Economics
Finland paper reviews major currency blocs
Bank of Finland study appraising the euro and the US dollar currency blocs says, in equilibrium, the euro bloc would be larger than at present
Sarb deputy says domestic woes are impacting growth
South African Reserve Bank deputy governor says domestic issues, including labour strikes, are dictating price and exchange rate concerns; growth rate likely to need downward revision
Top policy-makers debate Japan’s challenging road to recovery
Policy-makers gathered in Tokyo this week warn that the eurozone crisis, domestic demographic changes and high levels of government debt may thwart Japan’s efforts to bolster economic growth
Italian paper evaluates stressed CDS pricing
Study by the Bank of Italy considers the performance of credit default swap pricing models under highly volatile conditions
Moderate economic expansion reported in Fed’s Beige Book
Survey of economic conditions in Fed districts finds moderate increase in economic activity; New York district bucking trend
Bond market contagion permanently increased in Emu, says Czech paper
Czech National Bank research investigates increased contagion of sovereign bond markets in European Monetary Union; evaluates impact of rating agencies
Malaysia’s Zeti says Asia must prepare for ‘new global landscape’
Zeti Akhtar Aziz highlights challenges due to the changing world economy following the financial crisis; says Asia is ‘well ahead’ with implementing financial stability policies
Early-warning indicators useful in emerging markets, says Finland paper
Bank of Finland study applies advanced economies' asset price indicators to emerging markets, saying they can be effective with only slight adjustment
BoJ Tankan documents fall in business confidence
Tankan short-term economic survey reports drop in business confidence across all business sizes but fall not as severe as expected in small and medium-sized enterprises
Maltese governor paves way for co-operative banking
Josef Bonnici underlines value of competition in the banking sector; encourages change in legislation to permit the formation of co-operative financial institutions
Spanish paper finds companies swap bankruptcy for foreclosure
Research by Bank of Spain analyses the country’s low bankruptcy rates; finds mortgage debt is used as an avoidance measure
Korean governor criticises local crisis resolution
Choongsoo Kim says a local resolution to the European debt crisis could harm emerging markets; should harness the growth in these regions instead
IMF-World Bank announces location for 2015 meeting
Annual meetings of central bankers and finance ministers to be held in Latin America; events to include discussions of global economic and financial developments and policies to reduce poverty
BIS raises fears over lower global growth trajectory
Bank for International Settlements Quarterly Review says global growth outlook deteriorated further over the quarter; warns of diminishing benefits to unconventional monetary policy
IMF mission calls for ‘urgent’ action on Serbian economy
Fact-finding mission calls on government to restore fiscal credibility and support growth; says steps need to be taken to strengthen National Bank of Serbia’s autonomy
Netherlands Bank paper trials ban on commission
Study examines the effect of banning commission payments for financial advice; finds customers’ behaviour changes depending on how aware they are of advisers’ incentives
Central Bank of the UAE optimistic in first financial stability review
First financial stability review released by Central Bank of the UAE reveals positive developments; growth has recovered since 2009 slump while inflation is near-zero
Reserve Bank of Fiji delivers positive economic review
Latest economic review reveals generally optimistic developments in Fijian economy; growth and inflation expected to meet projections
Hungary rejects leaked conditions for IMF programme
Viktor Orbán says Hungary will not comply with requirements for IMF-EU programme; leaked list includes elimination of controversial transaction tax applied to National Bank of Hungary
IMF paper analyses China’s trade impact on Europe
Working paper investigates links between trading competitiveness in China and the EMU; finds different results for euro periphery and core countries
Bank of Finland paper examines reasons for business cycle co-movement
Discussion paper suggests thinking of growth performance of economies as ‘coupled’ or ‘de-coupled’ is overly simplistic; identifies a number of factors contributing to interdependence
BoJ’s Morimoto outlines ways to combat deflation
Yoshihisa Morimoto emphasises importance of ‘capturing’ demand to overcome deflation; says CPI is currently at 0% but is expected to rise towards 1% target in fiscal 2013
Book notes: The Money Trap
Robert Pringle’s new book is driven by a sense of missionary zeal
Book notes: Lionel Robbins
A biography of a 20th century British economist