samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Fourth, the IMF is the only institution that can mobilise a substantial amount of resources should a global crisis occur.12 Finally, I believe it is also important to make the multilateral system and its benefits more visible to the general public in order to regain legitimacy and public support. In this sense, global integration should be accompanied by domestic policies that allow all citizens to reap the benefits of globalisation, since although the general equilibrium effects of globalisation are indeed positive, it can have negative effects on certain sectors and groups, which it is important to try to minimise.13 Many of these ideas may well fit into what former IMF managing director Christine Lagarde dubbed “new multilateralism in a new economic landscape".14 She illustrated her proposal  9  http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1945 Alan WM. Wolff (2019), “The opportunity for reform of the trading system must not be squandered”, Speech at the Banque de France conference centre in Paris, 16 July 2019. 11 http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1945 12 Gallego, S., P. L’Hotellerie and F. López (2018), “The International Monetary Fund and its Role as a Guarantor of Global Financial Stability”, Banco de España, Economic Bulletin 4/2018. 13 IMF (2007), “Globalization and Inequality”, WEO, Chapter 4 and Helpman, E. (2018), “Globalization and Inequality”, Harvard University Press. 14 https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2018/10/11/sp101218-new-economic-landscape-new-multilateralism 10  7/8  nicely with two examples. One concerns trade integration: the system should be fair and take care of those left behind in the process of globalisation.

As Islamic finance transitions to its next stage of development with greater international integration, the immense benefits that will be unleashed need to be accompanied by a higher level of resilience to be well positioned to manage the new challenges that the future will bring. Our collective efforts to mobilise a higher level of global cooperation in promoting this outcome will also enhance the prospects of Islamic finance to contribute towards securing global financial stability and a greater shared economic prosperity. 4  BIS Review 70/2010
It can also be enhanced to become a multi-currency investment platform to provide a marketplace for local and international investors to invest in real economic activity and projects denominated in various currencies and financed by Islamic banking institutions from different jurisdictions. This will be a first of its kind shared global platform for Islamic finance. In facilitating cross-border transactions, the IAP will also contribute towards drawing new foreign investors while also allowing for participation in the financing of projects outside the country. The IAP, together with the existing components of financial intermediation will form a more complete, and yet mutually complementary financial ecosystem. To ensure its success, there has to be greater awareness and understanding on the key features of the IAP and its embedded mechanisms by all the stakeholders. Of importance is for Islamic banks, investors and entrepreneurs to have a clear understanding on the risk and return relationships that are embedded in the variations of Shariah contracts used in such investment account products. Expectations need to be aligned with the various approaches adopted to managing these relationships according to the contractual and operational requirements. It is also paramount for Islamic banks to uphold the best practices in the conduct of discharging their fiduciary duties and in performing its administration. Of importance is the required due diligence, performance monitoring, suitability assessment and investment management. This would ensure that the IAP is always a trusted medium of investment that is transparent and competitive in providing a seamless experience for investors.

This would address the concerns of investors on the risks associated with the asymmetry of information. Such features would contribute towards strengthening the ability of the IAP to attract a wider range of investors, therefore enabling the platform to cater for different types of risk profiles of the different ventures. This shared infrastructure for advancing the delivery of the investment account product offerings represents an important platform to take this proposition forward. I wish to congratulate the six financial institutions that include four Islamic banks and two development financial institutions on their collective effort to initiate this platform. I understand there is  2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  interest from other Islamic banks to take part in this platform. This platform will have the potential to create a more extensive network of sponsoring banks to meet the more diversified demands of investors and ventures. This would further enhance the potential for the value proposition of the IAP as a Shariah compliant investment vehicle and a fund raising avenue that would bring benefits to the economy. On that note, it is my great pleasure to officially launch the IAP. I wish it every success. Thank you. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3
Your presence here is ample evidence that there remains plenty of opportunities even in circumstances like these and that a forward-looking view is more important than ever. Today, I’m particularly honoured to join you in the discussion of a topic that has been recognised as a source of sustainability and growth – Islamic finance. There are two main issues that I would like to talk about today. First, despite the current financial turmoil, we continue to see the long term potential in Islamic finance. There are two good reasons for this. One is that the Islamic finance industry is in many ways fortunate to be at an early stage of development during this turmoil. Despite the effects of a temporary shortage of liquidity, which has been a worldwide phenomenon,  1  Source: Bloomberg. BIS Review 146/2008  1  the degree of damage has been far lower than that to the much wider network of international finance, primarily because of the more restricted spread of Islamic financial instruments across regions and the generally lower level of leverage allowed in Islamic financial transactions. Although Islamic finance has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years, assets held by Islamic financial institutions and insurance operators known as takaful providers are estimated to be $ trillion, accounting for only about 1% of the financial assets in the overall banking and insurance sectors. 2 The industry’s remarkable annual growth rate of 15% to 20% has to be viewed in perspective: after all it began from a small base.

