Eurozone
Competition lowers bank-market spreads on loans
Banks price their loans more in line with the market interest rate in countries with stronger loan market competition, says a new paper from the Bank of Spain.
Balassa-Samuelson revisited
A new paper from the Bank for International Settlements finds that Balassa-Samuelson effects are clearly present in 11 euro accession countries and that these explain around 24% of inflation differentials vis-a-vis the euro area.
ECB sees uncertainty and weak economy in 2009
Two members of the European Central Bank's (ECB) governing council on Tuesday expressed concerns over the outlook for the European economy in 2009.
ECB warns of "downbeat attitude" on SEPA
The European Central Bank has published its sixth progress report on the implementation of the Single Euro Payments Area.
Trichet on the euro
In this interview, Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank, discusses various developments surrounding the euro.
Explaining interest-rate spreads
This paper uses a time series econometric framework to determine the structural determinants of the spread between the European Overnight Rate and the European Central Bank's Policy Rate from mid-2004 to mid-2006.
Eurosystem continues to shed staff
The number of central bankers in the 16 national central banks that now make up the Eurosystem stands at 46,123, a fall of 17.9% since 2003, reveals the 2009 edition of Central Banking Publications' Central Bank Directory.
Pound could sink to par with euro "within weeks"
The pound will reach parity against the euro on the back of a stream of poor news on the macro front and expectations on interest rates, market participants say.
ECB to keep one-governor, one-vote system for now
The European Central Bank's (ECB) Governing Council has gone back on the voting structure set out in its statute and opted to keep its one-governor, one-vote regime until the number of eurosystem central banks exceeds 18. The central bank also said that…
Demand soars for high-value euro notes
The value of €500 ($715) notes in circulation surged past a quarter of a trillion euros in 2008 to reach €262 billion in November.
ECB - Financial Stability Review
The European Central Bank released their bi-annual Financial Stability Review on Monday, which highlighted four key risks and vulnerabilities for the financial system.
A new GDP forecasting model for the eurozone
A paper from the European Central Bank derives a new forecasting model for euro-area real GDP growth.
ECB's Bini Smaghi on the financial crisis
Blaming the current crisis on the United States might be tempting but would be a mistake, said Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a member of the executive board of the European Central Bank (ECB).
Why Europe needs a Financial Stability Fund
Investors need assurances over the debt of European Union member countries, Daniel Gros and Stefano Micossi argue
British PM denies UK close to joining euro
Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, has denied the UK plans to join the eurozone after the European Commission president said Britain was "closer than ever before" to adopting the single currency.
Euro prices, jobs plunge, paving way for big cut
The chances of the European Central Bank's Governing Council making their biggest-ever cut next week rose on Friday after inflation plummeted to just above the central bank's target and unemployment rose.
ECB evaluates banks' liquidity stress tests
European Union banks' liquidity stress testing techniques are highly diverse, finds a new report from the European Central Bank.
Euro not the key to stability: CNB's Tomsik
Adopting the euro will do little to enhance macroeconomic stability, said Vladimir Tomsik, a member of the Czech National Bank's rate-setting board.
ECB's Bini Smaghi: don't use the d-word
The term deflation is often misused as a catch-all phrase to describe every kind of negative development, said Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a member of the European Central Bank's executive board.
Egypt aims for Basel II adoption, ECB to assist
The Central Bank of Egypt took a step towards compliance with Basel II after agreeing to European Central Bank (ECB) support to strengthen its supervisory framework.
EU pledges €200 billion to spur growth
The European Commission unveiled a stimulus package worth the equivalent of 1.5% of European Union (EU) GDP on Wednesday in a bid to shore up economic activity.
Sepa report: progress made, but more to be done
The European Central Bank has said it welcomes the evident progress made on the Single Euro Payments Area (Sepa) project, but has noted that work urgently needs to be done.
ECB cut "appropriate" - Belgium's Quaden
Guy Quaden, the governor of the National Bank of Belgium, has deemed the European Central Bank's half-point cut on 8 October appropriate.
Price plunge won't herald deflation: ECB's Mersch
Though a fall in the price index at some point in 2009 is likely, such a slump should not be seen as a harbinger of deflation, Yves Mersch, the governor of the Central Bank of Luxembourg and a member of the European Central Bank's (ECB) Governing Council…