samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Inclusive recruitment  To support our objectives, we have introduced diversity targets that are reviewed and challenged by Court. Specifically, we aim to triple both the proportions of women in our senior roles, to 35% by 2020, and of BAME employees in these roles to 13% by 2022. As a first step, we are fishing from a larger pond and removing perceived barriers to entry. xviii  We want to  make the Bank a more obvious career destination for a wide range recruits: young school leavers who want to develop their skills as apprentices to graduates looking for their first full-time job, people who wish to return to work, or experienced professionals who are considering a career change and want to contribute to public policy. In our last graduate round, we hired from over 40 UK universities (four times as many as a decade ago), attracting students from a range of socio-economic backgrounds. Two fifths of the 2016 intake were female and a quarter came from a BAME background. Only half studied economics. The remainder were plucked equally from the sciences, business and the humanities. 15% of our graduates were hired from Oxbridge, and a fifth were from lower socio-economic backgrounds. In contrast, 21% of fast track hires to public service are from Oxbridge and only 4% are from lower socio-economic backgrounds. xix  While we are casting a wider net, the reality is, the nature of our work means that we will always need to hire technical experts.

They will help us build the trust that is crucial to delivering our mission. And they will help us merit that trust by making us more effective. By reflecting diversity and choosing inclusion, we will ensure we are doing all that we can to promote the good of the people of the United Kingdom. 9  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/speeches  9  ENDNOTES i  Putnam, R (1993), “What makes democracy work?” National Civic Review. Putnam finds that cities, regions and countries with more trusting people tend to have better working democratic institutions. See also OECD (2009), “Fostering diversity in the public service”, October. ii See e.g. Noland, M, Moran, T, and Kotschwar, B (2016), “Is Gender Diversity Profitable? Evidence from a Global Survey”, working paper 16-3 Peterson Institute for International Economics, February. iii Page, S E (2007), “The difference. How the power of diversity creates better groups, firms, schools, and societies”, Princeton University Press. Page describes four elements of cognitive diversity: perspectives, the way we see and present problems and solutions; interpretations, the way we explain our perspective; heuristics, the way we seek to rationalise and solve problems; and predictive models, the way we infer cause and effect. iv See e.g. Riordan C M (2015), “Diversity is useless without inclusivity”, Harvard Business Review, August.
Micro-financing has increased from RM151 million in 2000 to RM2.2 billion in September 2009, representing an annual average growth rate of 34%. The Bank also reviewed its existing legislation, and this year the new Central Bank Act of Malaysia 2009 came into effect a week ago, on 25 November 2009. One of the changes introduced as part of clarifying the mandate of the Bank was to explicitly articulate the Bank's developmental role in having a more inclusive financial sector. Let me briefly summarise the initiatives taken by Bank Negara Malaysia which are supportive of branchless banking activities. Given the extensive network of physical branches and ATMs in the country, branchless banking has not yet experienced significant take up. Nonetheless, the use of e-money for tolls and parking bays has increased significantly, and a number of operators are seeking to expand the market. In terms of addressing the policy concerns, measures were taken to put in place the payment infrastructure, promote a broad product range to cater for the different payment needs of consumers and business sectors and the formulation of a transparent and cost-effective  BIS Review 162/2009  3  pricing framework to provide the incentive structure that would spur the adoption of electronic means of payments. Another important measure relates to the setting of common standards to address the interoperability of systems including standardising the payment messaging format to enable the wider acceptance of electronic payments.

A specific department known as Consumer and Market Conduct Department was established in 2006 to spearhead the initiatives. These initiatives included financial education at schools and for the general public; greater disclosure requirements about the features of financial products and the associated risks; the Financial Mediation Bureau to provide an avenue for redress; the Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency to assist individuals in financial distress; and a public service centre at the Central Bank and all its branches to provide information and advice. The market conduct regulations also give the regulator powers to oversee fees and charges to ensure the quantum is reasonable for the services provided. These measures are broad enough to provide consumer protection in relation to branchless banking in general terms. However, they may be less effective in addressing some of the unique aspects of branchless banking, such as disputes with non-bank agents located in remote or rural locations. Perhaps this forum could consider some of these aspects. Collaboration in terms of sharing best practices, standards and regulations would reduce the cost as well as expedite the development of more inclusive financial sectors. We need to be mindful of the fact that for effective collaboration to take place, we must have common goals to bind our work. In this case, that common goal is the development of more inclusive financial sectors, by making available a broad range of financial services to the poor and micro enterprise segments of society and the economy, as well as those living in remote areas.
This concept refers to the level of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) that is consistent with stable inflation around the target and, therefore, it is adequate for measuring the activity gap associated with short-term inflationary pressures. Along with this, from time to time we also make estimates of trend growth, a concept that is related to the medium-term growth capacity of the economy. At long terms, potential and trend growth rate converge to the same number; however, they tend  2  to diverge in the short term due to transitory factors that alter productive capacity, such as temporary shocks to productivity and limitations to factor utilization. On this occasion, our potential growth estimate has been revised upwards, which is to be expected in a context of recovering investment, higher growth and still well-contained core inflation. For 2018, the potential growth of non-mining GDP stands at 3.1%, which compares with our 2.7% estimate a year ago. For 2019, the potential growth of non-mining GDP is 3.2% (2.9% a year ago). Trend growth remains within the 3% to 3.5% range estimated in 2017 and will be reviewed next year, once the updated demographic projections from the Census are released. With this, potential and trend growth should converge sooner than expected. Growth accumulated up to the second quarter of the year—even considering the higher potential growth—has narrowed the activity gap with respect to the forecast, and we estimate that it is near zero in absolute level (Figure 3).

