BOE RATE SETTER: COVID VACCINE DOES NOT REDUCE NEED FOR ASSET PURCHASES

— External MPC member Tenreyro makes strong case for negative interest rates in the UK By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – The rapid development of a Covid vaccine could actually strengthen the case for expanded quantitative easing in the UK, with the benefits of a jab likely to lift the economy only gradually, a Bank of England […]

ITALY WORKING ON PLAN TO START ISSUING GREEN BONDS – SOURCES

By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy’s government is honing its first-ever green bonds issuance plan to be launched soon to fund environmental projects, according to ruling coalition sources. Key investment areas have been identified but the framework, containing the standards and list of specific projects, is still to be defined, though sources say it will […]

EURO AREA BUSINESS SENTIMENT POSTS FIRST DROP SINCE APRIL

By Marco Babic ZURICH (MaceNews) – Economic sentiment in the euro area fell in November for the first time since April when the effects of the first COVID-19 wave pushed sentiment sharply lower. The Economic Sentiment Index (ESI) for the countries sharing the euro fell “markedly” in November to 87.6 from 91.1 the previous month, […]

UK DOWNGRADES ECONOMIC FORECASTS; RETURN TO POST-PANDEMIC LEVEL DELAYED TO END 2022

By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – The UK economy – already lagging its developed-world peers – will recover more slowly than expected, according to updated forecasts released on Wednesday.  Output will not regain its pre-pandemic level until the final quarter of 2022, according to UK’s top finance official, Chancellor Rishi Sunak, delivering his spending statement […]

ECB’S SCHNABEL SUGGESTS EXTENDING TIME FRAME TO RETURN INFLATION TO TARGET

— Rate setter says the Bank has lost the “trust” of the public By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) — A key European Central Bank official Tuesday suggested adjustments to bank’s mandate, particularly the timing of returning inflation to target, while hinting that historically-loose monetary policy could become ever-less effective in stimulating economic growth. “It could […]

GERMAN BUSINESS CONFIDENCE FALLS IN NOVEMBER ON VIRUS CONCERNS

By Marco Babic ZURICH (MaceNews) – Sentiment at German companies deteriorated in November, as a second wave of COVID-19 cases are dampening expectations, the Munich-based Ifo Institute said Tuesday. The Business Climate Index fell for a second month to 90.7 in November from a revised 92.5 (92.7) the previous month. The decline was not as […]

BOE SEES DIMINISHING MARGINAL RETURNS FROM ASSET PURCHASES

— External Rate Setters Lament Low Inflation, Raising Questions Over MPC Rift and Future Policy By Laurie LairdLONDON (MaceNews) – Top Bank of England rate setters agreed that quantitative easing will exert a diminishing influence on the UK economic recovery, raising questions about the tools available to the central bank as two external officials lamented […]

COVID RESURGENCE RAISES EU FINANCIAL STABILITY RISKS, AFFECTS GROWTH OUTLOOK – BOI

By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MacsNews) – The second COVID-19 wave hitting Europe and in Italy is raising financial stability risks and could worsen the outlook, the Bank of Italy warned Friday in its Financial Stability Report.  Even though summer’s economic recovery was greater than expected also thanks to the support of monetary policy, “the risks […]

ECB’S LAGARDE URGES GOV’T, PRIVATE EQUITY SUPPORT FOR EUROPEAN TECH

–Lagarde Makes No Mention of Monetary Policy in Address to Frankfurt Banking Conference By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – Up-and-coming European technology firms could greatly benefit from more extensive support from governments and from the private equity industry, according to the continent’s top central banker, outlining her views on the future of employment in a post-Covid […]

ECB’S LAGARDE: ASSET PURCHASES, CHEAP FINANCING ARE KEY TOOLS VS LATEST DOWNTURN

By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) –  Europe’s top central banker suggested that expanded asset purchases and enhancements to the Bank’s long-term finance scheme are best suited to counter the latest eurozone downturn, while urging national governments to keep the fiscal taps flowing. “While all options are on the table, the pandemic emergency purchase programme (PEPP) […]