samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Sunil Mendis: A brief look at financial information technology Keynote address by Mr Sunil Mendis, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, for the Financial Information Systems Seminar, Colombo, 8 September 2004. *  *  *  His Excellency Akio Suda, the Ambassador for Japan in Sri Lanka, Mr Yoshihisa Onishi, Executive Director, FISC, other officers from the FISC in Japan, Ladies and Gentlemen, The Central Bank of Sri Lanka is happy to co-sponsor this programme together with the FISC of Japan (Center for Financial Industry Information Systems), in view of the importance of financial information technology in the financial services industry. Sri Lanka is no exception to continuous changes in the technology used by its financial services industry. In a market driven financial system, for information to be effective, there should be two vital ingredients, that is system integrity and timeliness - both of which are crucial. The more dependable your information systems are, the more efficient and competitive banks can be as a player in the financial services industry. That is why we see banks investing heavily in IT. Globally too, with the interdependence of markets their integration is facilitated through information systems which link these markets which make the world a very small place indeed on a PC monitor where the whole world is virtually at your doorstep.

As a result, by end-2014, Spanish deposit institutions’ level of exposure to real estate development, net of provisions, had fallen by around € billion since 2011, almost 60% of the exposure then existing. ii)  Consolidation  A second package of measures involved driving greater consolidation in the sector and thus redressing its excessive size. This was achieved through corporate integration operations, the acceptance by most banks of business restructuring strategies and the elimination of non-viable banks, through resolution processes. Overall, since 2007, the number of banking groups has diminished by 40% (or 40 banks). Likewise, the number of offices in the banking sector has declined by 30% relative to the 2008 peak, and staffing numbers have fallen by 25%. That makes for a notable capacityadjustment drive which has been decisive in improving operating efficiency in the industry. iii)  Recapitalisation  Thirdly, the measures aimed at promoting the recapitalisation of banks should be highlighted. As I said, while the Spanish banking sector was generally able to meet comfortably the regulatory requirements in force before the crisis, overall it had insufficient leeway in terms of capital to withstand such adverse scenarios as those arising from the far-reaching downturn in the macroeconomic situation as from 2010, and the acute correction of the real estate market. The recognition of losses caused by the adverse turn in macroeconomic conditions weakened the financial situation of the sector as a whole.
The sum of each column is the Krugman Specialisation Index (multiplied by a factor of 100) and is a measure of dispersion of industrial structure. A value of 0 indicates all regions within a monetary union have an identical industrial structure. The higher the index, the more diverse the industrial structure across regions. A more detailed description of different indexation measures of specialisation can be found in Appendix B of EMU and business sectors (HM Treasury). (a) Based on data for Vulnerable Euro Area Periphery economies (VEAPS) (Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Greece, Italy) and core (all other EA countries). (b) Based on data for 17 Euro Area (EA) countries (all EA countries excluding Malta). (c) Estimates for rUK and Scotland exclude the 'extra-regio' contribution from North Sea mining & extraction. (d) The contribution from 'extra-regio' mining & extraction is allocated on a ‘geographical’ basis. This assumes that around 90% is allocated to Scotland and 10% to the rest of the UK. This is in line with estimates proposed by Professor Kemp and used by the Scottish Government. Used here for illustrative purposes. (i) Throughout this annex the abbreviation ‘rUK’ refers to the UK excluding Scotland.

