samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
The significance of having as our own the world’s second most important currency is not lost upon a central banker. For, beyond its proven economic benefits, the euro signifies the virtual elimination of the potential risk of an exchange rate crisis to which the currencies of small, open economies are exposed on a daily basis in a world characterized by the free movement of capital. We have now traded in this vulnerability for the greater security and credibility afforded by a major international currency. The euro has indeed been a success story in many respects. The disciplines of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) were intended to promote the creation of a macroeconomic environment in which countries could thrive in an increasingly competitive market place. The euro area’s track record in terms of price stability, trade expansion and employment creation suggest that these expectations have been largely fulfilled. The Central Bank of Malta is, therefore, proud to have become a member of the Eurosystem. From an institution charged with the preservation of price stability in Malta and with safeguarding the integrity of our national currency, the Bank now shares responsibility with the other members of the Eurosystem for shaping monetary policy in the best interest of 320 million people in fifteen countries. This is a task which my colleagues at the Bank and I approach with confidence and enthusiasm. From a national perspective, the challenge now is to maximize the benefits of participation in monetary union by making further progress on the path of reform.

Three conditions in particular need to be met: fiscal policy must remain supportive of macroeconomic stability; wage increases must be justified by productivity gains; and our product and labour markets must become more flexible and competitive. The new phase in Malta’s economic history which was ushered in on 1 January, therefore, promises to be a challenging one, but it should also be an exciting time. For a country with a population of 400,000, having a major reserve unit as its domestic currency is indeed a significant advantage. We thus have good reason to feel reassured now that we are about to reinforce our integration in Europe with full economic and monetary union. For, while the EU has for fifty years brought peace and stability to the peoples of Europe, the Single Market and EMU have created a congenial environment in which economies can grow and people prosper. On another, but no less important level, the euro is also a symbol of a common  BIS Review 5/2008  1  identity and of shared values and, therefore, a potential instrument for bringing peoples closer together. 2  BIS Review 5/2008
2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  The Riksbank’s calculations of potential GDP Resource utilisation can be measured in several different ways. Here, I will demonstrate how we, at the Riksbank, calculate measurements of resource utilisation based on GDP and potential GDP, as well as hours worked and potential hours worked. Potential GDP refers to the level of GDP that is consistent with a use of the available resources that is sustainable in the long term and that does not push up inflation. If GDP exceeds the potential level, then resource utilisation is high – and vice versa. We call the difference between actual and potential GDP the GDP gap.6 When resource utilisation is normal, GDP is equal to potential BNP, and the GDP gap is equal to zero. Consequently, potential GDP does not refer to the highest level GDP may reach over the short term. In Figure 1, the trend development of GDP is represented by a Hodrick-Prescott trend (HP trend). An HP trend is something between a linear trend and the actual development of GDP. The HP trend is a common and often fairly good measure of the underlying long-term development in GDP during normal cyclical fluctuations. But the HP trend is not good at estimating the underlying development of GDP at the end of a time series and it gives no guidance as to why output deviates from its trend level.

22.10.2020  Closing address to the CNMV Conference on Financial Sustainability The CNMV's activity in the area of sustainable finance Margarita Delgado Deputy Governor  Good morning everyone. I would like to thank the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), and in particular its Vice-Chair, for kindly inviting me to close this conference on sustainability. I regret not being able to attend the presentations over the last two days, but judging by the topics addressed and the quality of the speakers, I am confident that the conference has been a success. I think that it is difficult to find an aim that is more global or shared more widely than the fight against climate change. Although this consensus has gradually developed over time, it is clear that it has quickly grown recently. Traditionally, this challenge has been addressed through fiscal policies. From a theoretical standpoint, and in the opinion of the Banco de España, these policies continue to be the most suitable for resolving the challenge posed by pollution. More recently, a CO2 emissions trading system has been developed in Europe, pursuing the same objectives of internalising environmental costs, which is currently being revised. Nevertheless, this type of conventional measure has been complemented by other developments. The foremost of these are undoubtedly technological changes and the falling cost of renewable energy production, together with the shift in economic agents' and the public’s attitude and awareness as regards sustainability.
The break from the years prior to the financial crisis is clear. Growth is being supported by immigration and employment growth, and not by increased productivity. There are two factors that determine value added in a population. One is labour input and the other is labour productivity. I will look at some aspects of each of these factors. Chart 15: Employment ratio is high, but hours worked are low The employment ratio is high in Norway. Labour force participation is high and most jobseekers find work. Employment has increased rapidly since the mid-1990s. An expansionary monetary policy and additional government expenditure of oil money buoyed activity and employment through the financial crisis. Measured by hours worked, labour input has also risen, albeit not to the same extent. On average, the working day is shrinking. The employment ratio adjusted for working hours provides an expression of average labour input per hour worked among the active population. In this chart, hourly labour input is measured in relation to usual hours of work per year of 1 750 hours. In 2011, the average number of hours worked in Norway came to about 60 percent of usual hours of work per year. By this measure, the employment ratio was higher in Greece than in Norway up to the time when Greece was fully hit by the crisis. Total labour input is considerably higher in Sweden, Finland and the US than in Norway. We work less than the OECD average.

