samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Gent Sejko: The importance of media in analysing Albania’s monetary policy Address by Mr Gent Sejko, Governor of the Bank of Albania, at the end-of-year meeting with the media, Tirana, 20 December 2018. * * * Dear ladies and gentlemen, Welcome to our end-of-year meeting with the media. I would like to thank you for your readiness, objectivity, and seriousness in covering the activities of the Bank of Albania and informing the public about them, throughout 2018. Thanks to you, our analyses and decision-making have been communicated in a thorough manner, mindfully tailored and styled in accordance with the age and profession of the targeted audience. I must note that, in addition to broad geographic coverage, your comments and analyses on the economic and financial developments in Albania have been very professional. At the Bank of Albania, my colleagues and I maintain that the current media reality is an important part of our activity. Our decision-making could not be considered complete without your contribution. Communication is a vital and delicate process for a central bank. I must emphasize that, without your help and objectivity, realisation of Bank of Albania’s decision-making regarding monetary policy and financial stability would have been an impossible mission. Figuratively, I would point out that you are the ones that enable the translation of our analyses and conclusions into an adequate and easy-to-understand message for the general public.

When foreign market participants assess the situation and risks for Sweden and Swedish financial institutions, they also take into account to a large degree what is happening in the other Nordic countries and in the Baltic countries. The global financial crisis has affected financial stability in Sweden, although financial institutions here have coped better than those in many other countries. At the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 there was considerable international uncertainty and the market was particularly sensitive to consequences for Swedish banks resulting from the crisis in the Baltic. There was thus good reason for the Riksbank to take measures to stabilise the situation among the major Swedish banks in accordance with its task "to promote a safe and efficient payment system”. As the problems of the Swedish banks concerned mainly lay in the Baltic region, there was even greater justification for aiming the measures at strengthening these countries and thereby the banks there. The costs of these measures would probably be much lower if the problem could be dealt with at source rather than waiting until it had spread to the parent banks in Sweden, for instance through a dead stop in the liquidity supply from international markets. When the Riksbank made an assessment of the resources required to manage a widespread Swedish bank crisis, we took into account the fact that the Swedish banks’ balance sheets nowadays amount in total to 3.7 times Sweden’s GDP (which can be compared to 1.2 times GDP during the bank crisis in the 1990s).
First, it must be understood that the quest for competitiveness can only succeed if it takes the form of a collective effort whose sole purpose is to boost the economy’s value added. Without the latter, higher wages and profits cannot be paid. It cannot be an exercise in which one of the parties attempts to crowd out the other. It is clear, therefore, that a more focused social dialogue is needed that takes a stronger leadership role in identifying the policies and measures needed to improve Malta’s international competitiveness and to ensure their implementation. Second, there is absolutely no guarantee that the standard of living the country has been enjoying so far can be maintained in the face of increasing global competition. The threats that Malta is facing cannot be simply wished away or averted through quick fixes. What is required is a more flexible and  BIS Review 32/2005  3  cost-conscious attitude towards work practices and the setting of generally higher standards of performance across the board. Third, we must accept that subsidies, transfers and services provided for free by Government do not come at zero cost, but must be paid for through resources generated by the economy. Their provision at zero cost often induces excess demand and waste, and imposes unacceptable burdens on the productive sectors of the economy, thereby compromising their competitiveness and the very generation of income through which such benefits must be financed.

Thirty years ago in Sweden, bank deposits and other very liquid assets with little risk made up almost 60 per cent of households’ financial wealth, as against less than 20 per cent today. The major part of this adjustment in financial portfolios has gone to shares but a good deal now takes the form of insurance saving. The trend towards forms of saving with a higher risk has been accentuated by new rules for insurance companies, permitting a high proportion of shares, although this is arranged more indirectly. Similar tendencies are to be found in other industrialised countries. So it is not just in Sweden that saving has moved away from traditional bank deposits. This is a positive trend. However, long-term saving requires an ability to manage the associated risks. Stock prices fluctuate widely, in marked contrast to the stability of bank deposits. This is something that could affect not only the individual investor or household, but also the economy on a large scale. Therefore, I think it’s important to discuss the risks of the financial sector in general and the stock market in particular. This could be even more important now that so many newcomers have entered the stock market. Allow me to quote the following:  “With each passing year, the noise level in the stock market rises. Television commentators, financial writers, analysts, and market strategists are all overtalking each other to get investors’ attention.
These pages will also be registered under the name jy2kcouncil.org in the near future. BIS Review 56/1998  -6-  the four Sponsoring Organizations (almost 600 contacts in over 170 countries), asking for assistance in coordinating the development of their country page. This also provided a further opportunity to raise the awareness of the Year 2000 problem at the most senior levels of financial market authorities and supervisors in countries around the world. Through the effort to develop this web site and other similar efforts by the Joint Year 2000 Council, I believe we can succeed at keeping the awareness of the issue at a very high level within the global financial supervisory community. Efforts to Improve Preparedness Of course, awareness of the Year 2000 problem is only the first step in addressing it. Global efforts to prepare for Year 2000 vary widely, and many countries believe that more coordinated national action will be necessary to tackle the problem as effectively as possible. At our second meeting of the Joint Year 2000 Council, a strong consensus emerged that a national government body in each country could play a helpful role in coordinating preparations for Y2K. While the Council did not have a strong view on what particular form or what specific authority such a body would require in each specific country, the Council members felt strongly that involvement in some fashion by the national government could be beneficial.

