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ECB’s Visco: As Emergency Ends, Fiscal Transfers Must Become Very Selective and Targeted

ECB’s Visco: As Emergency Ends, Fiscal Transfers Must Become Very Selective and Targeted

In an interview with CNN, Visco, who heads Banca d’Italia, was asked whether he considered it reasonable that Italy was able to issue 50-year bonds paying less than 30-year sovereign debt of the US. The most important thing was that there be policies ‘to overcome this very, very difficult time’, he said. Moreover, he added, debt sustainability depended on economic growth, the magnitude of the debt and the interest burden.

13 April 2021 Central Bank News
German ZEW Declines in April; First Drop Since November

German ZEW Declines in April; First Drop Since November

Moreover, financial market participants assessed the current situation much more positively, as the subindex rose 12.2 points to -48.8. This was approximately equal to the level of March 2020, ZEW said.

13 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB’s de Cos: Financial Tensions One of the Main Risks Facing Central Banks

ECB’s de Cos: Financial Tensions One of the Main Risks Facing Central Banks

In a speech at a central banking conference posted to the website of Banco de España, which he heads, de Cos said that given ‘high uncertainty and still fragile economic conditions, monetary policies should continue to contribute to maintaining favourable financing conditions, which will help to underpin the strength of the recovery.’

12 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB Brief: Reaction to Knot Comments Shows Difficulty of Taking Back Policy Gifts

ECB Brief: Reaction to Knot Comments Shows Difficulty of Taking Back Policy Gifts

By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Of the many sentiments expressed by European Central Bank Governing Council members in recent days, one from Dutch National Bank head Klaas Knot has generated reactions that underscore particularly well the difficulty the ECB could face in taking back anything it has given.

12 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB’s Stournaras: Interest Rates Cannot Remain at Zero Forever

ECB’s Stournaras: Interest Rates Cannot Remain at Zero Forever

  By David Barwick – FRANKFURT (Econostream) – Interest rates in the euro area will eventually have to rise, European Central Bank Governing Council member Yannis Stournaras said Sunday. In an interview with Greek television station ANT1, Stournaras,...

11 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB’s Panetta: If We Fall Short of the Objective, Then We Will Need to Do More

ECB’s Panetta: If We Fall Short of the Objective, Then We Will Need to Do More

In an interview with Spanish daily El País, a copy of which was made available by the ECB, Panetta said that ‘[i]n general, it would not be prudent to bet on a rapid recovery’, given the risk of disappointment. ‘And even if we do manage to exit the pandemic soon, we will realise that there is actually more damage to the economic fabric than is currently visible.’

11 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB’s Visco: Postponing Exit Less Worrisome Than Winding Down Too Early

ECB’s Visco: Postponing Exit Less Worrisome Than Winding Down Too Early

In an interview with Bloomberg, Visco, who heads Banca d’Italia, responded to a question about when the ECB could start reducing asset purchases by saying that ‘measures have to be maintained as long as necessary … perhaps a little bit postponing the exit is less worrisome than winding down too early.’

9 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB’s Visco: Economic Outlook Improving But Recovery Still Fragile

ECB’s Visco: Economic Outlook Improving But Recovery Still Fragile

In a statement made at a virtual meeting of the Development Committee of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, Visco, who heads Banca d’Italia, said that ‘[t]oday the economic outlook seems to be improving at last, thanks also to the rollout of vaccines’.

9 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB’s Knot: Delayed Disbursement of NGEU Funds Would Be ‘Bad News’

ECB’s Knot: Delayed Disbursement of NGEU Funds Would Be ‘Bad News’

In an interview with CNBC, Knot, who heads the Dutch National Bank, said, ‘If indeed there were to be a delay in the disbursement of the Next Generation EU [NGEU] recovery fund, that would be absolutely a piece of bad news, because I do believe that fiscal policy is really at the forefront of the crisis-fighting policy response here.’

8 April 2021 Central Bank News
ECB Meeting Account Shows PEPP Purchase Acceleration a Compromise Solution

ECB Meeting Account Shows PEPP Purchase Acceleration a Compromise Solution

According to the account, Council members broadly supported ECB Chief Economist Philip Lane’s proposal that the pace of PEPP purchases over the next quarter be ‘significantly higher’ than previously, on the grounds that financing conditions had tightened despite ‘the lack of a material improvement in the growth and inflation outlook.’

8 April 2021 Central Bank News