Figure 4 Growth forecasts (*) (real annual change, percent)  2018  2019 4.5  3.25  3.5  4.0  3.5  4.25 4.25 4.25  4.0 4.0  3.5 3.0 3.25  2.5  2.5  3.25 3.25 3.25  2.5  2.25  Mar. Jun. Sep. Dec. Mar. Jun. Sep. 17  18  Mar. Jun. Sep. Dec. Mar. Jun. Sep. 17  18  (*) The ranges show the range growth forecast in each MP Report. Red diamonds corresponde to Economic Expectations Survey at the respective statistical cutoff date. Source: Central Bank of Chile. 15  Figure 5 Evolution of investment and consumption forecasts in Monetary Policy Reports (annual change, percent)  Total investment  Total consumption  3.0  3.0 3.0  3.0  2.5  2.5 2.5  2.5  2.0  2.0 2.0  2.0  2017  2017  September  September  2018  June  3.5  March  3.5 3.5  December  3.5  September  4.0  June  4.0 4.0  March  4.0  June  4.5  March  4.5 4.5  December  4.5  September  5.0  June  5.0 5.0  March  5.0  2018  Source: Central Bank of Chile.
Zeti Akhtar Aziz: Advancing women’s leadership in public life Speech by Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia, at the Women in Leadership Forum “Power sharing in the public sector”, Kuala Lumpur, 22 February 2011. *  *  *  Introduction In this twenty-first century, it is human capital rather than physical capital that will define performance and progress. Women represent half of the world population and therefore half the potential resource that can drive such performance. This is reinforced by the more recent trend that increasingly, the majority of those with college education are women. Increasingly therefore, this group represents a more significant resource potential that can rise to leadership positions. In emerging economies, where such high powered talent is scarce, gender has not been of an issue. Women have risen to leadership positions based on their merits and capabilities. Women in Malaysia have certainly made significant strides in their participation in all segments of the Malaysian economy and have demonstrated their ability to lead and to succeed in both the public and private sectors. It is my honour to be here today to speak at this Women in Leadership Forum on the topic on “Advancing Women’s Leadership in Public Life: Power Sharing in the Public Sector”. In Asia, in particular, women have risen to key positions and have been given the opportunity to contribute to the nation’s progress and development.

Too many Malaysian households have been thrust into vulnerable financial positions that might have been mitigated, due to high debt levels, low buffers and poor financial habits that left them sorely unprepared to cope with unexpected shocks during the pandemic. When confronted with having to deal with their financial difficulties, many struggled to take appropriate steps to gain control of their situation and make good choices. As a result, individuals have had to resort to drawing down on retirement funds, or incurring higher debt just to get by. And there are still too many who continue to fall prey to desperate financial scams and fraud. Indeed, the need to double down on financial education has never been clearer. We need to build stronger resilience among all Malaysian households. We need to equip and empower Malaysians with the right knowledge and skills to confidently make responsible financial decisions at key stages of their lives. We need to promote healthy attitudes towards financial management. And in Kofi Annan’s words, we need to build a bridge to hope for every Malaysian who has been affected by the pandemic crisis – not just to tide over the immediate challenges that they face, but to provide for their future financial security. With this in view, this Community of Practice aims to help FEN members and the broader financial education community develop effective responses to meet the challenge of delivering lasting and impactful financial education to society. The Community of Practice agenda today focuses on two key areas.
This quadrant [slide 4] shows four categories of possible shocks linked to the transition. They can have a positive versus negative impact on supply, and a positive versus negative impact on demand respectively. They are not mutually exclusive, and may combine or succeed one another. Their stand-alone probability is hard to assess at this stage, but there are reasons to believe that the upper-left one (the negative supply shock) is slightly more probable than the  Page 5 sur 8 others. However, given the large range of shocks, their sources and macroeconomic effects – which could include a positive scenario of large green private capex v – [slide 5], we must continue our modelling, in line with our first commitment in relation to the ECB’s climate agenda: we committed in July 2022 to “assess the macroeconomic impact of climate change and mitigation policies on inflation and the real economy”. vi  But being uncertain about the combined macroeconomic effects does not mean being passive or inert on action now. What we can already derive from these scenarios is a set of four firm convictions and prescriptions. 1. A shock that is global and certain >>> an orderly transition - First, climate transition entails structural changes to the global economy that are both universal and certain, with an overall and possibly negative supply shock that will generate frictions and costs in terms of the necessary reallocation of production factors.

