European Central Bank
TOPIC
 / company

European Central Bank

European Central Bank
European Central Bank
The European Central Bank was established by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1998 and is headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. The objective of the bank is to maintain price stability within the euro zone.
A goldsmith examines ornaments at the Hua Seng Heng gold shop in Bangkok on June 23. Thailand’s gold prices continue to surge, rising in line with the global market following US air strikes on Iran amid the Israel-Iran conflict, according to The Gold Traders Association. Photo: EPA-EFE
Central banks

Macroscope | Central banks rush to gold as fears of US dollar crisis mount

Central bank gold holdings are now back to where they were in the 1960s, before gold went out of official fashion.

videocam
Yuan

China’s yuan fixing rate hits 2-month high as US dollar drops

videocam
US-China trade war

Will US dollar doubts, risk of ‘triple whammy’ give rise to yuan’s renaissance?

videocam
6
China-EU relations

EU to impose US$2.25 fee on cheap parcels, mostly from China

The move is meant to help the bloc deal with an influx of billions of inexpensive imports via platforms like Shein and Temu.

videocam
6
The fee would remove the customs-free status of cheap packages imported directly to consumers, often via platforms like Temu and Shein. Photo illustration: EPA-EFE
Electric & new energy vehicles

Exclusive | Stellantis, Leapmotor near decision on European production

Leapmotor says production costs likely to rise by 10 per cent compared with former Poland plant, but has no plans to raise prices.

Banking & finance

Moody’s downgrade, US debt fears revive mini ‘sell America’ trade

Rating downgrade risks reinforcing Wall Street’s growing worries over the US sovereign bond market.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Central banks

Fed’s Powell is about to defy Trump and hold rates steady

With their eye on inflation, officials are inclined to hold rates steady when they meet in Washington, defying Trump’s pressure to cut interest rates.

US President Donald Trump looked on as Jerome Powell, his nominee to become chairman of the US Federal Reserve, spoke at the White House on November 2, 2017. Photo: Reuters.
European Union

ECB cuts interest rates for 7th time in a row amid global trade tension

The cut was widely expected by analysts given the sudden shadow cast by Trump’s April 2 announcement of unexpectedly high tariffs.

videocam
Donald Trump

Trump slams US Fed chair Powell, urges ‘termination’ for slowness

It was not immediately clear if Trump was referring to the scheduled end of Powell’s term, or if Trump was seeking to remove Powell as chair.

videocam
7
European Union

EU finance chief casts doubt on new UK clearing deadline

The comments came days before the EU announced it adopted a decision to extend an exemption to July 2028 that grants UK clearing access.

A Union flag flies near Big Ben in London, on Friday. Photo: AP
United States

Opinion | With Trump 2.0, it will be every country for itself

Given Trump’s policy direction, the only conclusion for realists is that self-strengthening must be the main thrust in a fragmenting world order.

videocam
5
Donald Trump at an election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Centre on November 6 in Florida. Photo: AP
China-EU relations

Defend euro as China, Russia push for alternative currency: Europe’s bank chief

Next US leader also urged to weigh negative impacts of American and EU trade ‘restrictions and barriers’ on economic growth and inflation.

videocam
10
International Monetary Fund (IMF)

As global debt nears US$100 trillion, IMF urges action

International Monetary Fund economists warn that failure to address rising debt could lead to ‘significant spillovers’ for the world economy.

8
China-EU relations

EU must tackle China, US threats without being protectionist: Draghi

Italian prime minister delivered the strong message just weeks after warning in a report that Europe faced ‘existential’ challenges.

8
Mario Draghi, former Italian prime minister. Photo: EPA-EFE
Banking & finance

Macroscope | Can central banks really prevent a repeat of the Great Depression?

As we wrestle with challenges similar to those before the 1920s slump, let’s not rely on central bankers to save us from economic calamity.

