| THE DAILY UPDATE Thursday 31 March 2022 |
| Markets overreacting to fears of Japanese yen intervention |
| By Mark Sobel |
| The Japanese yen’s recent depreciation against the dollar has elicited much market hand-wringing about how officialdom might respond and whether authorities could intervene to staunch the decline. But the foreign exchange market’s fretting seems overdone. There are good fundamental reasons for the yen’s depreciation. Trading in yen is orderly. There should be little... |
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine compels central banks and G7 to take action
Thursday 10 March 2022 – Vol.13 Ed.10.4
Commentary: Ukraine conflict cripples G20 but unifies G7
By Mark Sobel in Washington
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine crystallises key shifts underway in global governance. Among others, it will cripple the G20 and elevate the G7. To the extent there is a now an East/West split, the new East consists of Russia with half-hearted Chinese backing. With fissures torn open between the West and...
Losses accelerate on FTSE 100 as commodities rocket in price and spectre of stagflation hovers
Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown:
‘’As oil and gas rockets in price and worries about the effect on global growth...
Can central banks escape the inflation trap?
Wednesday 2 March 2022 – Vol.13 Ed.9.3
Commentary: Central banks’ inflation trap: heading for a great escape or great reset?
By Willem Middelkoop in Amsterdam
Unorthodox monetary policies, the global inflation surge and a continued de facto debasement of fiat currencies are huge sources of nervousness for institutional and private investors. In a few short years, central banks have gone from confronting a deflationary collapse to what may become an...
https://allaboutshipping.co.uk/2022/03/02/can-central-banks-escape-the-inflation-trap/
Central banks may worsen crisis with short-run policy changes
Tuesday 15 February 2022 – Vol.13 Ed.7.2
Commentary: Beware central bankers on monetarist war path
By Meghnad Desai in London
Somehow the world has got through Covid-19, but no one knows how to tackle the next double crisis. Given this uncertainty, it’s surprising that developed countries have shown signs of rushing back to the ‘old normal’. Central banks seem ready to march down the monetarist warpath. But, if they do that, they may...
How to build a sustainable financial system for the future
Wednesday 9 February 2022Vol.13 Ed.6.3
Commentary: Policy-makers’ golden opportunity to meet green goals
By Marcus Svedberg in Stockholm
European policy-makers have a golden opportunity to address two major issues in one go this year. By amending the European Union’s fiscal rules in favour of green investments, they can make a critical contribution to meeting climate goals and help to increase the potential growth of the union by laying the...
Central banks and data disclosures can play bigger role in net zero transition
Friday 28 January 2022 – Vol.13 Ed.4.5
Commentary: Robust data disclosures key for net zero agenda
By Taylor Pearce in London
Improving climate-related data disclosures for both public and private market actors is a foundational element of the net zero agenda. The increasingly urgent climate crisis will require further co-operation between market actors, governments, regulators and central banks. Though they may not be...
Most read 2021: Role of central banks comes under scrutiny – – – –
Thursday 30 December 2021 – Vol.12 Ed.52.4
Top stories of the year: Threats to central bank independence
By David Marsh in London
Many issues that came to prominence in 2021 were born during events of 2008, including threats to central bank independence. Expanded mandates have put central bankers in an uncomfortable situation. Since David Marsh’s 1 February missive, monetary authorities have extended interventions aimed at tackling...
https://allaboutshipping.co.uk/2021/12/30/most-read-2021-role-of-central-banks-comes-under-scrutiny/
Central banks should react to inflation before it is too late
Wednesday 8 December – 2021 Vol.12 Ed.49.3
Commentary: ECB should follow Fed and tighten policy
By Jacques de Larosière and David Marsh
Decision-makers and commentators who claim that the spike in inflation is transitory are making a mistake. Pre-emptive pronouncements forecasting future abatement of price pressures should be avoided. Instead, it would be better to tell financial markets and the public that the rekindling of inflation –...
Central banks need to focus on inflation and regulation mandate
Commentary: Are central banks independent or almighty?
By Otmar Issing in Würzburg
Most major central banks are endowed with the status of independence. That position appears to be changing, partly because central banks are being overburdened with too many tasks. Central banks’ involvement in mitigating climate change is a particular case of potential overreach. It is time for central bankers to show a little more humility and think...