Whilst remote working only accounted for around 8% of total hours worked in 2019, this increased sharply during the pandemic, reaching 43% in 2021 Q1. Moreover, firms expected remote working to persist into 2022 and beyond, with around 20% of hours expected to be worked from home. 1  5  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/speeches and @BoE_PressOffice  5  has been a negative impact on productivity resulting from measures taken to contain Covid. Firms in the DMP estimated that Covid has increased average unit costs by around 7% in the second and third quarters of last year. They expected this impact to reduce to 5% by the second quarter of this year, with a more persistent negative impact of 2%. All of this reflects new costs – for PPE, screens etc., and the impact on costs from social distancing reducing capacity. However, this negative effect from higher unit costs was offset for DMP members by what is often called a batting average effect – namely that the impact of Covid has shifted the composition of activity towards higher productivity firms. But this means that Covid has seen lower total output and higher average labour productivity. This is consistent with the greater than normal supply side impact of the Covid shock. But this is not creative destruction in a Schumpeterian sense; in other words that raises output through competition and innovation. Rather, this is a form of destruction that lowers total output and welfare.
At least in the run up to the crisis, some invested in levered paper, some of it in what amounted  2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  to Russian Doll shadow banking – a money fund buys short-term ABCP backed by CDOs, etc. What I suggest here is that:   Money Market Funds should be required to choose between being –  Variable Net Asset Value (NAV) funds or Constant NAV funds  –  Any remaining CNAV funds should be subject to capital requirements of some kind  –  All should be subject to “gates” or other measures that can be used to delay withdrawals, to make runs less likely. That package would not completely prevent runs; regular mutual funds can suffer runs. But it would make them somewhat less brittle. Europe should want a global standard or at least a globally consistent approach to money funds. Much the largest money-fund industry in the world is based in the US. But it is not confined to domestic, US intermediation. It is internationally active – lending to banks, corporates and sovereigns around the world. That underlines the importance of the outcome of the deliberations of the SEC and of the US Financial Stability Oversight Counsel in this area. We have to hope that the US authorities will take action – making not only their own domestic financial system safer, but the global system safer.

Moreover, the increase in the use of financial channels contributes to enhancing financial inclusion, increasing the opportunities for savings and productive investments. Taking into account the benefits from the formal penetration of remittances in the economy and 1/2  BIS central bankers' speeches  the insofar contribution to the banking and financial sector, the Bank of Albania suggests added attention with regard to reducing transfer costs and improving or designing afresh products and services /targeted to this segment of the population. From its side, the Bank of Albania is engaged to further modernise the payment system infrastructure and align the legislation to the EU directives for an open, barrier-less, and competitive market. In the last two years, the Bank of Albania has been engaging in concrete projects with the World Bank, related to remittances and financial inclusion. The first project consists in an assessment of the compliance with the “General Principles for international remittance services” designed by the World Bank and the Bank for International Settlement and a concrete action plan, with many stakeholders involved, to comply with those fields that need further improvement. Another noteworthy project is the Greenback of the World Bank dedicated to remittances, implemented in several countries across the world. This project comes now to Albania as a receiver of remittance and aims at enhancing the efficiencies in the market for remittances and raising the awareness and financial education, and has Bank of Albania’s endorsement until its completion.
Further innovations are needed if the sector is to come to terms with the new business models that Andrew Bailey and others have mentioned today. For example, innovations in the way banks are organised that are consistent with orderly resolutions. Separately, and as noted in a number of panels today, asset managers also need to innovate to adapt to the new realities of market liquidity. The increase in the scale of the asset management sector since the crisis has been notable, as has been the emergence of investment funds that offer daily liquidity while investing in securities that only appear liquid. The Bank, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Financial Stability Board are keenly aware of these risks, and we are working to resolve them in an orderly manner. The area of market liquidity is one place where there may be duplicative regulations and scope for adjustment. Market participants should rest assured we have made adjustments in the past where we have gotten things wrong. We adjusted the liquidity coverage ratio. President Draghi noted the joint work between the Bank and the European Central Bank to change securitisation – an example of fixing something we had not gotten exactly right. We will continue to adjust our market operations. Let me move towards the conclusion of my conclusion. The point about reform and review being a continual effort came through in spades. David Kynaston noted that there have been four big bursts of reform in the last 150 years.

