United States
US economy entering ‘bounce back’ phase – Powell
Fed chair forced to defend move to follow through with corporate bond purchases in Senate hearing
Trends in reserve management: 2020 survey results
Covid-19 expected to dent the risk appetite of central bank portfolio managers; socially responsible investing gains ground
Fed poised to purchase corporate bonds next week
New York Fed will create a portfolio to track the US corporate bond market under new plans
Chicago Fed breaks ties with economist over Black Lives Matter criticism
Controversial comments by senior professor ignite debate over racism in economics, and the Fed’s role in tackling inequality
US citizens think Fed’s communication strategy needs adapting – Fed report
“Fed Listens” events revealed a lack of understanding about inflation targeting, report shows
Recession causes inequality ‘double whammy’ – research
Paper links loss of hours worked to inequality, with recessions causing a negative ratchet effect
Fears rise over breakdown in Basel and IFRS standards
Bretton Woods institutions worried about growing divergence in capital and accounting standards as credit impairment tsunami looms; US and many emerging economies skirting the rules
High US inflation should not be ruled out
A prolonged health crisis raises the risk that supply-side factors, monetary expansion and rising personal savings could stoke hidden inflationary pressures
Norges Bank supervisory board strongly criticises contract with new SWF head
Board tells lawmakers the contract agreed by central bank governor lacks sufficient safeguards
Fed policy is too tight given FOMC projections – former Fed economist
“An outlook that bad for that long is a clear sign that policy is too tight,” Joseph Gagnon says
New York Fed to tighten repo operations
Fed sees “substantial improvements” in dollar funding markets
Raising inflation targets may lower neutral rate – Boston Fed paper
A higher target might therefore be less effective than current research suggests, research says
Fed promises to keep buying assets at current rate
Fed will hold accommodation in place for “however long it takes”, chair Jerome Powell says; FOMC releases first projections this year
Appetite for renewed Fed dollar swap lines in doubt
With up to $300bn of positions nearing expiry, some say FX swap market can meet banks’ funding needs
CBDC could endanger maturity transformation – Philadelphia Fed paper
Opening central bank balance sheet to consumers could create “deposit monopolist”, research says
Fed makes last-minute changes to ‘Main Street’ programme
Programme will be open “soon”, despite plans to launch in May
Mass bankruptcies should feature in Fed stress tests – former officials
Crowding of bankruptcy courts can effectively double loss given default, says Jeremy Stein
US unemployment falls sharply in May
Unemployment rate declined to 13.3% from 14.7% in April, despite widespread fears it would rise
Former officials say Fed should impose tighter regime
Donald Kohn and Jeremy Stein warn of risks and say Fed should stop US banks paying dividends
Central banking enters a new era
Central banks face a delicate balancing act to preserve their reputations as they evolve into ‘buyers of last resort’ and some of their actions appear functionally equivalent to ‘monetary financing’
US needs aggressive fiscal policy and negative rates – St Louis Fed economist
Policy response must be powerful enough to overshoot previous growth trend for a period, researcher says
Stress levels rising: investment funds and the Covid-19 shock
Extreme market stresses due to Covid-19 are underscoring the central role non-banks play in crisis contagion, as in 2008. Were regulators better prepared this time?
What would yield curve control mean for Fed’s asset purchases?
Policy may imply shift in rationale from crisis to recovery, and potentially more volatility in purchases
Fed lifts lid on ETF purchases
Biggest holding is of a BlackRock ETF, the same firm managing the purchases