We are now focusing our efforts on four major areas: first, building Hong Kong’s international profile and forging closer ties with market participants in the Middle East; secondly, promoting market infrastructure and establishing policies conducive to the development of Islamic finance; thirdly, promoting talent and knowledge of Islamic financial principles among market professionals in Hong Kong; and fourthly, encouraging the development and launch of Islamic finance products in Hong Kong. Concluding remarks Ladies and gentlemen, the potential for the growth of Islamic finance is clear. The foundations for its development here in Hong Kong have already been laid. It is essential for all of us to look beyond the current global financial turbulence and treat the development of Islamic finance as an investment in the future. With this in mind, I would like to encourage all of you, whether you are regulators, financial institutions or investors, to look critically at the opportunities that lie before us. Islamic finance is a new asset class that has the potential to bring new economic growth to Hong Kong and the region given our wealth of knowledge in financial intermediation, our experience, and our agility in adopting innovative products. So let us work together towards building a stronger and stronger link and increasing cooperation with other global players to identify and capitalise on new opportunities. Today’s holding of the Islamic Finance Forum in Hong Kong is a significant step on a journey that is just beginning. I look forward to travelling this road with all of you. Thank you.
This separate company is then financed through issuing bonds on the market. The special purpose vehicle has a clearly defined risk scenario and does not pursue any business activities other than acting as holder of the specified loans. Consequently, the company is not subject to the capital adequacy regulations that apply for mortgage institutions. Securitisation has several advantages, the main one being that it enables mortgage institutions to reduce their share of equity and thereby their total financing cost, since equity is a more expensive source of financing than loan financing. Furthermore, mortgage institutions can streamline their operations by selling claims and by specialising in issuing loans. Securitisation can also increase the stability of the financial system as credit risks can be transferred from institutions subject to regulation to players that are less sensitive to heavy credit losses. Securitisation using a special purpose vehicle located in Sweden is permitted, but in practice it is unprofitable since, under the current regulations, the special purpose vehicle will be subject to the same capital adequacy regulations as the mortgage institutions. A proposal to improve the conditions for securitisation in Sweden is currently being prepared by the Ministry of Finance. The Budget Bill for 2001 states that the government intends to put forward a bill on improved conditions for securitisation during autumn 2000. To date, three Swedish mortgage institutions, SBAB, SEB-Bolån and Bokredit have undertaken securitisation via special purpose vehicles abroad.

