samchain/econo-pairs-v1 huggingface dataset:
Ravi Menon: Protecting Asia from natural catastrophes Opening address by Mr Ravi Menon, Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, at the Institute of Catastrophe Risk Management Symposium, Singapore, 3 August 2017. * * * Professor Bertil Andersson, President of Nanyang Technological University, Professor Pan Tso-Chien, Executive Director, Institute of Catastrophe Risk Management, Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. I am happy to join you at the 8th ICRM Symposium. A widening protection gap Asia has a serious problem. The frequency and severity of natural catastrophes hitting the region is increasing. According to UN data, the number of natural disasters in the Asia Pacific has increased from an annual average of 44 disasters in the 1970s to 146 in the 2000s. We don’t need much reminder of the tragic natural disasters that the people in Asia have suffered in recent years. the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004; the Tohoku Earthquake in 2011; the Thailand Floods also in 2011; and Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. As Asia continues to grow rapidly, more lives, wealth and assets in Asia are correspondingly at risk from natural catastrophes. Growing urbanisation also means that wealth in Asia is increasingly concentrated in small, overpopulated megacities. There are 22 mega cities in Asia, each with more than 10 million inhabitants and hosting important commercial, manufacturing, and logistics hubs. Many of these cities are located in the Philippines, China, Japan, India, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, which are highly exposed to natural perils.

Gent Sejko: Transparency, communication and the importance of the media partnership Address by Mr Gent Sejko, Governor of the Bank of Albania, at the end-of-year meeting with the media and the Governor’s Award ceremony, Tirana, 13 December 2019. * * * Dear ladies and gentlemen, Welcome to the Bank of Albania, to spend some time together as the year end approaches. Sadly, the atmosphere at the end of this year is different from previous ones, following the devastating earthquake, which hit Albania in late November. In the aftermath, we are all heartbroken by the tragic loss of 51 lives, with hundreds of others injured and many buildings, which have collapsed or have been heavily affected by the strongest quake in decades. Yet, beyond the material consequences and psychological shock, this tragic event foregrounded another – somewhat dormant – dimension of our society: solidarity and unconditional support for each other. We all witnessed an impressive demonstration of voluntary support from fellow citizens to those affected by the devastating earthquake. In this extraordinary situation, the media played a key role in promoting solidarity and alleviating the human pain caused by this natural disaster. In light of this event, and in retrospection of 2019, let me express my sincere thanks and heartfelt gratitude to the media, to those who are present here tonight, and those that were unable to attend, for their invaluable work, reporting news truthfully and in real time.
One out of three of the unbanked come from just four countries in Asia – China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia. It is a shame that in this day and age, so many do not have access to a bank account, secure and efficient means of payment, or insurance protection. The root of this problem is two-fold. Banks face high costs in reaching out to customers in remote villages. And frankly, many of their mainstream financial services may not be suited to the needs of these customers. FinTech firms, on other hand, are able to create agile and mobile digital solutions to access and serve these underserved segments. But they lack the resources to scale and penetrate new markets. This is where AFIN comes in, to bring banks and FinTech firms together to develop solutions to penetrate these hard-to-reach markets. AFIN is spearheaded by MAS, the ASEAN Bankers Association, and the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation. This Wednesday, AFIN will launch API Exchange, or APIX. It is the world’s first cross-border, open architecture platform to enhance financial inclusion. APIX is both an online FinTech Marketplace and FinTech Sandbox. As a marketplace, it will enable FIs to discover and connect with FinTech firms through APIs on a globally curated platform. As a sandbox, it provides a platform for FIs and FinTech firms to collaborate and experiment on solutions in a contained environment. Please step forward to participate in this exciting enterprise to deepen financial inclusion in ASEAN and the Asia-Pacific region.