Caleb M Fundanga: A brief look at corporate governance in Zambia Speech by Dr Caleb M Fundanga, Governor of the Bank of Zambia, at the launch of corporate governance guidelines for banks and non-bank financial institutions, Lusaka, 28 November 2006. *  *  *  ♦ The Chairperson of the Bankers Association of Zambia; ♦ The Chairperson of the Institute of Directors; ♦ The Chief Executive Officers of banks and non-bank financial institutions; ♦ Deputy Governors, Bank of Zambia; ♦ Representatives of Professional Bodies; Media Colleagues; ♦ Distinguished Invited Guests; ♦ Ladies and Gentlemen. I wish to welcome you all to the launch of the corporate governance guidelines for banks and nonbank financial institutions, in particular, deposit taking non-bank financial institutions. As you all may be aware, the recent debacle of corporate scandals has resulted in the resurgence of interest in good corporate governance. These scandals have not been restricted to large businesses in the US or Europe, but have surfaced in emerging economies as well, with equally devastating effects. This, together with concern about our environment and globalisation, has played an important role in this resurgence of interest in how companies are managed, directed and controlled. Here in Zambia, the collapse of a number of banks in the mid-1990’s has largely been attributed to poor corporate governance. Some characteristics of this included dominant key shareholders, poor transparency and inadequate disclosure.
The best way to secure this favourable prospect is to continue with the implementation of the necessary reforms in markets and institutions and with the adoption of best practices on the basis of a free exchange and competition of ideas and social values. References: Aghion, P. and P. Howitt (1998), “Endogeneus growth theory”, Cambridge, Mass. The MIT Press. Aghion, P. and P. Howitt (2005), “Appropriate Growth Policy: A Unifying Framework”, Schumpeter Lecture, Nice, September, revised December. Alesina, A. and F. Giavazzi (2006), The Future of Europe, Reform or Decline, The MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. Alesina, A. and L. H. Summers (1993), “Central Bank Independence and Macroeconomic Performance: Some Comparative Evidence,” Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, vol. 25(2), pp. 151–162. Aristotle (ca. 350 BC) Nicomachean Ethics, translation by H. Rackham, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass., Revised edition 1934. Arnone, M., B. J. Laurens, J.-F. Segalotto, and M. Sommer (2007), Central Bank Autonomy: Lessons from Global Trends, IMF Working Paper, WP/07/88. BIS Review 43/2007  9  Bassanini, A. and R. Duval (2006), “Employment patterns in OECD countries: Reassessing the role of policies and institutions”, Social, employment and migration working paper series No 35 (OECD, Paris, June). Baufield, E. (1958), The moral basis of a backward society, New York, Free Press. Blanchard, O. (2004), “The economic future of Europe”, The Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 18, pp. 3-26. Blanchard, O. and J. Wolfers (2000), “Shocks and institutions and the rise of European unemployment. The aggregate evidence”, Economic Journal, vol. 110-1, pp. 1-33.