Asia including China is clearly a key focus area. Take the Bond Connect as an example, in 2020 the scheme recorded an average daily turnover of nearly RMB30 billion, representing a growth of 82% over 2019. This accounts for 52% of foreign investors’ total turnover in the CIBM market, and shows that Hong Kong continues to be the preferred channel for investing in the Mainland market. The next exciting thing will be the launch of the Southbound Bond Connect, which will open up a ground-breaking conduit for Mainland investors to access the international bond market via Hong Kong. All these will be important impetus for the further development of fixed income including structured credit markets in Hong Kong. 11. Another important macro trend is the burgeoning green and sustainable bond market. The global green bond market has grown from practically non-existent ten years ago to $ billion in 2020. Recognising this trend, Hong Kong launched a few supportive initiatives in the last few years, including the Green Bond Grant Scheme in 2018. The latest Government Budget announced a new Green and Sustainable Finance Grant Scheme, which will focus on green and sustainable bond issuers and borrowers and extend the scope of eligible products, external reviewers and expenses. To create the demonstrative effect and establish a benchmark yield curve, the Government itself has issued two rounds of green bonds since 2019 that are aligned to international standards such as ICMA’s Green Bond Principles.
During the course of the SAARC Payments Initiative, member countries will be able to learn from the efforts and experiences of developments of payments within the region, as well as outside. Some of our member countries may have to acquire modern communication infrastructure and advanced payment systems to support the delivery of the payment and settlement services required, not only by their own markets, but also by the regional market. In effect, the SAARC Payments Initiative will be able to: (a) guide the efforts of member countries in modernizing their national payment systems; (b) assist in establishing appropriate technological links with others in the region; and (c) bring their payment systems to appropriate standards compatible with international standards. 4. The importance of payment systems  4.1 The broader term “payment systems” includes not only payments, but also clearing and settlement systems. Payment systems represent a basic infrastructure for the functioning of market economies and in developing more inclusive financial systems, including enhancement of access to finance. The soundness and efficiency of payment systems are fundamental to the stability of the currency, as well as the financial system and, therefore, to sustaining economic development. 4.2 It is in this context that some of the governing laws of the region’s central banks include references to the responsibility of central banks to promote the monetary, financial and payment systems in their respective countries.

The recommendation exceptionally has adopted a “one-size-fits-all” approach owing to the current economic uncertainty banks are experiencing, leaving them quite simply unable to forecast their medium-term capital needs accurately. We will review this recommendation in December, and unless we conclude that the banks’ capital projections remain clouded by exceptionally high uncertainty, we should revert to our usual supervisory practice of assessing the planned distribution of dividends on a bank-by-bank basis, taking into account the safety and resilience of the banking system as well as the preservation of its intermediation function at a time of deteriorating asset quality and increased capital consumption. Another new development concerns the leverage ratio. On the basis of the amendments to the Capital Requirements Regulation, ECB Banking Supervision has allowed significant credit institutions to exclude central bank exposures from the calculation of their leverage ratios until July 2021. ECB Banking Supervision has cooperated with and sought the views of the ECB’s central bank function in order to tailor the scope of this temporary exemption so that it covers only those claims on the central bank that are related to the implementation of monetary policy. The measures in relation to dividends and the leverage ratio, as well as the other measures providing temporary capital, liquidity and operational relief to banks, are exceptional measures which are justified as long as the impact of the COVID-19 crisis continues to be felt. We may also decide to discontinue some of these measures, as we did for some of the operational relief measures in July.
Still, we are working with the same timetable.” A storm of criticism from banks, academics and politicians in recent months has strengthened expectations that the final draft will not be completed until some time in early 2004, instead of end-2003 as planned. Critics blast the rules as fearsomely complex, too prescriptive and incurring costs far greater than the potential benefits. Some areas require more work, such as risks posed by highly diversified banks and on credit derivatives. Regulators were prepared to adapt the accord as they gained a better understanding of new risk modelling techniques, said Caruana. “Certainly there will be issues that will be important that we cannot manage now,” he said. “We have recognised that the Basel II process is an evolutionary approach.”  2  BIS Review 39/2003  The Basel II accord, so named because it will replace the 1988 Basel Accord, would update existing rules on how much capital large international banks must hold to remain sound and reflect changes in financial services over the last 15 years. Due for implementation in 2006, it would set standards for how bank capital is supervised and what type of financial disclosure institutions must make. Experts say that a delay in publishing the final draft of even several months could throw the target implementation date back by a full year if it means domestic rule-making and legislative deadlines in Europe cannot be met.

