Europe
Bank of Italy outlines downside risks as inflation falls
Annual HICP inflation fell to 0.1% according to December estimate, just below eurozone average; Bank of Italy warns that international situation poses ‘significant risks’ to European recovery
Croatia makes it 25 central banks in Target2
The Croatian National Bank will, along with 24 commercial banks in the country, participate in the RTGS system from February 1, making it the fifth central bank outside the eurozone to join
ECB's Cœuré wants ‘corrective arm’ of EU tool used ‘forcefully’
European Central Bank executive board member stresses importance of sustainable rebalancing in the eurozone; wants to see potential of macroeconomic imbalance procedure realised
Survey data offers chance to assess eurozone macro-prudential policies, paper argues
Data from the eurozone’s Bank Lending Survey can be used to analyse the effectiveness of different macro-prudential policies, an IMF working paper argues; subject is little known, researchers say
Financial market risk being pushed into ETFs, Noyer warns
Central bankers must develop oversight of ETFs and similar securities, Noyer tells farewell seminar; must also convince markets and public of opposition to low inflation and deflation
SSM sets out supervisory priorities for 2016
The SSM set out its supervisory priorities for 2016, with a wide-ranging list of ‘thematic reviews’ to be carried out; key areas include business model risk and high levels of non-performing loans
Markov switching model enables diagnosis of ‘systemic financial stress episodes’, ECB paper argues
A Markov switching model can be used to diagnose episodes when both the real and the financial economies are subject to simultaneous severe stress, paper finds
EBA guidelines limit European banks’ exposure to shadow banks
The European Banking Authority has published guidelines limiting the exposure of European Union financial institutions both to the shadow banking sector and to individual firms within it
European regulation of investment firms needs reform, says EBA report
Micro-prudential regulation of investment firms in the European Union does not take proper account of risk and varies widely between countries and firms, an EBA report argues
Draghi calls for action on non-performing loans
Eurozone countries need wide-ranging reform of their systems for dealing with non-performing loans to stimulate the supply of capital to business, Mario Draghi says
Spanish paper finds issues with Basel III approach to calculating risk-weighted assets
The approach to calculating banks’ risk-weighted assets introduced by Basel III may create incentives for ‘regulatory arbitrage’, a Bank of Spain paper argues
Weidmann calls for ‘truly independent’ fiscal council
Jens Weidmann says there are shortcomings with existing proposals for the body, including the absence of a ‘comply-or-explain’ approach
EU survey calls for more cohesion on cloud computing
There appears to be a lack of clear and formal guidance from financial supervisors on banks’ use of cloud-based IT services, while their use is underestimated, an EU agency says
Carney says reciprocity ‘central feature’ in ESRB framework for spillovers
ESRB analysis shows domestic policies can be more effective if their spillovers are managed; Carney says framework for doing so will be operational ‘early next year’
French and German central banks cut inflation projections for next two years
Falling energy prices main factor in downward revision of German and French central banks’ projected inflation rates for 2016 and 2017
Shift to single currency increased volatility of money growth, paper argues
The shift to European monetary union had a major impact on the volatility of money growth rates in the eurozone, a working paper from the Banque de France argues
Domestic euro users bear highest shoe leather costs, Bank of Italy paper finds
Euros circulate widely outside the eurozone, transferring some costs to foreigners – but the effect is small relative to the popularity of the euro as a global currency
ECB survey finds ‘access to finance’ least of eurozone SME problems
The European Central Bank’s survey of eurozone enterprises finds deleveraging is continuing at a slow pace while few firms rate lack of access to finance as their major problem
New Dutch deposit guarantee scheme should ‘disincentivise risk-taking’ by banks
The Netherlands Bank has introduced a new deposit guarantee scheme; scope is wider than old scheme and risk-based, ex ante funding structure aims to dis-incentivise risk-taking by banks
ECB should not expand QE programme in December, Lautenschläger says
Sabine Lautenschläger tells German audience ECB’s loose monetary policy is necessary but asset purchases should not be expanded; only structural reform will bring about European recovery
Bundesbank calls for harmonisation in CMU response
The Deutsche Bundesbank responds to the European Commission’s capital markets union proposals, calling for greater harmonisation and transparency but warning of burden
Policy-makers must drop ‘obsession’ with competitiveness, Cœuré says
Policy-makers must drop their ‘obsession’ with competitiveness and focus on increasing productivity instead, Benoît Cœuré says; researchers need to question assumptions of ‘conventional’ theory
EBA: European bank capital improving but concerns remain over profits and assets
European banks are improving their capital and leverage ratios but are suffering from low levels of profitability and problems with non-performing loans, transparency exercise finds
EC plans full eurozone deposit insurance by 2024
Proposals outline gradual introduction of common deposit insurance in the eurozone between 2017 and 2024; size of fund equivalent to 0.8% of covered deposits, estimated at €43bn