In turn, higher real interest rates tend to depress economic activity and bring even lower inflation. This is the kind of spiral, possibly leading to deflation that monetary policy must seek to control and avoid. The process may become even more self-sustaining if it negatively affects inflation expectations. Over the last months, inflation expectations in the euro area have dropped to 1.2% at a one-year horizon and 1.5% at a two-year horizon. More worrisome, long-term expectations – up to now extremely well-anchored around 2% – have been drifting downward. Markets currently expect an inflation rate of 1.8% on average between 2019 and 2024 in the Eurozone. Monetary policy therefore must aim at influencing both nominal interest rates and inflation expectations. This is exactly what we are currently doing in the Eurosystem. Let me explain how. First, on nominal interest rates: Policy rates are now close to zero (%). Negative interest rates have been imposed on the deposit facility. Forward guidance has been used to signal that rates will stay at those levels for a very lengthy period of time. A new liquidity facility, the “targeted very long term refinancing operation (TLTRO)” has been created, with a four-year maturity and, for the first time, a guaranteed fixed rate. Basically, banks are able to get a four-year funding for a 0.15% fixed interest rate. Most recently, the ECB Governing Council has decided a program of private asset purchases, for both covered bonds and ABS.
CGFS (2019), “Unconventional monetary policy tools: a cross-country analysis”, CGFS papers no. 63, Committee on the Global Financial System. Cœuré, B. (2018), “Monetary Policy and Climate Change”, speech at the conference “Scaling up Green Finance: The Role of Central Banks”, Berlin, 8 November 2018. Cœuré, B. (2019), “Inflation expectations and the conduct of monetary policy”, Speech, SAFE Policy Center, Frankfurt am Main, 11 July 2019 Danmarks National Bank (2019) “Climate change can have a spillover effect on financial stability”, Analysis Danmarks Nationalbank, 2 December 2019 – no. 26. Debelle, G. (2019), “Climate Change and the Economy”, speech, Public Forum hosted by the Centre for Policy Development, Sydney, 12 March 2019. Elderson, F. (2019), “Opening remarks by Frank Elderson at the NGFS Conference”, speech, Paris, 17 April 2019. Financial stability board (2017), “Recommendations of the Task Force on Climaterelated Financial Disclosures”, Final report, June 2017. Finansinspektionen (2020), “Increased transparency on carbon pricing can strengthen the financial system”, press release, 13 January 2020. Flodén, M. (2019), “Monetary policy in a changing world”, speech at Örebro University and Kommuninvest, 13 November 2019. Hassler J, P. Krusell, and C. Olovsson (2018), “The Consequences of Uncertainty: Climate Sensitivity and Economic Sensitivity to the Climate”, Annual Review of Economics, 10, pp. 189–205. Hassler J, P. Krusell, C. Olovsson, M. Reiter (2020), “On the effectiveness of climate policies”, Working paper, IIES Stockholm University. Honohan, P. (2019), “Should Monetary Policy Take Inequality and Climate Change into Account?”, Working Paper 19-18, Peterson Institute for International Economics.

The global climate crisis – a challenge that requires cooperation To be able to answer the question of whether the Riksbank can and should have an active role in combatting climate change, we must first answer two other questions. First, what is effective climate policy? And second, what lies within the Riksbank’s mandate? One of the fundamental causes of the climate crisis is the fact that, in the absence of climate policy, greenhouse gases can be released free of charge, despite the damage such emissions cause. Economists tend to call the negative effects for which the individual emitter does not need to pay negative “external” effects. Neither does it matter where on Earth the greenhouse gases are emitted. Emissions have the same effect on global warming regardless of whether they occur in China, the United States or Sweden. Climate change is, in other words, a global challenge that is best met through global cooperation. 13  See Lagerwall (2019). 8 [18]  A price on carbon is the highest priority To tackle the negative external effect of greenhouse gas emissions, a price on carbon is required.14 The most effective solution would be a uniform price on carbon emissions all over the world. This can be arranged through carbon taxes or through trading in emission rights.
The impact of the PEPP and of all the other measures on financial conditions is substantial, but it is also important to assess their effect on economic activity and, ultimately, on inflation in the euro area, given the ECB’s price stability mandate. Although it is still too soon to assess the macroeconomic effectiveness of the programme, the preliminary estimates of the Banco de España’s experts suggest that the PEPP will have considerable positive effects on the rate of growth of GDP, employment and inflation, in the euro area as a whole and in Spain. Indeed, the cumulative impact on GDP growth is expected to be somewhat 11  greater in the case of the Spanish economy, primarily because the programme is estimated to have had a greater impact on the reduction in the cost of sovereign debt in Spain.3 However, it is difficult to quantify the degree of financial and economic deterioration that would have ensued had the PEPP not been implemented. One of the main effects of the monetary policy decisions has been to avoid severe disruption in the financial markets that could have generated an even more profound and persistent economic crisis, with potentially dire effects on capital market stability. To conclude, the monetary policy measures adopted by the ECB in response to the COVID-19 crisis have had a stabilising effect on financial conditions and on economic activity, both in Spain and in the euro area overall.

