinsey to scrutinise faster payment proposals
Consultancy firm will assess options for a real-time system across the US, as task force members are invited to submit proposals
Yellen: volatile global outlook calls for gradual hikes
Fed chair soothes market concerns over pace of rate rises, highlighting importance of low rates in offsetting troubles abroad and saying rates will rise more slowly than previously indicated
Philadelphia Fed president warns of ‘mismatch’ between education and business
Patrick Harker says there is a disparity between the education offered and practical skills needed by businesses in the US, which has likely contributed to slow recovery following crisis
Fed QE drives portfolio rebalancing towards foreign assets, Brazil paper finds
Research analyses ‘comprehensive’ dataset for Brazilian capital flows and a smaller one for other EM economies
Fed officials lower expectations of rate increases
Fed officials forecast rate increase of 50bp this year, compared with 100bp in December; Yellen “wary” of recent increase in headline inflation
Brainard warns of segmentation of liquidity
Recent changes in liquidity practices may heighten financial markets’ vulnerability in stressed conditions, Brainard says; downward pressures on inflation remain, she adds
Economists mull how to improve Fed communications
Paper presented at US Monetary Policy Forum encourages Fed to move away from ‘time-based’ forward guidance; considers what kind of new information would be useful to markets
Dudley flags inflation uncertainty and expectations concern
New York Fed president says uncertainties around his assessment of the inflation outlook have increased; warns of slide in household expectations and stresses need for ‘close scrutiny’
Money matters: need for a monetary aggregate revival?
Evidence from the years of the Great Recession justify renewed attention to a broadly defined concept of the quantity of money in central bank research
Sarb’s Lesetja Kganyago on divergent monetary policies and new supervision
The governor of the South African Reserve Bank talks to Christopher Jeffery about navigating divergent monetary policies, South Africa’s new supervisory regime and nurturing new talent
Bank of Canada picks ‘renowned and prolific’ new deputy
Sylvain Leduc chosen as new deputy governor, bringing a lengthy list of publications and a ‘deep understanding’ of the international monetary system; deputy duties also reshuffled
NY Fed’s Potter ‘extremely pleased’ with rate control
The Fed’s framework for controlling money market rates has proven ‘effective’ in the wake of December’s lift-off, according to executive vice-president Simon Potter
Senate committee chair urged to clear backlog of nominees
Nominees to Federal Reserve board of governors among those waiting to learn fate; delay reportedly stems from disagreement over another key Fed post
Ten Fed presidents handed new terms
All presidents and first-vice presidents at the 12 reserve banks now have terms that run to end of February, 2021; Powell insists there was a ‘rigorous process’
FOMC members agree uncertainty over US prospects has ‘greatly increased’
Global uncertainty and financial market volatility increases downside risk for US economy, FOMC members say; committee members express different views over use of fan charts in projections
People: Philadelphia Fed names first VP; five new vice presidents at AIIB
James Narron named vice-president and COO of Philadelphia Fed; five new vice-presidents join executive team at AIIB; and more
Fed’s Harker adopts more cautious tone on policy
Philadelphia Fed president says it may be more 'prudent’ to wait for stronger inflation data before hiking for a second time; sees inflation rising more gradually than before
Bullard challenges ‘backward-looking’ language in Fed statement on goals
James Bullard reveals he disagreed with an element of the Fed’s statement on longer-run goals, believing it failed to capture the importance of future expectations to inflation targeting
Fed’s Kashkari: more needs to be done to end too-big-to-fail
Minneapolis Fed president says 'transformational' approaches, such as breaking up the largest banks, should be given “serious consideration” in quest to end too-big-to-fail
Fischer raises concern over ‘stigma’ around Fed loans
Fed vice-chair Stanley Fischer warns new reporting requirements in the Dodd-Frank Act will “likely add to the challenge of reducing stigma” associated with borrowing from discount window
Yellen says Fed unsure about legal issues surrounding negative rates
Fed chair tells Congressional committee she sees no reason why the Fed could not cut below zero if need be, but legal issues have not been ‘fully investigated’
Caruana marks out dangerous nexus between debt, oil and the US dollar
BIS chief points to interactions of dollar borrowing by emerging markets, US rate hikes and the oil price, as latest data suggests world may be balanced on the edge of a drop in global liquidity