BIS Review 137/1999  6  Today we can see similar developments in the IT industry. Besides the giant Ericssson, Sweden has many different IT enterprises. But growth is still being driven not so much by users of the new communication facilities as by the production of new possibilities. To continue with the comparison, in the next phase people started to travel by rail. A journey from Stockholm to Gothenburg admittedly took 11 hours and 45 minutes in 1865 but that was nothing compared with a horse-drawn carriage. Travelling became quicker and more efficient; people gained new impressions and learned new things. Sweden became smaller. Today we travel on the Internet by gathering information simply and efficiently from all over the world, largely for the price of a local telephone call. Millions of people in all parts of the world are indeed using this facility and in that sense the world has now become smaller. The really important phase, however, was when the railways began to affect processes for production and distribution. Previously, production in Sweden had been located in the vicinity of iron ore and forests. The units were numerous and not particularly efficient; transportation was slow. In the county of Värmland, for example, there were sixty different sites for the production of iron in 1870. When the railways had been constructed, it was easier to concentrate production to fewer sites; by around 1900 there were only six sites and they were accordingly considerably more efficient.
In total, nearly a quarter of 18 to 24 yearolds in Italy and 19% in France are NEETS (Not in Employment, Education or Training) – well above the OECD average of 14%. Therefore, we have no greater priority today than developing skills, apprenticeships and professional training. As well as this need for the right reforms in our two countries, the decentralisation of the euro area has another consequence: we need a more symmetrical adjustment, with wage increases and fiscal stimulus in those countries that have the room to manoeuvre, such as Germany and the Netherlands. Fortunately, this process has already begun, with the fiscal plans set out by the coalition governments elected in 2017, and the pick-up in wage growth as these countries get nearer to full employment. The excessive external surpluses in the euro area are also a sign of poor resource allocation. The Macroeconomic Imbalance Procedure carried out by the European Commission must therefore be symmetrical. 3/5  BIS central bankers' speeches  II. To construct a more solidarity-based euro area, we need an Italy that is committed. At the same time, the euro area also needs to be improved: although Monetary Union is a success, the weaknesses of the Economic Union continue to pose a problem. We need to find a “tightrope” that combines responsibility and solidarity. Since Meseberg last June, France and Germany have put forward some initial proposals.

François Villeroy de Galhau: What are the economic prospects for the euro area? Speech by Mr François Villeroy de Galhau, Governor of the Bank of France, at the Conference at LUISS University, Rome, 29 November 2018. * * * Ladies and Gentlemen, I am delighted to be here with you this evening at LUISS University, in the magnificent ballroom of the Villa Blanc, and I would like to extend by warmest thanks to Vice President Paola Severino. LUISS University is renowned for the high standard of its teaching and one of your illustrious former presidents, Guido Carli, who gave his name to your university, was also a signatory to the Maastricht Treaty in 1992. I am here to speak to you today as a friend of Italy, a country which I hold very dear. For several years in my professional career, I made monthly visits to Rome and had the pleasure of learning your language. I am pleased to see my friend Governor Ignazio Visco here, as he is also my closest neighbour in Frankfurt: we sit next to each other on the Governing Council. I am also here as a committed European, one who is familiar both with Germany and Belgium. This commitment is also shared by Sylvie Goulard, who is here today in her capacity as Deputy Governor of the Banque de France.
The Governing Council also agreed upon a guideline for the management of the foreign exchange assets by the national central banks and for the Member States’ transactions with their foreign exchange working balances. These are now being formalised in official legal documentation. (c) Statistics The Governing Council endorsed the statistical framework on the basis of a number of reports that had been prepared by the EMI - many of which had been published in the past - thereby confirming the ECB’s statistical requirements for Stage Three. I should perhaps point out that the reporting framework for the money and banking statistics of the ECB will appear in the “General Documentation” that will be released next Wednesday. (d) Euro banknotes With regard to the euro banknotes, the Governing Council confirmed (in line with previous recommendations by the EMI) that seven banknote denominations would be issued: 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500. Furthermore, it decided that there would not be any national features on the euro banknotes. As you know, the euro banknotes will be put into circulation on 1 January 2002. Thus there are fewer than 800 working days to go before their launch. The Governing Council took note that the technical preparations for the euro banknotes are proceeding according to schedule. The origination phase (i.e. the process of converting the designs into proof-prints) has now been successfully concluded and a zero-production run will be conducted in the autumn before mass production starts in early 1999.

In fact, at end-2021 a third of the banks under our direct supervision did not meet their internal targets for gender representation at board level. But, as I said, it is not just a matter of gender. The board of directors needs to have the appropriate knowledge diversity to be able to deal with the challenges facing the financial industry. I am thinking, for example, of digitalisation strategies and climate risks. This does not mean that members need to be experts on these topics, but they do need to have sufficient knowledge to understand these challenges in order to make sound decisions. At the end of 2021, only around a fifth of the largest euro area banks had sufficient IT expertise at board level. Increasing this ratio will be key if banks are to successfully navigate the digital era.1 Second, the involvement of board members is crucial. Members should exercise their duties responsibly and uphold professional standards. They should devote sufficient time to reading and understanding all the documentation in order to be well-prepared for their meetings. They should also have the opportunity to seek clarification in advance, if necessary, to ensure that they have sufficient knowledge to support or challenge decisions. Finally, as I mentioned earlier, independence is of course essential. Institutions should have a sufficient number of independent directors to contribute to decision-making in an objective manner and to ensure a neutral attitude within the board.