Gent Sejko: The importance of studying technological and demographic developments disrupting labour, finance and markets Welcome remarks by Mr Gent Sejko, Governor of the Bank of Albania, at the 13th SEE Economic Research Workshop, Tirana, 5 December 2019. * * * Dear Ambassador Maître, Dear guests and speakers from academia, central banks and research institutions, Dear participants, It is a great pleasure for me to open the proceedings of the 13th SEE Economic Research Workshop, in which we present and open for discussion research projects undertaken by the Bank of Albania in the current year, and have the opportunity to get feedback from colleagues from academia, central banks and research institutions worldwide. This is a very important event for the Bank of Albania, since all the projects that will be discussed during the two days of the workshop are designed to help the analysis, decision making and implementation in the areas of monetary policy and financial stability as well as other central bank aspects. Based on this careful formal analysis, our policies have been successful in preserving monetary, macroeconomic and financial stability. Despite hardships, our economy has registered positive growth rates, and our banking system’s performance has been stable. The banking sector is well capitalized and profitable, non-performing loans have decreased and banks continue to support economic activity with credit, while managing potential shocks originated from the external sector of the economy. The agenda is rich and covers the most important areas of research related to traditional central bank activity.
To take a parochial UK view for a moment, my own read is that – in line with recent MPC communication and my own comments in previous talks and interviews – the elevated level of UK inflation stems largely from the impact of external shocks, rather than excess money growth in the past. Higher international energy and goods prices have raised UK inflation via the usual direct and indirect effects. The overshoot of the 2% inflation target is substantial largely because the magnitude of these external shocks has been substantial. Aggregate GDP is only now reaching pre-pandemic levels, lending credence to the view that it is weakness in supply rather than strength in demand that is driving the current strength of inflation. Given the tightness of the UK labour market and perceived strength of pricing power in large parts of the corporate sector, the threat exists that higher headline inflation leads to second round effects in prices, wages and costs that exacerbate the magnitude and, crucially, the persistence of the target overshoot. The current challenge for UK monetary policy is to contain those second round effects and return inflation to target as global energy and goods prices stabilise or revert in the coming years. As the MPC stated last week, in doing so it will be ‘particularly alert to indications of more persistent inflationary pressures, and if necessary act forcefully in response’. Just to emphasise for anyone listening in from London today: no news in my assessment of the outlook for monetary policy here.

But in the aftermath of the global financial crisis – with a long-term downward trend in the equilibrium real interest rate, R-star; with nominal policy interest rates stuck for long periods at their effective lower bound; and with disruptions in the financial sector impeding the traditional transmission of monetary policy – the use of QE and other balance sheet policies by central banks has become mainstream. Pace Poole, QE policies have largely been expressed in quantitative terms (even if that approach has been somewhat watered down over time). For example, at the Bank of England QE measures have been announced in terms of changes in the stock of gilt holdings in the special facility created to manage the asset portfolio. Such an approach inevitably begs the question of whether, and if so in what form, monetary quantities have re-asserted themselves in the conduct, transmission and communication of monetary policy. More generally, the financial crisis and its aftermath have demonstrated that financial markets are subject to periodic disruption. This questions the assumption – embedded in much of traditional finance theory – that equilibrium yields are independent of the quantities of the supplies of different assets. Failure of that assumption opens up scope for monetary quantities to have an important influence over a wide range of asset prices and risk premia, and thereby play an important role in monetary policy transmission.
In banking, seven local banking groups have consolidated into three stronger groups. Foreign shareholding limits on locally-incorporated banks have been removed, allowing them to tap the equity market more flexibly, and if they desire, to form strategic partnerships with foreign banks. Six banks with regional and international standing and the potential to contribute to our financial sector have been awarded Qualifying Full Bank (QFB) licences. This has intensified competition in retail banking and widened consumer choices. Foreign banks also continue to be active players in the wholesale banking market and in wealth management. International banks are using Singapore as their base to service corporations and high net worth individuals (HNWIs) in the region. In insurance, a formerly closed industry has been substantially deregulated. We have enhanced disclosure requirements of products, tightened up sales practices and raised the overall professionalism of insurance advisers. The financial advisory industry has also seen substantial growth. A diversity of firms and business models now cater to different market segments. Service and conduct standards of financial advisers have gone up. The wealth management industry has grown dramatically. Annual growth rates in private banking assets under management (AUM) average almost 20%. In 2003, institutional AUM grew by 35% yearon-year to $ 465 billion. A majority of these assets are internationally sourced. Close to 1,000 investment professionals, comprising portfolio managers, analysts, asset allocators and economists now work in this high value-added sector. Fund managers have been extending their value chain of activities here.

