RBA policy – assessing the bias
Mar 01, 2016 08:44 am UTC| Commentary Central Banks
Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), decided to keep policy unchanged and keep interest rate at 2%. Since it was largely expected stay put, Aussie didnt gain much from the decision. Reserve bank of Australia (RBA) after few...
China’s central bank lowers RRR, likely to further lower rates in H1 2016
Mar 01, 2016 06:49 am UTC| Commentary Central Banks
The People Bank of China recently stated that RRR will be lowered by 50bp effective 1 March 2016. This move was taken by the PBoC just after the G20 meeting and Governor Zhous comment regarding prudent but moderately loose...
RBA seems to have strengthened easing bias, but keeps cash rate unchanged
Mar 01, 2016 05:54 am UTC| Commentary Central Banks
The Reserve Bank of Australia has decided to keep the cash rate unchanged at 2%, on par with expectations. The central bank had expressed its easing bias in its recent statements saying persistent low inflation may give...
Poor inflation data intensifies pressure on the ECB
Feb 29, 2016 16:38 pm UTC| Commentary Central Banks
Data released earlier today showed euro area headline inflation fell back in February to a one-year low of -0.2% y/y, while core inflation slowed to 0.7% from 1.0%. Februarys drop in euro-zone CPI inflation back into...
Potential credit problem in UK could see some macroprudential controls from BoE FPC
Feb 29, 2016 15:44 pm UTC| Commentary Central Banks
Consumer credit in UK is growing at over 9% 3mth pa, a pace not seen since 2005 and notably faster than the pace immediately before the financial crisis broke. Mortgage borrowing, the much larger component of household...
Strong job growth reduces the chances of further monetary easing from BoK
Feb 29, 2016 14:45 pm UTC| Commentary Central Banks
Koreas recent strong job growth has been led by the manufacturing sector, contradicting the view that manufacturing jobs will likely decline as a country advances from an emerging to a developed economy. The pickup in...
Sustained downside pressures on EUR/CHF could see SNB action ahead of its 17 March meet
Feb 29, 2016 10:16 am UTC| Insights & Views Central Banks
As we head into policy meetings from the ECB and SNB scheduled on 12 March and 17 March respectively, with the rates market pricing 12bp cuts for both central banks, we can expect some EUR/CHF downside if ECB cuts but SNB...
Johannesburg in a time of darkness: Ivan Vladislavić’s new memoir reminds us of the city’s fragility
Why Germany ditched nuclear before coal – and why it won’t go back
Labour can afford to be far more ambitious with its economic policies – voters are on board
Sudan: civil war stretches into a second year with no end in sight