Central Banking
Indonesia, IMF agree on c.bank independence-Ramli
Indonesia's chief economics minister Rizal Ramli said on Feb 26, 2001 he had reached agreement with the International Monetary Fund on the need to maintain the central bank's independence but stopped short of saying a long running deadlock had been…
Romania must step up inflation fight-c. bank chief
Romania has to step up its battle against inflation but needs to do so gradually to avoid shocks from a sudden reduction, Mugur Isarescu, the governor of the central bank (BNR), was quoted as saying on Feb 26, 2001.
IMF to assess Finnish financial sector
Finland will help the International Monetary Fund to prepare an assessment of the Finnish financial sector, which is a new IMF tool for monitoring member country economies, the central bank said on Feb 26.
Swedish inflation risks receding-Riksbank
Sweden's central bank, the Riksbank, said on Feb 26, 2001 that inflation risks appeared to have diminished since it raised interest rates in December 2000, although the outcome of the current wage round could affect the picture.
Bank of Israel cuts lending rate by 0.2 pct point
The Bank of Israel said on Feb 26, 2001 it was lowering its key lending rate by 0.2 percentage points to 7.5 percent, its eighth straight monthly reduction and the 14th in the past 16 months.
Lessons from Japan's Experience in Monetary Policy
The chief representative of the Bank of Japan in Frankfurt says in a speech that the 1990s has been a period of learning for the central bank, not as many people say "a lost decade". The bank now has a greater focus on the role of asset prices and the…
Breaking the Cycle of World Poverty-Horst Koehler
Horst Kohler, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund gave a speech at the conference on "Child Poverty, Education, and Health" in London, February 26, 2001. He says he has learnt a lot from his discussions with sub-Saharan African leaders…
'Inflation, Financial Development'-Peter Rousseau
Peter L. Rousseau from Vanderbilt University and Paul Wachtel from the Stern School of Business, New York University have published an article called "Inflation, Financial Development and Growth". The last decade saw an explosion in research interest on…
Time Inconsistency Problem in Monetary Policy?
A paper by Stefania Albanesi, V.V. Chari and Lawrence J. Christiano titled "How Severe is the Time Inconsistency Problem in Monetary Policy?"
Colombian central bank profits jump 61 pct in 2000
Colombia's Central Bank made profits of 1.45 trillion pesos, or $642.6 million, in 2000, up 61 percent from 1999, mainly due to better performance on its foreign reserves.
Slovak exchange rate mechanism to change for EU
Slovakia has to change its exchange rate regime before joining the European Union, Slovak Finance Minister Brigita Schmoegnerova said on Feb 25.
Oman poised to tighten loan rules again
Barely five months after easing the regulations for personal bank loans, the Central Bank of Oman seems poised to tighten them again.
Launch of review of NZ mon policy-Lars Svensson
Lars Svensson, a professor of economics at the Institute for International Economic Studies,Stockholm University, will publish on Wednesday, February 28, at 4 pm (NZ time, GMT+13 hrs) his independent review of the operation of monetary policy in New…
Colombia cbank cancels meeting amid board changes
Colombia's central bank has canceled this week's regular Friday board meeting on Feb 23, 2001 a spokeswoman for the institution said.
ECB looking to move Frankfurt headquarters
The European Central Bank, not even three years old, has already outgrown its headquarters and plans to construct a building outside the city's high-rise banking district by around 2006.
Turk PM Ecevit under fire for lira float turmoil
Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit faces mounting fury at home after sending the lira currency into freefall to try to curb a financial crisis and resisting pressure to reshuffle his beleaguered government.
Japan greets S&P cut with disdain and delight
Japan's loss of its top-notch credit rating caused indignation among politicians on Feb 23, 2001, but the central bank and financial markets welcomed it as a wake-up call for the government to mend its free-spending ways.
UK euro entry debate finely balanced-BoE's George
Britain's central bank governor on Feb 23, 2001 declared himself a euro pragmatist, and said the arguments for and against the country joining the euro zone were finely balanced.
Buba 2000 profit at around DM 16bn - magazine
Germany's Bundesbank is expected to post a profit of around 16 billion marks ($7.42 billion) for 2000, Der Spiegel magazine said on Feb 23, 2001.
Reforming the International Fin System-IMF Kohler
The managing director of the International Monetary Fund Horst Hoehler has written an article titled "Reforming the International Financial System" published in The Berne Union 2001 Yearbook, February 2001.
'Why adopt transparency? Publishing forecasts'-ECB
A new ECB working paper by Petra Geraats has been published called "Why adopt transparency? The publication of central bank forecasts". It provides an explanation for the puzzling fact why several central banks have recently abandoned the usual secrecy…
Central bankers discuss e-commerce at NY Fed
International central bankers on Feb 23, 2001 discussed how greater use of the Internet might affect monetary policy but said no definitive conclusions had been reached
Buba Remsperger - German growth seen slower in '01
Economic growth in Germany in 2001 will be slower on average than in 2000, Deutsche Bundesbank Chief Economist Hermann Remsperger said Feb 23, 2001 in an interview with German news agency VWD.
BSP to tighten insider lending rules BIS standard
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will tighten its rules on loans to banks' directors, officers, shareholders, or related interests (DOSRI) to further strengthen the banking system and meet international standards.