Interest rates
Rajan sidesteps question on RBI future
Reserve Bank of India governor says decision on second term will be reached after discussion with government; RBI holds policy rate at 6.5% after inflation surprise
Yellen upbeat but concerned by weak jobs data
Janet Yellen expects continued progress to Fed’s objectives; says latest labour market report is “concerning” but warns against reading too much into it
Hitting inflation targets may be harder now, thanks to lower bound – paper
Working paper warns of potential for lower bound episodes to affect expectations of when they will occur in future, something that can act as a drag on inflation in the present
State money and bank money: lifting the fog around QE
Steve Hanke says economists are missing important details by focusing on interest rates, rather than the money supply
US jobs report puts Fed hike expectations on ice
Small increase in non-farm payrolls leads market to all but write off prospect of a rate hike later this month; Lael Brainard and Eric Rosengren keen to see more data
Tiberius’s experiences with zero interest rates in 33 AD
Can the European Central Bank learn lessons from the use of zero interest rates by the Romans in 33 AD as they grappled with their own fiscal and monetary crisis?
Pursuing stable rates may create instability, Norges Bank paper finds
Preference among central bankers to keep rates at “normal” levels may prove time-inconsistent, researchers warn
Turkish central bank continues monetary ‘simplification’ process
Upper band of interest rate corridor cut to 9.5%; inflation will be the main indicator for future decisions, bank says
Board member appointed as next Czech governor
Rusnok has been on the board since 2014 and is a former interim prime minister; he will serve a term of “at least five years”, from July 1
Philadelphia Fed president sees potential for two or three hikes in 2016
Patrick Harker warns of needs to avoid “aggressive policy actions” in the future; expects both inflation and expectations to rise in the medium-term
SBP catches markets off guard with cut
State Bank of Pakistan’s MPC votes for rate cut after being split 5-5 in April, confounding markets’ expectations; inflation on the rise
Exports decline ‘worrying’ as Bank of Israel holds
Monetary committee cites "intensifying decline" in exports as it holds the policy rate at 0.1%; inflation dips to –0.9%, as growth figures disappoint
Further tightening may be needed in Colombia, IMF says
Staff in Washington, DC, welcome “resolve” of central banking in latest tightening cycle; current account deficit and inflation expectations may call for further action
Fischer: improve estimates of long-run equilibrium rate
Fed vice-chair speaks at conference honouring US economist Michael Woodford; stresses need for "faster potential growth" as US nears full employment
June hike an option but Fed officials split on prospect
Minutes from FOMC meeting in April show “most” participants happy to hike next month if incoming data continues to improve, but some suspect gains may not come fast enough
Sarb ‘pauses’ hiking cycle on improved inflation outlook
South African monetary policy committee votes five-to-one to leave rates on hold; governor stresses central bank is not reversing policy
Dissent affects size but not clarity of minutes – paper
Study looks at BoE, BoJ, Fed and Riksbank; when dissent in monetary policy meetings increases, so does the size and content of the minutes, but readability is preserved
RBA minutes reveal discussion around rate cut
No real change in economic activity or unemployment rate, minutes show; committee 'persuaded' monetary easing would improve prospects for inflation and growth
Mexican deputy Sánchez takes stock of easy policy in advanced economies
Manuel Sánchez explains how extraordinary monetary accommodation may be generating costs; tells audience in Mexico central bank policy co-ordination is a challenge
Philippines announces new rate corridor
Central bank will introduce new lending and deposit facilities in June, with interest rates set either side of a lower policy rate
ECB paper presents evidence of risk-taking channel in US
Working paper finds interest rates affect the quality of bank credit in the US; researchers exploit confidential data on banks’ internal ratings of loans
Riksbank minutes highlight effort to protect rising inflation
Executive board members saw potential for krona appreciation as a risk to inflation outlook; broad support for additional asset purchases, but some questions over size
Fed presidents navigate ‘mixed signals’
Dennis Lockhart is putting more weight on positive employment picture than disappointing growth stats; both he and Robert Kaplan see potential for labour force to expand
RBA cuts to 1.75% as data disappoints
Glenn Stevens points to “unexpectedly low” inflation data as the Reserve Bank of Australia cuts its key rate by 25bp; Australian dollar slides following decision