Growth
Greek governor calls for reform and coherent growth plan
Yannis Stournaras urges government to honour Greece’s commitments and reach a prompt agreement with its European partners, then focus on creating sustainable growth
Estonian governor tells MPs central banks cannot create long-term growth
Ardo Hansson says QE in the eurozone will help to improve confidence, but reforms are necessary for investors to believe the economy will grow
Haldane says ‘cocktail’ of psychology and sociology behind divergent growth
BoE chief economist draws on history, sociology and psychology – as well as economics – in seeking to explain why growth rates differ so widely
Bundesbank says German recovery is faster than expected
Monthly report highlights ‘remarkable’ rebound of German economy, leading forecasts to be revised upwards; oil and euro depreciation behind the boost
BIS paper finds stabilisation policy can impact long-run growth
Use of short-run interest rates has implications for long-run growth due to their effect on credit and liquidity supply, BIS working paper finds
Banque de France paper tackles ‘elasticity of poverty’
Researchers examine the extent to which growth in different sectors translates into a reduction in poverty for countries in Africa; commodity-driven economies particularly bad for the poor
Growth of finance sucks skill from real economy, BIS paper warns
Financial growth crowds out real growth by drawing skilled labour away from other industries, with R&D hit particularly hard, a working paper by Stephen Cecchetti and Enisse Kharroubi finds
BoE could ease with deflation looming
Record low inflation may turn negative in the spring, inflation report shows; Mark Carney says rate cuts and QE remain options but BoE still expects next move to be a rate hike
Japan at a turning point but liquidity risks loom, say panellists
Panel at Japan Securities Summit including BoJ’s Takehiro Sato believes Japan’s ‘certain, coordinated and creative’ policy mix will deliver the first turnaround in 20 years
G-20 leaders plan to scrutinise reform efforts
Leaders reaffirm commitment to reforms designed to raise global growth two percentage points and agree ‘robust monitoring framework’; OECD says reform progress has been patchy
FOMC members too bullish on growth, researchers at San Francisco Fed say
‘Persistent overoptimism' about future growth since financial crisis may be due to overestimation of monetary policy efficacy following a balance-sheet recession, authors find
Stevens gloomy on growth as RBA cuts
RBA governor warns Australian economy is showing greater signs of weakness than previously thought, in a statement announcing a cut in the interest rate to record low
Rajan says RBI is seeking ways to encourage foreign investment
RBI tightens rules for foreign investors but Rajan says central bank is looking into ways of encouraging desirable FDI flows; rates remain on hold
BIS paper argues debt overhang is ‘leading cause’ of sluggish growth
Paper by Stephanie Lo and Ken Rogoff finds debt overhang is the main factor behind countries struggling to recover from crisis, but high leverage may obscure other factors at play
Productivity performance sparks uptick in US entrepreneurship, finds Boston Fed paper
‘Modest improvement' in 2012 and 2013 follows a 'significant decline' in firm creation after the financial crisis to the lowest level since 1977
IMF: Central banks ‘must' ease if inflation expectations drop
Easing should be conducted through ‘other means' than interest rates if they are at ZLB, Fund argues in WEO update, which downgrades global growth forecast for 2015 to 3.5%
Lower productivity behind growth slowdown in African middle-income countries, IMF paper finds
Slowdown in total factor productivity 'largely responsible' for weaker growth in small middle-income African economies, authors argue
Turkmen central bank chief ousted as economic malaise worsens
Gochmurat Muradov is the latest in a string of Central Bank of Turkmenistan chairmen to be dismissed after only one or two years in the post; deputy chosen to take over his position
Signs of reflation in Japan as Abe sweeps back to power
Tankan survey shows degree of optimism among businesses and potential for rising wages in coming months, although evidence is mixed; Shinzo Abe reclaims supermajority in election
ECB paper uses financial conditions indices to help predict growth developments
Working paper presents indices for three industrialised and five emerging economies; authors say they are a potential leading indicator for eurozone external environment
Flug warns Israel is falling behind in productivity race
Bank of Israel governor sees country slipping behind its OECD peers and suggests policy changes to boost productivity growth
PBoC cut fails to impress but more action on the cards
Economists say first cut in two years likely to have weak effect at best, but PBoC may have to take stronger action going forward as economy worsens
G-20 Brisbane Summit: What to look for
Leaders of the G-20 countries meet this weekend to try to thrash out a deal on financial stability, growth and employment; Central Banking looks at some of the main issues on the table
RBA’s Stevens highlights challenges as rates stay on hold
Monetary policy statement registers some concern over risks originating from Chinese housing, heightened volatility and a high Australian dollar, but rates kept steady