Monetary policy
Barker on adjusting to low inflation
SPEECH - In the speech 'Adjusting to low inflation - Issues for policy' Kate Barker of the Bank of England said that if the Bank tried to control the build-up of house-hold debt, it might restrain growth in the economy, making people worse off and…
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee Minutes
MINUTES - Minutes of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee Meeting released on 19 February for the meeting of 5 and 6 February 2003. The minutes show seven members of the Committee (the Governor, Mervyn King, Christopher Allsopp, Kate Barker,…
Minutes of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting
MINUTES - Minutes of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting on 21 and 22 January 2003, released 19 February. One member pointed out that inflation targeting had never been adopted for the purpose of overcoming deflation by any central bank overseas,…
Bank of England committee split 7-2 over rate cut
The Bank of England's monetary policy committee voted by 7 to 2 in favour of this month's surprise quarter-point cut in interest rates to 3.75 per cent, minutes of its meeting released on Wednesday showed.
Bank of Japan Press Release
PRESS RELEASE - Announcement of the Monetary Policy Meeting decisions (unchanged), 14 February.
Japan's central bank maintains monetary policy
Japan's central bank kept its monetary policy unchanged Friday but said it was prepared to provide extra cash to maintain stability in the financial markets.
ECB Monthly Bulletin, February 2003
REPORT - The European Central Bank published its February 2003 Monthly Bulletin on 13 February. This issue contains two articles. The first addresses the interactions between the single monetary policy and fiscal policies in the euro area. The second…
ECB concerned by eurozone growth prospects
The European Central Bank on Thursday fuelled speculation about a possible interest rate cut by highlighting concerns about growth across the eurozone area, although it reiterated its stance that its current monetary policy is "appropriate".
Fed's Ferguson: Oil prices not major econ threat
Japan's ongoing economic troubles have taught policymakers to use monetary policy aggressively in the face of challenges to growth, Federal Reserve Vice-Chairman Roger Ferguson said Wednesday.
Greenspan testimony to congress
SPEECH - In testimony to Congress Alan Greenspan said in today's environment acceptable ranges of deficit were 1-2 per cent and it was too early to tell whether the US economy was weak enough to require emergency fiscal stimulus.
IMF Working Paper Series
RESEARCH - The Working Paper 'Inflation Targeting Regimes' classifies countries that define their monetary policy framework by an inflation target into full-fledged inflation targeters, eclectic inflation targeters and inflation targeting lite regimes…
Monetary Policy Committee or Puzzle Committee?
ARTICLE - Perhaps the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee should be re-named the Monetary Puzzle Committee suggests Stephen King in an article. For him the B of E's decision to reduce interest rates last week after Sir Edward George criticised…
Bank of England surprises with 0.25% rate cut
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee surprised markets on Thursday with a quarter point interest rate cut to 3.75%.
IMF Working Paper Series
RESEARCH - In the working paper 'Monetary Policy and Asset Prices: Does "Benign Neglect" Make Sense?' Michael Bardo and Olivier Jeanne of the IMF's Research Department consider the potential case for preemptive monetary restrictions when asset price…
Central Bank of Brazil COPOM Minutes
MINUTES - The Banco Central Do Brasil has published the minutes of the 80th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (COPOM), 21 and 22 January. The Committee decided unanimously to increase the Selic rate to 25.5% after an anticipated overshoot of the…
China's central bank to push interest-rate reform
The monetary policy committee of the People's Bank of China, in its first quarterly meeting of the year, has reaffirmed the central bank's commitment to keeping both interest rates and exchange rates steady during 2003.
Julius joins ex-MPC member at hedge fund
DeAnne Julius, a former member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, has joined her old colleague Sushil Wadhwani at a hedge fund which manages $1bn (UK £625m).
Chinese central bank tightens banking regulation
Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China, recently indicated that the central bank would continue to pursue a prudent monetary policy this year to ensure the financial sector progresses in a safe, highly efficient, and steady manner and to…
Who'll take over Poland's Monetary Policy Council?
ARTICLE - An interesting article 'New RPP in 2004: Who is Going to Replace the Hawks?' speculates on who may take over on the National Bank of Poland's Monetary Policy Council when the present members term finishes in 2004.
Mexico keeps its inflation target at 3 per cent
The Bank of Mexico on Wednesday played down the prospects of direct intervention in the foreign exchange markets to support the peso, as it unveiled a monetary policy for this year that maintains its target of 3 per cent inflation for the year.
Minutes of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting
MINUTES - Minutes of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting on 16 and 17 December 2002, released 27 January. Japan's Ministry of Finance pressured the BOJ to increase its monthly purchases of government bonds to two trillion yen ($16.97 billion)…
IMF Working Paper Series
RESEARCH - In the paper 'Market Predictability of ECB Monetary Policy Decisions: A Comparative Examination' Kevin Ross tests the idea that surveys of the ECB's monetary framework emphasise the inability of financial markets to correctly predict monetary…
Bank of Canada Monetary Policy Report Update
REPORT - The Bank of Canada on Thursday released its Update to the October Monetary Policy Report. These reports discuss economic and financial trends in the context of Canada's inflation-control strategy.
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee Minutes
MINUTES - Minutes of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee Meeting released on 22 January for the meeting of 8 and 9 January 2003. The same pattern of voting was seen at this meeting as in the previous two meetings. The nine MPC members voted…