If we don’t address these concerns, we will not have the consensus that is necessary to achieve the many benefits of technology. What do we need to get right in data governance? Data must be protected – we must safeguard privacy, confidentiality, and security. Data must be used in a responsible, transparent, and ethical manner. We must be able to explain the results of data driven algorithms. We cannot hide behind the black box. Humans, not machines, are accountable for decisions driven by AI or data analytics. We must ensure that outcomes of data or AI driven processes are ethical, free of bias, and socially acceptable. Only then, can we create an ecosystem where data flows seamlessly in a trusted manner. MAS has been actively working with the industry to develop principles to guide the responsible use of data in financial services. We are pleased to release today a set of principles to promote Fairness, Ethics, Accountability & Transparency, or FEAT, in the use of AI and data analytics. I’m told this is the first of its kind in the world – where the regulator and industry have come together to set guidance on the responsible use of AI and data analytics. And I am sure this is a living document that will be continually updated as we learn more. Next, on the international front: we need more data connectivity, and less data localisation. This is a serious risk. Data localisation measures are on the rise around the world.
At this point, it is difficult to say whether the recent pause in job growth is short-lived or not. As such, we will continue to closely monitor our region’s job situation. Meanwhile, unemployment rates have ticked down across the region. Given the disappointing job numbers, it is not surprising that this change is largely due to a decline in labor force participation. In the fourth quarter of 2010, the labor force of both New York and New Jersey declined by about 0.3 percentage points, meaning that fewer people were actively seeking work. December’s unemployment rate in New York and New Jersey, at 8.2 percent and 9.1 percent, respectively, were below the national jobless rate of 9.4 percent for that month, though these rates remain painfully high. Puerto Rico’s 15.7 percent unemployment rate, although down from its high of over 17 percent, still shows little evidence of a sustained improvement. Overview of household debt during the crisis Now, let me turn to this session’s special topic: household debt. This topic provides an important lens into economic conditions in our country and our region. How families are adjusting their saving, borrowing and spending in the aftermath the mortgage crisis and the Great Recession will help shape the path of the recovery. Here at the Federal Reserve, we try to answer questions such as: what is happening to households’ credit, debt and delinquencies and what economic consequences will that have?

We believe that it will take more time, perhaps as much as another year, for enough of these homes to be bought that residential construction might begin a meaningful recovery. On the labor front, the most recent employment report for January 2011 is quite difficult to interpret. Only 36,000 nonfarm payroll jobs were added, well below expectations. Yet, we get a very different perspective from the unemployment rate, which fell by 0.4 percentage points for the second month in a row and now stands at 9.0 percent. Job growth was undoubtedly held down by the severe winter storms that affected many major cities, including our own. BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  The decline in the jobless rate was not an unmitigated positive, as a significant part of this decline was due to fewer people looking for work. Thus, neither the disappointingly slow job growth nor the welcome steep drop in unemployment seems to paint the full picture. The truth lies somewhere in between. Despite the stronger job growth that we expect in the months ahead, we will continue to have a substantial amount of slack in our labor markets that will take time to absorb. At this point, while the soft patch is over and the risk of a double dip has subsided, the economy still faces headwinds as a result of the aftermath of the financial crisis, the housing bust and the high level of unemployment that still prevails.
I should add that the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), a fellow association of supervisors in the insurance area, is now discussing a supervisory framework that would apply to all insurance regulatory systems globally. Evolution in risk management and the reform of financial supervision should complement and reinforce each other, and the progress in each area will be influenced by the work underway globally to revise accounting guidelines. The Geneva Association has taken a great interest in this topic, so I will conclude my remarks with some brief thoughts from my perspective on the convergence of accounting standards, advances in risk management, and supervision. II. Trends across financial services sector  Allow me to begin with an overview of recent trends in risk management. Last year, a body representing major financial supervisory agencies conducted a study of 31 banks, securities firms, and insurance companies in 12 jurisdictions. This body - called the “Joint Forum” - consists of expert supervisors from member agencies of the Basel Committee, the International Organisation of  BIS Review 34/2004  1  Securities Commissioners (IOSCO), and the IAIS. The Joint Forum seeks to identify best practices and develop guidance for activities across the financial services sector. In its report, which was published in August 2003, the Joint Forum identified two important and recent trends among large, complex firms engaged in banking, securities, or insurance, or in some mix of these activities. A. Integration of the risk management function.

