Central Bank Watch
Reserve Bank of New Zealand: Steady Policy as She Goes
June 13, 2012
It remains appropriate for monetary policy to remain stimulatory. So states the fourth scheduled Official Cash Rate decision announcement of 2012. The OCR has been at 2.5% since a 50-basis point cut in March 2011. That reduction undid 25-bp increases enacted in June and July of 2010, returned the policy rate to its all-time low, […] More
Central Bank Watch
Central Bank of Sri Lanka: No Further Change
June 13, 2012
Two interest rate hikes of 50 basis points and 25 bps were implemented this year by monetary authorities in February and April, but the latest review resulted in no further changes of the 9.75% reverse repo or 7.75% repo rate. From a high in 2007 of 10.5%, the repo rate had been cut to 7.0% […] More
Central Bank Watch
Central Bank of Iceland Tightens Further
June 13, 2012
Rate increases at Sedlabanki last August (25 basis points), November (25 bps), March (25 bps) and May (50 bps) were followed up today by a fifth increase, this time of 25 basis points. The seven-day collateralized lending rate now becomes 5.75%, and like the increase in May, analysts had not anticipated the latest move. A […] More
Central Bank Watch
Bank of Thailand Keeps Accommodative Monetary Stance
June 13, 2012
Monetary policy committee members voted unanimously to retail a 3.0% one-day repo rate and released a statement that outlined both growth and inflation risks. On prices, it was noted that “the pass-through of costs to prices of goods and services continued to be sustained by robust domestic demand, while inflation expectation remained elevated in light […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Europe Blamed for World’s Woes
June 13, 2012
Share prices have fallen 0.9% in Germany and France. The DJIA opened on a modestly negative note. Stocks rose 0.6% in Japan, 1.6% in China, 0.8% in Hong Kong, and 0.7% in the Philippines but fell by 1.3% in New Zealand, 0.4% in Thailand, and 0.2% in Australia. Industrial production in the euro area sank […] More