Opinion
Central Bank News defends "boring central bankers"
The Financial Times on Wednesday published Central Bank News's response Wolfgang Munchau's piece in Monday's newspaper, "Boring central bankers got us into this mess", which blamed central bankers for the current credit crisis.
The rise of SWFs is unstoppable
Western governments must accept the rise of sovereign wealth funds as a further sign of a shift in the world economy, according to Gerard Lyons, the chief economist at Standard Chartered, a bank.
Why King lacks allies
Just when Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, was hoping for a respite from the battering he has received from the Treasury Select Committee and others over his handling of the Northern Rock debacle, along comes a heavyweight in the shape…
Mini-crises stretch ahead: UK economist
Instead of a sharp but swift adjustment, the prospect now is for a series of mini-crises stretching for years ahead, says the City economist Stephen Lewis in his commentary on the latest developments in the UK banking crisis.
Mervyn King - a governor in distress
No governor of the Bank of England in living memory - and very few governors of any industrial country - has come in for such an avalanche of media criticism as Mervyn King has suffered in recent days.
Allan Meltzer dismisses calls for Fed action
The following article by Allan H. Meltzer, university professor of political economy at Carnegie Mellon, and a member of Central Banking's editorial board, was published in the Wall Street Journal on September 15. It provides an incisive analysis of the…
Launch the lifeboats? Not likely!
The closest parallel to the rescue of Northern Rock is the secondary banking crisis which erupted at the end of 1973 and which brought down a whole string of so-called "secondary" banks. That financial crisis, like this one, was preceded by a long period…
Deadlock in the inter-bank markets
The continuing difficulties in the global inter-bank markets, which started on 9 August, have already given rise to a mountain of speculation about the possible causes and what central banks should do about the problem.
Useful statement from Jean-Claude Trichet
CentralbankNews.com is pleased to see the ECB making constructive use of its website in the current crisis. On Tuesday August 14 its home page featured prominently a statement by Jean-Claude Trichet, the president, about the current financial market…
Central banks' use of websites in the crisis
Central banks have been using their websites in novel ways during the crisis. On 13 August, the New York Fed put the following notice up:"The Desk will evaluate whether it needs to inject additional cash into the banking system at its normal operating…
Lack of experience costs the Bank
Alex Brummer, a veteran economic commentator, criticised the Bank of England's monetary policy makers, their appointment process and their performance.
HKMA's Yam on renminbi bonds
Renminbi-denominated bonds in Hong Kong are part of a bigger picture for both Hong Kong and the Mainland, writes Joseph Yam.
Reaction to King's loss of MPC vote
Less of a threat to the governor's credibility and more a sign of what is to come, was the conclusion observers drew from Mervyn King being in the minority at the MPC meeting in June.
Roach dismisses global savings glut
Morgan Stanley's chief economist, Stephen Roach, has poured cold water on the "global savings glut" hypothesis championed by Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, as the underlying cause of global economic imbalances.
CB independence under threat in New Zealand
According to this note by a New Zealand-based economic research company, Allan Bollard, the governor of the Reserve Bank of Zealand, has adopted an experimental "go for growth" monetary policy strategy. A move away from this approach could make the…
Henrique Meirelles: central banking natural
This article, from the International Herald Tribune, says Henrique Meirelles, the governor of the Central Bank of Brazil, has quickly mastered the central bankers' art of elusive communication.
Too strong rupee?
This article from the International Herald Tribune suggests that calls are mounting on the Reserve Bank of India to stem the strengthening of the rupee.
Policy pitfalls in an asset-dependent world
In this week's edition of his weekly market commentary Morgan Stanley Chief Economist, Stephen Roach, says that American policymakers should stop blaming others for the global imbalances.
What next from Chinese reserve managers?
These two articles analyse this week's announcement that the new agency managing part of China's $1.2 trillion in foreign reserves will buy a $3 billion stake in the American private equity firm, Blackstone Group LP.
If China's market bubble flattens, will SA pop?
This article, from the South African "Business Report", examines what the possible outcome to the country will be if Chinese stock markets undergo a sudden correction.
Why all the fuss about reserve management?
This article published Tuesday 15 May by Business Day asks why the Central Bank of Nigeria is so concerned about local banks shoring up on reserve management skills.
Sweden walks the central bank talk
This article published by The Australian on Wednesday 16 May reports new research from JPMorgan on winners and losers in the central bank communication debate.
Four letter word may spell end for Wolfowitz
According to this article published Tuesday 15 May by The Guardian, Paul Wolfowitz swore at and threatened senior World Bank staff with retaliation if details of his pay rises for his partner were revealed.