This would include not just decisions to purchase products, but also in their day-to-day actions such as in their spending and saving habits. It should also include understanding how we can help consumers avoid making mistakes, such as to fall into scams – not just investment scams and get-rich-  2/3  BIS - Central bankers' speeches  quick-schemes, but also scams that use social engineering to trick customers into divulging their banking and payment security credentials. As all of us here would know too well, scams have been gaining significant momentum since the pandemic, and continues to be a sinister threat not just in Malaysia but also in other countries. Recognising this threat, BNM has instructed banks to step up security measures to protect their customers, and is working closely with law enforcement agencies to ensure swift action against perpetrators. But while these measures are necessary, they will not be sufficient without the first line of defence – that is, for consumers to remain vigilant, knowing how to avoid getting duped. This is ultimately a matter of financial and digital literacy. For this, the evidence-backed approach that today's Symposium is committed to in educating financial consumers will be a crucial part of the whole-of-nation approach needed to combat scams. Before I end my speech, I would like to reiterate that financial education is more relevant than ever in the post-pandemic era.
There should thus be a better system with regard to the link between the analysis from a macroeconomic perspective and the measures taken for the individual banks. One can therefore wonder whether there might not be better organisational solutions for maintaining financial stability in Sweden. It is difficult to say exactly how this would look. There may be several possible solutions. Finansinspektionen could be given greater resources to monitor systemic risks in a macroeconomic perspective. Another solution might be to extend the Riksbank’s power of authority to be able to initiate cases at Finansinspektionen. A third solution could be to link the work of Finansinspektionen and the Riksbank more closely together and increase cooperation between the two authorities. Regardless of which solution is chosen, I believe that it will lead to positive effects for the Riksbank’s possibilities to take measures if one sees a risk that a bubble is developing on the financial markets. But there is also a tool that the Riksbank already has at its disposal, and which can be used to counteract excesses in the housing market, for instance, namely the repo rate path. The fact that the Riksbank publishes a forecast for the development of the policy rate makes it easier to clearly communicate the longer-term outlook for interest rates. This can reduce the risk of banks and households being led to believe that a low policy rate as a result of a downturn in the economy will continue to apply for several years to come. 12  Giavazzi and Mishkin (2006).

The imbalances and the low interest rates led to an increased demand for financial assets with a higher yield, which contributed to pushing down risk premiums to untenably low levels. Low risk premiums and low interest rates in turn contributed to overheating in the US housing market. Expansionary housing policy in the United States One important factor in triggering the crisis was the adjustment in the US housing market that began in autumn 2005. The housing market has been stimulated by an expansionary housing policy over a long period of time. The aim was that more households would own their own homes. To achieve this, targets were set for how much of the mortgage institutions’ lending would be granted to wage-earners with medium and low incomes. These targets were then gradually raised. The demand for owning one’s own home increased, and thus housing prices and household indebtedness also increased. Moreover, an increasing number of households had gained access to credit as a result of the deregulation of the financial markets. New financial products were created that enabled mortgages to be put together, repackaged and then sold on the financial markets. The idea behind these financial innovations was to spread the risks over more counterparties. Unfortunately the new instruments also reduced the possibility to assess where the risks lay. When the housing market bubble burst and house prices began to fall, the underlying problems rose to the surface.
Jean-Pierre Danthine: Taming the financial cycle Speech by Mr Jean-Pierre Danthine, Vice Chairman of the Governing Board of the Swiss National Bank, at the 30th SUERF Colloquium, Zurich, 5 September 2012. *  *  *  Introduction The global financial crisis has been weighing heavily on the world economy since 2007. The crisis was severe. In most advanced countries, the recovery has been weak in historical comparison. Many of these economies are struggling hard to regain the jobs lost during the last four years (slide 1).1 The crisis originated in the bursting of a house price bubble driven by an excessive credit expansion in the US, which eventually pushed the global financial system to the brink of collapse. In some countries, such as Spain or Ireland, the crisis was further compounded by the bursting of their own housing bubbles. In this regard, the current crisis is an excellent example. Historical evidence shows that the macroeconomic cost of an asset price bubble that bursts is particularly severe when the property market is affected. Moreover, such events tend to be more costly when the bubble is financed through credit and when leveraged financial institutions are directly involved.2 Switzerland has been less affected by the recent crisis and has recovered more quickly from it. There is no room for complacency, however. The recovery has been boosted by a thriving housing market and strong credit growth. In the wake of this, the medium-term risk to financial stability has been increasing.

