Oil
Central bankers have lost sight of inflation
Inflation resurgence comes after central bankers were distracted from their primary task by climate and crypto, combined with an overreliance on new Keynesian approaches
The green agenda dilemma
Central banks face a choice over whether to support national energy independence or climate goals, amid calls from some parties for higher inflation targets
RBI hikes at unscheduled monetary policy meeting
India joins race to tighten policy, amid “vortex” of economic forces
Icelandic central bank implements largest rate hike since 2008
Despite 100bp rate hike, policy-makers signal more tightening will be needed in coming months
PBoC focusing on grain and energy to stem inflation
Price stability in grain production and energy supply key to growth, says governor
Gas investments important for energy security, UK’s Sunak tells BoE
Chancellor of the Exchequer urges officials to support government’s energy security policy
Two Latin American central banks raise rates
Colombia’s two MPC dissenters call for steeper hikes; Dominican Republic raises rates 50bp
Romanian and Zimbabwean central banks raise rates
Zimbabwean figures say inflation has reached 72% but observers say this may be an underestimate
Fractures in the monetary system
Seizure of Bank of Russia assets likely to have long-term implications for international system
Azerbaijan continues gradual tightening
Central bank adds 25bp at March meeting, for a total of 150bp in hikes since September
Fed triggers lift-off with 25bp hike
FOMC cuts economic growth projections for 2022 but proceeds with tightening
Energy firms call for central bank support to cover margin spikes
Trade body warns energy market participants risk being unable to meet “unprecedented margin requirements”
Digital money and central banks
Central banks must reflect on the monetary policy, regulatory and financial stability implications from crypto assets, stablecoins and CBDCs to stay relevant in the digital age of money
Norwegian oil fund to divest Russian assets
Fund held equity investments in nearly 50 Russian companies, including Sberbank and Gazprom
US announces initial financial sanctions on Russia
Biden administration bars secondary market bond transactions, but expert says impact likely to be limited
Kazakh central bank warns of inflation pressure after protests
Policy-makers opt for 50bp rate hike to curb possible inflation surge
South Sudanese president fires governor for fifth time
President again dismisses governor as country’s economic crisis continues
Dominican Republic ends 2021 with 100bp hike
Central bank returns rate to pre-pandemic level as economy and inflation steadily grow
Agustín Carstens on BIS strategic priorities, innovation and central bank policy
The BIS general manager speaks about policy trade-offs at critical time, tackling NBFIs and the dearth of ‘green’ assets, tech collaboration, and why he favours Biden’s $3.5trn infrastructure bill
PBoC plays down surge in factory-gate prices
PPI and CPI in July both higher than expected, but central bank says pressure is “controllable”
Ecuador central bank doubles BIS credit line
Central bank to treat funds as precautionary to deal with a future downturn
The IMF’s $650bn SDR allocation and a future ‘digital SDR’
Focus is needed on widening SDR use in payments and the creation of a ‘digital SDR’, to support a large allocation of ‘official’ IMF SDRs, writes Warren Coats
New BoE climate risk scenarios spark race for extra data
Banks need information from clients or third parties to populate 1,760 stress test variables
The ‘golden age’ of central banking has passed
Central banks face multi-faceted challenges and weakened autonomy amid highly polarised inflation expectations