Sweden
Riksbank calls on Mervyn King for monetary policy review
Former BoE governor will head up a review, with Marvin Goodfriend, of Sweden's increasingly controversial monetary policy
Nouy says SSM will bring ‘positive effects’ for Nordic banks
Supervisors from Nordic countries consider how their relationship will change when the SSM becomes operational; Denmark and Sweden are unlikely to opt in
Riksbank calls for separate LCR in local currency
Swedish central bank is wary of lenders' ‘extremely low' krona buffers; proposed change could be constrained by the size of Sweden's sovereign bond market, however
Ingves: Swedes should be forced to amortise mortgages
Riksbank governor slams Swedish 'culture' whereby 40% of households ‘do not amortise at all'; average debt-to-income ratio for mortgaged households is 313%
Riksbank sees improvement in interbank rate framework
A detailed examination of the 'Stockholm interbank offered rate' framework was launched in 2011 after several shortcomings were revealed
New Riksbank data finds household debt higher than previously thought
Study by the central bank puts average debt ratio for households with mortgages at 313%, roughly double the official national average
Finland deputy: Banking union may 'exacerbate conflict' for national supervisors
Banking union is envisaged to lessen the role that national interest plays in bank supervision, but Pentti Hakkarainenin warns of potential short-term setbacks
Riksbank minutes reveal fissures on ‘leaning against the wind' amid low inflation
The Riksbank's decision not to cut interest rates amid weak inflation earlier this month was preceded by heated debate, minutes show
Riksbank deputy leads defence against Svensson critique
Vice-governor one of several heavyweights, including former governor and Nobel Foundation head Lars Heikensten, to take on Lars Svensson, who blames the bank for causing unemployment
Riksbank calls for FMI recovery plans
Sweden’s central bank concerned by the lack of recovery and resolution plans for the country’s financial market infrastructures; calls for changes at individual platforms and in legislation
Riksbank appoints two senior managers
Appointments to human resources and cash and payment systems sections follow establishment of three new departments on March 1
Riksbank told to stop ‘leaning against the wind' by national forecaster
Sweden's National Institute for Economic Research sees ‘no reason for monetary policy to be influenced by household debt' in a rebuke of Riksbank policy
Parliament eyes Riksbank's off-mark inflation forecasts
Report on Swedish central bank's performance in 2013 shows its inflation forecasts were off the mark; flawed forecasts have forced several central banks to upend policies in the past months
Riksbank deputy flags danger of leaning against the wind
Karolina Ekholm says use of monetary policy to lean against high indebtedness has created deflation while doing little to solve the debt problems
Riksbank paper examines dynamics of foreign funding by Swedish banks
Study finds currency hedging needs of institutions and companies incentivise Swedish banks to issue securities in foreign currency
Sweden mulls tighter rules on wholesale forex funding
Group comprising top-ranking decision-makers, including Riksbank governor Stefan Ingves and the minister of financial markets, highlights ‘big risk’ of foreign wholesale funding
Interest swaps with longer maturities more sensitive to macroeconomic news, DNB paper suggests
The impact in Sweden of macroeconomic news on the sensitivity of interest rate swaps was reduced at the effective zero lower bound at short maturities but not at longer maturities, according to paper
Riksbank worries over fallout from ‘sharp corrections' in house prices
Swedish households' interest-rate expectations guided by current levels rather than projections, recently published document finds; Lars Svensson calls findings potentially ‘biased and misleading'
Riksbank cuts rates on falling inflation, leaning less against the wind
Swedish central bank cuts interest rates by 25bp to 0.75% to counter falling inflation; household debt levels still a risk, says Ingves, but calls on ‘others' to do more to keep them in check
Sveriges Riksbank overhauls communication strategy
Sweden's central bank will focus on ‘dialogue' to better explain its operations; 'openness and clarity' remain guiding principles for the bank, which regularly tops transparency rankings
Sveriges Riksbank calls for higher risk weights on mortgages
Central bank's latest financial stability report supports regulatory proposal to raise minimum amount of capital banks must back up housing loans with from 15 to 25%
Riksbank reviews 20 years of inflation targeting
Sweden’s central bank publishes four research papers on different countries’ experience of inflation targeting and monetary policy; Lars Svensson and Michael Woodford are among the contributors
Monetary policy is the incorrect tool to curb asset bubbles
There is no evidence the use of monetary policy in Sweden to keep household debt in check actually works. Such a policy only undermines employment and results in the Riksbank breaching its mandate
Riksbank policy-makers differ 'fundamentally' on role of central bank, says deputy governor
Sveriges Riksbank deputy says policy approach is marginally beneficial at best and risks undermining 'public confidence' in central bank's targeting of inflation