Comments at the Institute of Regulation & Risk, Hong Kong, 30 March 2010. IMF 2011: Global Financial Stability Report 2011. Grappling with Crisis Legacies. Swiss National Bank 2012: Implementing the countercyclical capital buffer in Switzerland. Concretising the Swiss National Bank’s role. Fact sheet, June 2012. White, William 2009: Should Monetary Policy “Lean or Clean?” Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Working Paper No. 34. 8  BIS central bankers’ speeches  BIS central bankers’ speeches  9  10  BIS central bankers’ speeches  BIS central bankers’ speeches  11  12  BIS central bankers’ speeches  BIS central bankers’ speeches  13  14  BIS central bankers’ speeches  BIS central bankers’ speeches  15
Therefore, such labour market reforms can help with containing the level of private and public debt by increasing household incomes via enhanced job creation owing to better matching of job seekers with vacancies. Third: An acceleration of fiscal policy reforms such as the enactment of a fiscal responsibility and budgets systems law, so as to ensure medium and long term fiscal sustainability. These stipulate a medium-term orientation as regards budget formulation and provide for binding expenditure ceilings. For example, the annual growth rate in total public expenditure must not exceed the growth rate of potential GDP, unless corrective measures on the revenue side are introduced to compensate the higher growth rate of expenditure. In this respect, such policy frameworks can directly tackle the level of public debt by promoting lower public deficits. I will not leave out the banking sector reforms: having effective foreclosure and insolvency frameworks and actively and efficiently managing Non Performing Loans should be encouraged in order to tackle elevated risks related to high levels of private debt. However, the adoption of an improved insolvency framework will not be in a position to achieve its full potential if its application is impaired by inefficiencies in the judicial system. 3/5  BIS - Central bankers' speeches  Let me now give some remarks on the situation in Cyprus. Public debt increased rapidly during the economic crisis of 2012-2013, going from 65.8% of GDP at the end of 2011 to 112% in June 2014.

Constantinos Herodotou: The global debt trap – the implications for growth and possible solutions to tackle it Speech by Mr Constantinos Herodotou, Governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus, at the YPO - Cyprus Chapter event, Nicosia, 19 January 2023. *** Global debt, both public and private, has risen significantly over the last two decades. It is no surprise that many economists as well as the IMF and the Word Bank frequently warn about the possible adverse consequences of excessive debt levels on the global economy, and the macroeconomic, financial and fiscal stability of countries. When governments, households and corporations are excessively indebted, it may impair their ability to borrow - that is to finance their needs for consumption or investment. This has a negative impact on growth prospects. Excessive debt may affect the stability of the financial and banking system, if repayments of debt increase unsustainably, and this could also lead to further economic slowdown. If a country's level of private and public debt leads to a crisis which is severe enough, the current system of extensive global financial interlinkages could cause further economic hardships. Given the current high level of global debt and the above considerations, a number of economists refer to the situation as a potential "trap" that needs to be addressed urgently. The linkages through which excessive debt, private and public, affect the economies are widely acknowledged in economic analyses and literature.
In this setting, the reform of the pension system currently under discussion is especially important. Indeed, it goes beyond the major goal of ensuring the long-term sustainability of our pensions system in the face of the challenge of population ageing. This reform may also have significant and beneficial short-term effects on the credibility of the authorities’ commitment to budgetary discipline and the ability to see through far-reaching structural reforms and favourably influence the risk premia on public debt. The promptness and ambitiousness of the reform are essential. A suitable combination of changes in certain parameters of the system, raising the legal retirement age, the minimum number of years necessary to qualify for a pension and the period over which the pension is calculated would help ease substantially the pressure on future public spending on pensions and resolve one of the Spanish economy’s major outstanding problems. Fiscal consolidation is an essential condition for ensuring future economic growth. The effort will no doubt be rewarded because it will place the Spanish economy in a sounder position to anchor the recovery. Its long-term effects will in any event prove more forceful if accompanied by structural reforms that raise the economy’s growth potential. The elements interconnecting both policies are on an enormous scale: potential growth influences the sustainability of public finances, while an appropriate distribution of adjustment efforts across the various spending and revenue items is conducive to activity and has expansionary effects on output and employment.

Adopting a package of adjustment measures to come into force immediately, for a significant amount, in sufficient and specific detail, and affecting items as sensitive as public-sector wages, welfare benefits and public investment, gave credibility to the commitment to reduce the budget deficit. Also contributing to this was the bringing forward of the fiscal adjustment targets, whereby almost two-thirds of the adjustment envisaged by 2013 would be completed in 2011. Finally, having noted the failed negotiations between the trade unions and employers’ associations, the government approved a labour market reform on 16 June aimed at encouraging permanent hires and increasing internal flexibility at companies, two of our labour market’s most serious shortcomings. The adoption of these measures, along with the publication of the banking stress test results, saw the tensions on financial markets abate. There was a significant reduction in funding costs for the Treasury and a reopening of funding channels for credit institutions. Yet this does not mean that the period of instability is over, as the tensions still bearing down on other European countries show. Accordingly, following this initial response it is essential to maintain the credibility earned without losing sight of the fact that for a long time we will be subjected to very close scrutiny, and that episodes likely to spread suspicion and a lack of confidence may arise. This is the particular juncture we have reached and at which we are discussing this Budget.