But when there’s a high degree of uncertainty about forecasts, it could be best to tend toward the more cautious end of the spectrum - because a somewhat delayed action could be preferable to running the risk of tightening when it’s not warranted. Therefore, since most forecasts of output and inflation have been off the mark for several years, it has made sense to place less weight on the forecasts than we normally have in the past. It’s true that we began tightening policy before we saw any upward inflationary trend, and in that sense we were pre-emptive, in part because we knew interest rates would have to go up to some extent regardless of whether a demand shock or a supply shock was dominating. But the tightening phase started only a little more than a year ago, even though many forecasts have predicted rising inflation for several years. Moreover, we’ve been fairly cautious in raising rates by a total of only 175 basis points. I’d like to conclude by touching briefly on the issue of central bank credibility because I believe it’s been an enabling factor in our taking a cautious approach. Over the last twenty years, the Fed has built a reasonably good reputation for containing inflation. This credibility has allowed us some flexibility to delay raising interest rates - despite many forecasts that inflation would soon rise. Without this leeway, we might have faced a jump in inflation expectations with adverse reactions in financial markets.
Chart: The 50-krone banknote (The Lighthouse) As Norwegians, we carry with us a long and rich history of living from and with the sea – from the seafarers of the medieval Saga Age to today’s international shipping companies. For centuries, the shipping route along our coast was our lifeline. Goods from all over the country were ferried via inland waterways out to the coast and from there to other parts of Norway and to other countries. From near and far, other goods came in return. But the coastline of Norway is also dangerous. Without seamarks and lighthouses, safe travel along the coast or through narrow coastal channels would be impossible. A total of 21 000 lighthouses and seamarks safeguard navigation along our coast. Chart: The 100-krone banknote (The Gokstad Ship) Seamarks have a long history in Norway. As early as the year 869, Vikings on their way home were able to steer their ships towards the mouth of the Hardangerfjord guided by a bonfire built on a clifftop cairn. The Vikings were not only plunderers and pillagers, but boatbuilders and, not least, skilled seamen. They built Norway’s reputation as Europe’s leading sea power, while the sea took them out into the world and into contact with other cultures. The Vikings were also traders, and they knew that the sea was a versatile resource. Ever since the end of the Ice Age, when the glaciers retreated and the very first Norwegians made their homes near the seashore, we have harvested food from the sea.

To put it somewhat differently, but with the essence more or less the same, the rule means that monetary policy should normally be aimed at meeting the inflation target of 2 per cent CPI inflation one to two years ahead. BIS Review 26/2004  1  The fact that we use primarily the inflation forecast one to two years ahead as a kind of intermediate goal for the real target of 2 per cent actual inflation means that temporary shocks that only have an impact on inflation in the coming year do not generally affect our rate setting. It is conceivable that drastic changes in interest rates could bring inflation back to the target faster than over one to two years. But such a policy would probably result in sharp, undesired fluctuations in both the real and financial economy. Against this backdrop it could be said that we normally deliberately tolerate the target deviations that result from temporary shocks to inflation and that arise and diminish over the next year. However, sometimes temporary effects on inflation arise that do not subside during the subsequent year. These effects then show up in the inflation forecast, measured in terms of the CPI, one to two years ahead. But if the effects are expected to disappear quite soon afterwards, there may be cause not to counter them through repo rate adjustments.
The proportion of the world’s population living in extreme poverty has fallen from just under 40% to 10%. This rapid improvement in prosperity was made possible by the better use of the three factors needed for growth: labour, capital and technology. 1/5  BIS central bankers' speeches  After 1990 we saw an increasingly international division of labour. Countries specialised in areas where they were particularly proficient compared with their trading partners. The manufacture of labour-intensive products was outsourced to countries with relatively low wage levels. This increasing division of labour resulted on the one hand in rising incomes, above all in the new production countries, and on the other hand in a decline in goods prices worldwide. This effect was strengthened further by international competition. With increasing economic integration, capital, the second factor influencing growth, could be invested globally. Foreign direct investment and loans helped in the construction of production facilities and infrastructures in the newly opened regions of the world. The high levels of savings in the advanced economies were thus put to productive use in the catch-up growth of these regions. That leaves the third factor: technology. The integration of the global economy led to a massive transfer of knowledge between countries, which greatly accelerated the economic development of the poorer nations. Furthermore, the growth in the number of people participating in the global economy meant that there were a lot more ideas and innovations.