Taking into account the available information, our projections, force of action of the monetary policy transmission mechanism and other financial stability considerations, the Bank of Albania deems that the monetary policy will maintain a similar stimulating direction and range within similar parameters, over the medium term. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3
The agenda for these visits is always packed, but that’s part of the point – to meet with a diverse array of representatives in order to get a comprehensive picture of what’s happening on Main Street and its interaction with state and national developments. At the end of my talk I will be happy to answer any questions you have about the economic outlook from my perspective. As always, what I have to say reflects my own views and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve System or the Federal Open Market Committee, also known as the FOMC. National economic conditions I would like to begin by taking stock of where we are at the moment. Then I will address my expectations for the performance of the economy over the remainder of 2013 and into 2014. Since the end of the Great Recession in mid-2009, we have had 15 consecutive quarters of positive growth of real GDP. However, the average annual growth rate over that period has been just 2.1 percent. Although the unemployment rate has declined by 2.5 percentage points from its peak of 10 percent in October of 2009, much of this decline is due to the fact that the labor force participation rate has fallen by 1.5 percentage points over this period. Recall that discouraged workers who do not actively look for work are regarded as not participating in the labor force and so are not counted as unemployed even though they are without jobs.

Your new Commissioner of Housing – whom I note, formerly worked at the New York Fed – attended that conference. We also conduct a periodic poll about the credit needs of small businesses, which are an important source of new jobs in the District. If you represent a small business and would like to participate in our next poll, please pass your business card to my colleagues, who are in the audience, or see me after the speech. And if your business is somewhat larger, I urge you to consider becoming one of our business contacts – just indicate your interest to us on your business card. So how is the region doing? I want to begin by pointing out that Fairfield County has a number of strengths, beginning with a highly-educated workforce: Two in five adults in the county hold a college degree, nearly twice the nationwide average. It also has an array of fine educational institutions, including Fairfield University, UConn Stamford, the University of Bridgeport, Sacred Heart University, Western Connecticut State University, Housatonic Community College and Norwalk Community College. The industry mix here is quite diverse, with a good representation of jobs in the high-paying finance sector. In fact, roughly 35,000 jobs in the county, about 9 percent of total employment, are in the finance and insurance industry, a share almost twice as large as in the nation and even slightly higher than in New York City.
BIS Review 41/2009  11  Figure 6  GDP and domestic demand  (real annual change, percent) 15  30  10  20  5  10  0  0  00  01  02  03  04  05  06  07  08  -5  -10 GDP  Domestic demand  Private consumption  GFCF  Source: Central Bank of Chile. Figure 7  Cost of foreign banking credit for Chile's residents  (percent) 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 02  03  04  05 Libor  06  07  08 II  III  IV  09  Spread  Source: Central Bank of Chile. 12  BIS Review 41/2009  Figure 8  GDP and manufacturing production  (real annual change, percent)  China  China India  India Mexico  Brazil  Chile  Chile  U.S.  U.S.  Russia  Eurozone  Eurozone  Mexico  Brazil  U.K.  U.K.  S. Korea  S. Korea  Japan -6  Japan -4  -2  0  2  4  6  8  (a) Annual GDP change in GDP in 2008.Q4  -30  -20  -10  0  10  (b) Average annual change in manufacturing output between October 2008 and January 2009. Sources: Central Bank of Chile, CEIC Data and Central Bank of China.