b.  Secondly, MAS is prepared to grant a limited number of new Wholesale Bank (WB) licences to applicants that meet our admission requirements. BIS Review 39/2004  3  c.  Finally, QFBs will with immediate effect be allowed to negotiate with the local banks on a commercial basis to let their credit card holders obtain cash advances through the local banks’ ATM networks. Singapore now has one of the most liberal banking environments in Asia. However, over time, as the industry changes, we must be ready to liberalise further. MAS will reassess the environment before deciding on any further measures. While it is still too early to make a final judgment, banking liberalisation has so far achieved its aim of bringing about greater competition. It has fostered the consolidation of the local banks, which might otherwise have taken much longer. The overall market shares of local and foreign banks have not changed drastically, but there has been an all-round qualitative improvement which has enhanced the vibrancy of Singapore’s financial sector. The liberalisation measures and reforms of the last few years have set the financial sector on a firm foundation. However, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. Challenges as well as opportunities exist for both the banking industry and the financial sector as a whole. We must identify and respond to them, in order to keep the financial sector dynamic and competitive. Challenges for banks For banks, I will focus on two main challenges.
For example, a decade on from the crisis, the amount of collateral covering over-the-counter (OTC) derivative counterparty exposures of global banks has risen by over $ billion, and the coverage of exposures with collateral has risen from about one third to nearly two thirds. 3  This has led to an increase in the amount of collateral available to absorb market moves. For example the total initial margin held by UK CCPs against derivatives positions has more than doubled over the last five years with the average level throughout 2017 standing at approximately £ at end-2017. 4  And, crucially, the shift to central clearing has led to a major simplification of derivatives networks (see Figure 1). Figure 1: ‘Multilateral netting’ at CCPs reduces aggregate counterparty credit risk and simplifies the network of exposures Centrally cleared trades executed on 20 February 2017 in sterling interest rate swaps referencing six-month Libor (top) — and the counterfactual had they not been centrally cleared (bottom)(a)  Sources: DTCC Derivatives Repository Ltd, Unavista Ltd and Bank calculations. (a) Each yellow node is a clearing member (the central node in the top chart is the CCP). An arrow pointing into/out of a clearing member from/to a counterparty denotes that, once all transactions between the clearing member and the counterparty on 20 February 2017 are netted with each other, the clearing member is receiving/paying a fixed rate from/to their counterparty.

"The Risk Controllers: Central Counterparty Clearing in Globalised Financial Markets" 2  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/speeches  2  These reforms are of course interlinked. If banks depend more on CCPs to manage their counterparty credit risk from derivative exposures, they need to be sure that CCPs are resilient and can absorb default shocks, especially at times of market stress. And CCPs – which exist to reduce risks faced by their member banks – depend on the resilience of their members. CCPs have a major interest in resolution regimes being in place that would allow their members to fail without triggering default and disruption. Central clearing  The financial crisis exposed complex and opaque webs of bilateral derivatives contracts both between financial firms and with real economy end users. These were often poorly collateralised or not collateralised at all. As asset prices fell sharply and concern about counterparty credit worthiness grew, bilateral margin calls acted as one of the main amplifiers of stress. Increasing and more unpredictable margin calls generated more selling pressure, further price falls and greater uncertainty. Instruments primarily designed to reduce risk, acted in the crisis as an amplifier of risk. Greater central clearing reduces systemic risk in derivatives markets and increases the resilience of the derivatives network. It replaces the complex web of bilateral trades with a more efficient network in which firms can offset positions to reduce the overall counterparty credit risk in the system.