Risks to the outlook for price developments continue to be seen as broadly balanced over the medium term, with upside risks relating to higher administered prices and indirect taxes, as well as higher oil prices, and downside risks stemming from weaker economic activity and, more recently, the appreciation of the euro exchange rate. Inflation expectations for the euro area remain firmly in line with the Governing Council’s aim of maintaining annual inflation rates below, but close to, 2%. Our monetary analysis is consistent with price stability. The underlying pace of monetary expansion and loan dynamics remain subdued. The annual growth rate of loans to the private sector remains negative. To a large extent, subdued loan dynamics reflect the current stage of the business cycle, heightened credit risk and the continuing process of deleveraging. Overall, inflationary pressures should remain contained over the policy-relevant horizon. Taking the evidence together, this allows our monetary policy stance to remain accommodative. The impact of a low interest rate environment Let me turn to the first topic that you have chosen for our meeting today, namely the implications of a low interest rate environment. The impact of the global financial crisis on the economy and, potentially, on price developments has been unprecedented. We have taken unprecedented measures in response, aiming pre-emptively and forcefully to avert risks to price stability, in accordance with our primary mandate. First, we have reduced our key interest rate to 0.75%, a level previously unseen in virtually all euro area countries.
Ranee Jayamaha: SAARC Payments Initiative and policy responses Speech by Dr Ranee Jayamaha, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, at the inauguration of "SAARC Payments Initiative", Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Colombo, 28 March 2008. *  *  *  1. It is with great pleasure that I thank all of you for attending the inaugural session of the SAARC Payments Initiative. It is indeed a historic event and a landmark in the development of payment systems in the SAARC region, because this is the first time the member central banks, as a group, have decided to pay focused attention to this area of activity. It is also an important achievement for the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to be able to pioneer the efforts in establishing the SAARC Payments Initiative. 2. The SAARC Payments Initiative, which is launched today, intends to  •  assist individual SAARC countries to prepare a domestic payment strategy and a forward looking development plan;  •  design a coordinated regional approach to cross-border payments, taking into consideration the implications for trade, investment, central bank policy, foreign exchange positions and their management; and  •  clear any impediments experienced by the members in the areas of policy, operations and communications, legal and regulatory aspects, technical and institutional infrastructure, and engage in research and statistical analysis. 3.

The pressure on interest rate margins will remain strong as long as interest rates remain exceptionally low. Thus, there will be strong incentives for banks to take on more risk. In the short term, an increase in affordability risk or interest rate risk may help to prevent a further decline in profitability. However, it would make banks more vulnerable to a large upward interest rate shock and to a correction on the mortgage and real estate markets. Greater risk-taking in lending could also lead to a renewed increase in momentum on the mortgage and real estate markets. This applies particularly to residential investment property, where upward pressure on prices could remain strong. If interest rates rise, there is the risk of a substantial price correction. This could result in credit losses at the banks that provide funding for such investors. This highlights the importance of the capital surpluses currently held by the domestically focused banks. Going forward, banks should set their risk appetite and their capital planning so as to ensure that they can absorb the losses that would arise under highly unfavourable but possible scenarios. Even under such scenarios, the banks must be able to perform their economically important functions – especially that of providing credit to the economy. The SNB will continue to monitor developments on the mortgage and real estate markets closely, paying particular attention to the residential investment property segment as well as to banks’ risk-taking in mortgage lending.
Svein Gjedrem: Monetary policy and wage growth Address by Mr Svein Gjedrem, Governor of Norges Bank (Central Bank of Norway), to the general assembly of the Employers’ Organisation NAVO, 11 June 2002. The address is based on the assessments presented at Norges Bank’s press conference following the Executive Board’s monetary policy meeting on 22 May and on previous speeches. Please note that the text below may differ slightly from the actual presentation. *  *  *  Norway’s economic policy is based on the guidelines for fiscal and monetary policy. The guideline for fiscal policy states that the use of petroleum revenues over the central government budget shall be equivalent to the expected real return on the Government Petroleum Fund. This means that all the capital in the Fund is being utilised. Monetary policy is oriented towards low and stable inflation. Historically, periods of high inflation have always been followed by a downturn. Low and stable inflation therefore fosters stability in the economy. Establishing guidelines for economic policy is not new. Both fiscal and monetary policy have been subject to a rules-based framework throughout the post-war period, with the exception of the last half of the 1970s and the first half of the 1980s. Monetary policy has had a clear anchor since 1986. The phasing in of petroleum revenues in the central government budget shall be equivalent to the expected return on the Petroleum Fund. Most of the phasing in of petroleum revenues will take place over the next ten years.

On the other hand, the rise in costs can increase the pressure to  raise central government allocations. Many will probably expect the central government to pick up the bill when labour costs rise sharply. In the business sector - with its profitability requirements - higher labour costs must be matched by an increase in productivity. In principle, the central government will impose the same requirements on government agencies. How these requirements will be met in practice will have a decisive impact on developments in central government expenditure and, consequently, on the interest rate and the krone exchange rate.