US dollar and Chinese yuan banknotes are seen in this illustration taken on January 30, 2023. Photo: Reuters
Interest rates

July’s inflation blip will do little to derail US Fed’s September rate cut

The recent easing of price pressures has bolstered Fed officials’ confidence that they can start to lower borrowing costs while refocusing their attention on the labour market.

Banking & finance

Open Questions | 3 mega economic trends for China and the world, EU economist says

European economist Rolf Strauch touches on climate change, demographic, geoeconomic fragmentation and financial challenges for the global economy.

videocam
17
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Banking & finance

HKMA to join European test of cross-border payments on tokenised assets

An agreement with France’s central bank will make HKMA the first non-European participant in tests of the European Central Bank’s Eurosystem, which is exploring cross-border money transfer and settlement for tokenised assets.

A photograph taken on December 6, 2022, shows a pedestrian walking past the main entrance of the Banque de France building in Paris. Photo: AFP
International Property

Europe’s distressed properties favoured by global funds, Japan buyers: Patron

Distressed properties in Europe are presenting opportunistic gains for global investors because of supply and demand imbalances and pressure from high borrowing costs, UK-based Patron Capital Partners says.

videocam
Banking & finance

The View | Why the IMF must give China and other emerging economies a greater say

The US, Europe and Japan will not gladly sacrifice their IMF quotas to give China and others more voting rights. But a failure to reform the organisation will worsen rifts and weaken its ability to deal with looming global crises.

videocam
China economy

China’s central bank ‘cautious’ in bond trade, even with mandate from Xi

Even after President Xi Jinping has asked for China’s central bank to trade government bonds, the outcome is likely to remain limited as the bank does not want to trigger negative outcomes for inflation and exchange rates.

videocam
The People’s Bank of China, the country’s central bank, is expected to take a modest approach to trading in the government bond market. Photo: AP
Interest rates

Fed’s decision this week could be the prelude to a rate cut in March

Any signal Fed’s Chair Jerome Powell may choose to send is of critical importance. It all comes down to how Powell and his colleagues have been reading the recent spate of economic data.

Traders worked while a screen showed US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s news conference after the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rates announcement, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on October 30, 2019. Photo: Reuters.
United States

Macroscope | US Fed must watch its step as recession risks loom

High interest rates will weigh on growth momentum, as the UK and EU economies are finding out. The inflation fight is not over, but the danger now is overcorrection – one wrong move by the Fed could tip the US economy into recession.

International Property

German developers’ rising insolvency threatens nation’s housing sector

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to meet leading players in the property sector for talks as he seeks to jump-start construction. The crisis could snowball into a social disaster if the building slowdown crashes into the rental market.

International Property

Hong Kong home prices to reverse direction as rates have likely peaked: analyst

An imminent decline in global interest rates should boost housing markets, but any improvement in Hong Kong could be delayed until there is a broader recovery in the local and wider Chinese economies, Knight Frank’s Liam Bailey says.

12
A residential project takes shape in Kai Tak, Hong Kong. The city’s housing market has cooled due to rising interest rates. Photo: Xiaomei Chen
Global monetary policy

Macroscope | US Fed still in search of sweet spot on interest rates

While it’s not possible to rule out another US rate rise this year, the Fed looks to be entering a holding pattern. A resilient US economy together with the gradual labour market adjustment means inflation is falling slowly, which will keep rates higher for longer.

From the left, European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde, Bank of Japan governor Kazuo Ueda and US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell admire the view at the Jackson Hole economic symposium in Moran, Wyoming, on August 25. Photo: Bloomberg
Central banks

Macroscope | Central banks face tough choice between high inflation and market turmoil

Raising interest rates high enough to end rising inflation was the easy part for central banks, but now they must get it to start going back down. The lag inherent in monetary policy means it is hard to know whether central banks have done too much.

Banking & finance

Macroscope | Despite Fed pause, US and Europe rates likely to stay higher for longer

The ECB has raised rates while the Fed has paused its increases, but both central banks remain focused on taming inflation. Risks remain, however, and a too-aggressive Fed or fresh regional bank turmoil could trigger a US recession.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement