As expected, Swiss National Bank policy-makers have retained a 0.0 – 0.75% target range for three-month Swiss LIBOR with a point estimate of 0.25%.  These have been the rate parameters since March 12, 2009 following cuts of 25 basis points in October 2008, 50 bps on November 6, 2008, 100 bps on November 20, 50 [...]

The key repo rate and reverse repo rate, which moves in lockstep with the repo and lies 100 basis points below such, were raised by 25 basis points today.  Reserve requirements were not changed and remain at 6.0%.  The repo rate now becomes 7.5%.  The previous rate hike was made on May 3.  This was [...]

Could Greece be another Lehman Brothers collapse?  That’s the central theme of international markets where stocks, commodities, and sovereign debt yields are tumbling.  Protesting Greeks in the streets have compelled Prime Minister Papandreou, an Amherst grad, to form a new cabinet and seek a vote of confidence from parliament in further austerity that will be [...]

Iceland’s central bank, Sedlabanki, left its interest rates unchanged including a 4.25% seven-day lending charge.  The statement posted today on the central bank’s web site is more hawkish than the prior one of April 20.  Gone is a sense of agnosticism about the direction of the next policy change.  If indeed the next move is [...]

The Central Bank of Chile late Tuesday implemented the twelfth rate hike of the current tightening cycle but, as expected, cut the size of the move to 25 basis points from increases of 50 bps undertaken in March, April, and May.  The 5.25% new overnight rate level lies 475 basis points above the 0.5% cyclical [...]

U.S. core consumer price inflation, which excludes food and energy, was still fairly tame at 1.5% in the year to May.  Such was more than double the low of 0.6% in the year to October 2010 but below the 1.8% rate of increase in the year to May 2009, which encompassed the severest part of [...]