The G20, the Financial Stability Board and its Standing Committees, and the Standard Setting Bodies are all working hard and there is no lack of specific subjects to address – the Basel capital framework, the accounting standards for valuation and for off-balance sheet activities, capital requirements for trading activities, compensation practices, central counterparties, principles for the oversight of hedge funds, supervisory colleges, cross-border cooperation on crisis management, oversight regimes for the rating agencies, etc, etc. Some of you may already be suffering from meeting fatigue and, like me, somewhat sick of these subjects already; so I do not want to add to your agony. I am fortunate to have had the privilege of setting up and heading a central banking institution over a relatively long and exciting period in a significant international financial centre that is free and open. And as the time for retirement draws near, after sixteen and a half years, I do have a few reflections, from a rather different perspective than those of present pre-occupations, which I would like to share with others. They are nothing profound or technical; just a few issues that I have found particularly challenging over the years. The first concerns a conflict. This is the conflict between the private, particularly short term, interest of financial intermediaries in maximising profits, and the public interest of effective financial intermediation that provides crucial support to the economy.
With increased globalisation of the world  4  BIS central bankers’ speeches  economy, there is no doubt that Zambia stands to benefit from the rating assigned on condition that the country adopts appropriate policies that are supportive to sustainable economic growth environment. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN MINING AND MANUFACTURING (MFEZ) A. Mining    Growth in the Zambian mining and quarrying sector has continued to be strong since privatisation. In 2010, the growth in the sector was 15.2% (20.2% in 2009), thus contributing strongly to the 7.6% real GDP growth in 2010.   Growth in metal mining was 16.0% with copper and cobalt output increasing by 17.4% and 49.4% to 819,159.19 mt and 8,781 mt, respectively.   During the first half of 2011, total copper output at 414,984.5 mt, was 4.0% higher than 399,062.0 mt produced during the corresponding period of 2010. Similarly, cobalt output was 4,352.7 mt, 8.5% higher than 4,012.8 mt produced in the first half of 2010.   This outturn was largely explained by the increase in the scale of production by the mines coupled with the rebound in copper prices, following the relative recovery in the global economy. B. Manufacturing    Performance of the manufacturing sector in 2010 and the first half of 2011 have been favourable with a 4.1% growth in 2010 (2.2% in 2009). Growth has largely been driven by agro-processing (food & beverages), including production of nonmetallic mineral and fabricated metal goods, chemicals, explosives and construction materials (such as cement).

  Commercial banks’ average lending rates decreased to 27.9 percent in 2010 from 28.4 percent in 2009. In June 2011, average lending rates stood at 26.0 percent.   In the Government securities market, the weighted average Treasury bill yield rate was 7.7 percent in 2010, from 9.5 percent in 2009. Similarly, Government bonds composite yield rate fell to 12.3% from 15.9 percent in 2009. As at June 2011, the weighted average Treasury bill rate was 10.0 percent, while the composite bond yield rate was 15.7 percent. External sector performance   The external sector recorded favourable performance, as evidenced by an increase in the balance of payments surplus and a rise in the country’s gross international reserves.   The country’s gross international reserves rose to $ million from $ million in 2009. This followed increased receipt of donor funds as well as recovery in the global economy that saw increased demand and international prices for most commodities, including copper.   The Balance of Payments (BoP) recorded a surplus of $ million in 2010. The surplus was attributed to the positive outturn of the current account to $ million in 2010 from a deficit of $ million in 2009. This was mainly on account of an improvement in Zambia’s trade balance, which increased by 312.8 percent to $ million from a surplus of $ million in 2009.
In particular, while macro-prudential powers will rest also with national authorities, the ECB will be able to use macro-prudential instruments, either at the request of national authorities or by deciding to adopt stricter measures than the ones adopted at national level. This implies an increased coordination function in the macro-prudential areas for countries within the SSM that will naturally create some overlap with the macro-prudential role of the ESRB for the wider EU. However, I expect the macro-prudential functions of both institutions to be complementary. The ESRB will play its role in adopting recommendations to help coordinating macroprudential decisions as provided for in EU Regulation (namely CRR), in particular with the countries that do not join the SSM. In addition, while the SSM will exclusively focus on banking systems, the ESRB has an additional macro-prudential function regarding the nonbank parts of the financial sector, and as such will be well placed to address cross-sectoral issues. Interplay with the other ESAs Finally, let me be very brief regarding the SSM’s interaction with ESMA and EIOPA. Although the supervision of markets and the insurance sector will remain with the national authorities,  2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  ESMA and EIOPA will play important roles in the coordination of information sharing between the SSM and the national authorities. In particular, cooperation with EIOPA on the bank-led conglomerates will have to be very close given that the SSM is expected to take over their supplementary supervision.

Memoranda of Understanding regulating these interactions will be prepared in the coming months. Conclusion To conclude, it is unavoidable that the existence of the SSM will alter the functioning of the ESFS. This is, after all, the most significant development in financial supervision in the history of the European Union. However, I am confident that the changes brought by the SSM will strengthen the ESFS, and will overall enhance the quality and consistency of supervisory and regulatory practices across Europe. The more Member States that are involved in Banking Union, the greater these positive effects will be. Thank you for your attention. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3
It is worthy at this point to mention our partners that have been supportive of our efforts as follows: •  De La Rue of the United Kingdom  •  Sierra Leone Commercial Bank  •  Standard Chartered Bank  •  Rokel Commercial Bank  •  Union Trust Bank  •  Guaranty Trust Bank  •  International Commercial Bank  •  First International Bank  •  Trustee in the name of Mr Tom Lee,  •  and finally Pobjoy of the U.K.  Our thanks and appreciation go to all of them and we appeal that they continue to support the Charity on a sustainable basis. Let me however emphasise that there are daunting challenges ahead of us and if we are to progress as a nation we should have the capacity to provide trained and skilled manpower on a sustainable basis. I should therefore like to appeal to our development partners that have not yet come on board, to do so, so that together we can build a better Sierra Leone, one that can compete in the global market. 2  BIS Review 32/2008  To the awardees, I extend to you hearty congratulations on behalf of the Board of Directors, Management and Staff of the Bank of Sierra Leone. You have been chosen out of many as a result of your outstanding performance. You therefore have a great responsibility to maintain those standards and even surpass them in the cause of your study.

