NEWSMAKERS- PBOC'S Zhou - standing up to foreign pressure
- Madame Hu takes charge of China's vast reserves
- Guo Shuqing still bank vice governor
- Norman Chan to retire from HKMA
- BIS appoints Günter Pleines to head banking department
- Bank of Korea to disclose more
- Malta's Bonello urges adoption of euro
- Bundesbank rejects claims of missed staff targets
- Interview with central bank of Cuba's Soberon
- Oh no! Is Turkey slipping its anchor again?
- Philippines' Tetangco on the future of the peso
- Zimbabwe's Gono on "unorthodox" challenges
- Former central banker named Portugal's finance minister
- Some new governors
- Jim's swansong
PBOC'S ZHOU - STANDING UP TO FOREIGN PRESSURE
PBOC governor Zhou Xiaochuan
has insisted that the PBOC’s task in future is mainly to improve
the mechanism in the shaping of the RMB’s exchange rate rather than
simply adjusting the exchange rate itself.
That hard line will not please the US Congress or the US Administration
which has demanded an "immediate" revaluation of the RMB.
Why China should change its domestic policies just to please the US Congress
is a mystery. With its huge reserves financing unpopular US defence policies,
China is rather in a position to tell Congress to cut the US budget deficit
- or else!
MADAME
HU TAKES CHARGE OF CHINA'S VAST RESERVES
China has appointed a woman as the new director of the State Administration
of Foreign Exchange (SAFE). Hu Xiaolian was formerly an assistant governor
of the People's Bank of China.
China SAFE's deputy director Ma Delun has been appointed as an Assistant
Governor at the People’s Bank.
NORMAN CHAN TO RETIRE FROM HKMA
The Hong Kong
Monetary Authority announced on Tuesday 12 April that Norman Chan, the
Deputy Chief Executive responsible for reserves management and international
affairs, will be departing from the HKMA in May.
BIS
APPOINTS GÜNTER PLEINES TO HEAD BANKING DEPARTMENT
The Board of Directors of the Bank for International Settlements has appointed
Günter Pleines as Head of its Banking Department. His five-year term
appointment took effect on 1 April 2005.
Pleines’s appointment fills the vacancy being created by the retirement
of Bob Sleeper, who has headed the BIS Banking Department since 1999.
In his new role, Pleines will head one of the Bank’s three main
departments. As a member of the Bank’s
Executive Committee, he will contribute to the general strategic direction
of the BIS, and will have overall responsibility for banking operations.
Before coming to the BIS, Mr Pleines, a German national served in various
capacities at the Landeszentralbank Hessen in Germany and at the Deutsche
Bundesbank, Frankfurt am Main. He trained at Commerzbank AG, Frankfurt,
and received training at the Deutsche Bundesbank.
BANK
OF KOREA TO DISCLOSE MORE
A BOK official was quoted by the Korea Times as saying that the BOK will
put details of its MPC discussions up on the bank’s website.
Reportedly, the decision is aimed at showing the central bank’s
commitment to strengthening the credibility and transparency of its decision-making
process.
Among the seven members are Park Seung, governor of the BOK; Lee Seong-tae,
deputy governor of the BOK; Lee Sung-nam, former executive of the Financial
Supervisory Service; and Lee Duk-hoon, former president of Woori Bank.
In a recent interview the governor of the Central Bank of Malta, Michael Bonello, said Malta is well suited to participate in the euro area.
Delaying euro adoption would not only postpone the benefits of the single currency but could also place Malta further behind the other new Member States.
BUNDESBANK
REJECTS CLAIMS OF MISSED STAFF TARGETS
The Bundesbank, Germany's central bank, has denied newspaper reports that
it will miss its planned staff reduction targets by a significant amount.
INTERVIEW
WITH CENTRAL BANK OF CUBA’S SOBERON
Cuba’s central bank president Francisco Soberon has said that he
was optimistic about recent moves to strengthen both the Cuban peso and
the convertible Cuban peso.
OH NO! IS TURKEY SLIPPING ITS ANCHOR AGAIN?
The governor of Turkey's central bank, Sureyya Serdengecti, has insisted
that reforms promised by the ruling AK government were essential to the
bank's continued ability to reduce inflation and interest rates.
Surely Turkey is not starting to slide down another slippery slope?
PHILIPPINES'
TETANGCO ON THE FUTURE OF THE PESO
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Governor Amando Tetangco said looking
at the fundamentals and technical signs, the peso is poised for further
appreciation.
Tetangco was recently named as the replacement for Governor Rafael Buenaventura,
whose six-year term ends in July.
ZIMBABWE’S
GONO ON "UNORTHODOX" CHALLENGES
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor
Dr Gideon Gono said the country is going through a turnaround that demands
"unorthodox" ways of dealing with unorthodox challenges.
The job is "not one of making friends with everybody". By that
criterion Zimbabwe is doubtless doing quite well at present…
FORMER
CENTRAL BANKER NAMED PORTUGAL’S FINANCE MINISTER
Portugal's Prime Minister-elect
Jose Socrates named Luis Campos e Cunha, a former central bank deputy
governor to the post of finance minister this week.
SOME
NEW GOVERNORS
IRAN'S
KHATAMI REAPPOINTS CENTRAL BANK GOVERNOR
President Mohammad Khatami, in a decree issued on Monday 28 March, reconfirmed
Ebrahim Sheybani as the governor of the Central Bank of Iran, Iranian
news agency IRNA reported. PARAGUAY'S CENTRAL
BANK PRESIDENT 'CONFIRMED'
Dr Monica Perez has been confirmed by Paraguayan President Nicanor Duarte
as the first female central bank president in Paraguay. Her appointment
must still be formally approved by the Senate.
SOMALI PREMIER APPOINTS CENTRAL BANK GOVERNOR
The prime minister of Somalia, Ali Muhammad Gedi, appointed Bashir Ise
Ali as the central bank governor at a cabinet meeting held in Nairobi
on 12 April.
PARAGUAY APPOINTS INTERIM CENTRAL BANK PRESIDENT
Economist Benicio Sanchez has been chosen as interim president of the
Paraguayan central bank by fellow directors following the resignation
of Gabriel Gonzalez, local press reported.
NEW NATIONAL
BANK CHIEF IN GEORGIA
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has asked parliament to approve
the chairman of the parliamentary finance and budget committee, Roman
Gotsiridze, as the next president of the National Bank, Imedi TV reported.
JIM’S
SWANSONG
James Wolfensohn, who steps down at the end of May after 10 years at the
World Bank, has said that the institution's controversial selection process
had contributed to a "dangerous trend of regionalisation of opinion"
on the bank's board.
Indeed, when the Bank’s
board obediently rubber-stamped President Bush’s decision and confirmed
the almost incredible choice of Paul Wolfowitz as President, it also said
that "a more open and transparent process" for selecting future
bank presidents would be needed in future.
A pathetic gesture, when you
come to think of it.
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