Mobile banking will lead to increased outreach, increased efficiency and productivity as well as increased returns for businesses. Let me once again assure you, Mr. Chairman that, the Bank of Zambia is committed to providing an enabling environment through appropriate regulation for banks and financial businesses that wish to promote financial inclusion. We appreciate the Mobile Banking initiative by Celpay Zambia Limited and look forward to greater investment in financial inclusion in our beloved country. I thank you. BIS Review 111/2009  3
Svein Gjedrem: Monetary policy - the importance of credibility and confidence Address by Mr Svein Gjedrem, Governor of the Norges Bank, at the Annual National Meeting of the Association of Economists, held in Gausdal on 25 January 2001. *  *  *  Introduction The primary responsibility of monetary policy is to contribute to nominal stability. Nominal stability creates a more favourable operating environment for economic activity, and the prices of goods and services will be better conveyors of information. Consequently, changes in the distribution of income and wealth as a result of variable price inflation are avoided. Nominal stability is important to developments in the real economy, and is the most valuable contribution monetary policy can make to economic growth. Using this as a starting point, I would like to speak today of the importance of confidence and credibility with regard to monetary policy. I will also evaluate the monetary policy that has been conducted for the last couple of years in relation to the guidelines for monetary policy and our interpretation of them. Expectations and confidence Expectations regarding the future play a large part in all economic activities. Enterprises make decisions on production volume, investments, hiring and prices on the basis of expectations concerning future demand, prices and costs. Households make purchases on the basis of their expectations with regard to future income, wealth, prices and job security. Chart 1 illustrates a possible relationship between households' assessment of prospects for the future and their consumption.

Trade unions base their wage negotiations on expectations regarding price inflation and developments in employment over the next few years. Expectations play an important part in financial markets. Equity prices and exchange rates may fluctuate widely as a result of changes in the expectations of market participants. Because expectations are of such importance to economic planning and decisions, it is essential that there is confidence in the nominal anchor. This makes it possible to achieve nominal stability with smaller disturbances in the real economy and lower unemployment. BIS Review 7/2001  1  Although nominal stability is a prerequisite for sound developments in the real economy over time, conflicts may develop in the short term. Such conflicts may occur if there are disturbances on the production or supply side of the economy which give rise to higher price and cost inflation that does not actually reflect increased pressures in the economy. Examples of such disturbances are cost-push shocks resulting from negotiations, or weaker productivity growth. When disturbances of this type occur on the supply side of the economy, there may be a trade-off between fluctuations in nominal prices and wages and fluctuations in production and employment. A trade-off of this kind is illustrated in Chart 2. The chart shows that using strong instruments to achieve an inflation target or exchange rate target in the short term results in more pronounced fluctuations in the real economy.
But let us not only write reports and elaborate ever more sophisticated thoughts, let us act, starting with comprehensive and effective regulation in the US, as has been done in Europe, and as the UK is on its way to doing with its proposed new set of rules that would bring a broad range of cryptoasset activities into the scope of financial services regulation. This is obviously good news, as long as this proposal ensures consistency with existing legislation, notably in Europe. To that end, I suggest the FSB to monitor closely the implementation of its own recommendations on cryptos, as the Basel Committee does on banking regulations. More broadly, big techs did not make the breakthrough in traditional banking activities that many had expected: why is that? Regulatory constraints certainly stand as a first explanation, especially since they were tightened following the great financial crisis. Both lending and deposit-taking are highly regulated in most advanced economies, and big techs tend to set up partnerships with banks in these countries rather than create a fully-owned subsidiary for instance. In addition, the low-rate environment that prevailed until recently may have been unfavourable to new banks – as their business model relies strongly on the value of sight deposits –, and an ageing population in advanced economies may have preserved loyalty to incumbent banks and insurance companies which benefit from high public trust.

But for this to occur, it will be important for market participants to appropriately discriminate across countries, rather than treating EMEs as a single group. The good news is that many EMEs generally appear to be better equipped today to handle the Fed’s prospective exit from its exceptional policy accommodation than they were during past tightening cycles. This reflects the fundamental reforms that EMEs have put in place over the past 15 years, as well as the hard lessons learned from past periods of market stress. Among the positives are: •  The absence of pegged exchange rate regimes that often came undone violently during periods of acute stress;  •  Improved debt service ratios and generally moderate external debt levels;  •  Larger foreign exchange reserve cushions;  •  Clearer and more coherent monetary policy frameworks, supporting what are now generally low to moderate inflation rates;  •  Generally improved fiscal discipline; and  •  Better capitalized banking systems, supported by strengthened regulatory and supervisory frameworks. Of course, progress has not been uniform across EMEs, and more work remains to further strengthen institutional structures in some countries. In particular, vulnerabilities remain in several important EMEs, and some have been hit by the sharp adverse turn in their terms of trade due to the recent fall in global commodity prices. Still, the fundamental improvements I’ve cited leave many EMEs better positioned than in the past to weather those times in the cycle when the external environment becomes more difficult.