On the other hand, the realization of such projects enables strengthening of the cooperation between the central banks of the region and the central banks of the EU, which is inevitable in the process of integrating the entire region in the EU. Let me finally thank the ECB and the EU for enabling the NBRM to participate in this project. I wish success for all the institutions involved in the project in anticipation of even greater cooperation and I thank our hosts for organizing this event. BIS central bankers’ speeches  1
4 One strategy for maintaining financial stability can briefly be described as consisting of three different parts: a clear regulatory framework, an efficient day-to-day prudential supervision and oversight and a preparedness to act strongly and quickly in a crisis. Exactly what role is played by the central bank in this strategy is also something that varies from country to country. Many central banks contribute in different ways to the formulation of the regulatory framework for the financial system, for instance, by giving their views on proposed bills and by participating in committees where domestic and international legislation is formulated. With regard to the day-to-day prudential supervision and oversight, one solution that is applied in Sweden and other countries is that the supervision of the financial sector is delegated to a special, independent authority with the power to apply sanctions. In other countries the supervision work is done by the central bank itself. In the cases where supervision is delegated to an independent authority, the central bank usually has an oversight role that entails regularly monitoring and analysing developments in the financial sector and presenting its views of the risks in the financial system. Ever since the bank crisis at the beginning of the 1990s, this has been perceived as a very important task in Sweden; in fact, it could be argued that the bank crisis was allowed to arise partly because no authority previously had the specific task of monitoring the overall financial stability.

It should also be developed as our knowledge of the functioning of the financial sector increases. With financial companies operating in several countries, the division of responsibilities among authorities in different countries will become an important issue. In Europe, a process has begun to line up a division of labour between central banks and other authorities as well as between the national central banks and the ECB. For the new structure to be efficient and stable, it is important that the roles and objectives of different actors are well defined. There are risks inherent in this process, however. The new system may prove too bureaucratic, stressing stability at the cost of efficiency. Also, it is important to prevent turf wars from dominating rational discussions about new challenges. Not only is it important that the objectives of central banks are clear. It is also vital that the necessary means are available and can be applied. The advantages of delegating monetary policy to an independent central bank have been analysed fairly extensively in academic research. The main argument for delegation is that politicians can avoid the temptation to use monetary policy for short-term stimulation of output and employment. The collective experience of previous years - and from academic research - is that such stimulation often runs the risk of leading to wage-price spirals, which in the end can have severe implications for welfare in society. A parallel argument can be made concerning policy for financial stability, although it is still a rather unexplored topic in economic literature.
Let me tell you in concluding these short remarks, in front of so many eminent representatives of German media, how much precisely we rely upon you for our communication with the general public, with all our fellow citizens. It is extremely important of course for a central bank to have an effective communication with market participants, investors and savers in Europe and in the world. For the European Central Bank, and its Governing Council, which is the guardian of the currency for 320 million people, it is to the public at large that we are accountable. Therefore communication with the general public is decisive, for it to be sure that it is well informed of our diagnosis, our analysis and our decisions. We met in the Governing Council last Thursday and I explained fully on behalf of the Governing Council what are our present views and orientations. Let me sum up the core message of the Governing Council of the ECB to our fellow citizens: •  We are responsible for delivering price stability – namely inflation less than 2%, close to 2% – in the medium run. It is our Treaty mandate. It is what the people want. •  We presently have inflation higher because in particular of oil, commodities and food price increases and the effect of indirect taxes.

Philipp Hildebrand: Swiss monetary policy and financial markets Summary of a speech by Mr Philipp Hildebrand, Member of the Governing Board of the Swiss National Bank, at the Autumn forecast of the Swiss Institute for Business Cycle Research, Zurich, 5 October 2006. The complete speech can be found in German on the Swiss National Bank’s website (www.snb.ch)  *  *  *  Transparency and communication enhance the impact and the precision of monetary policy. Monetary policy functions through expectations. This means that it is first and foremost expectation management. Central banks strive for transparency regarding their methods and approaches. All in all, the current economic and, in particular, the structural uncertainties are resulting in a greater range of possible economic scenarios and thus also in an increase in the range of expectations regarding our future monetary policy. In other words, being transparent does not automatically mean being predictable. Therefore, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) considers it particularly important to communicate its monetary policy concept to the markets and the public. This allows them to arrive at similar conclusions to those reached by the SNB. BIS Review 92/2006  1