The paper reviews the policy response of major central banks during the 2007-08 financial market turbulence and suggests that there is scope for convergence among central bank operational frameworks through the adoption of those elements that proved most instrumental in calming markets. These...

The paper presents a methodology for measuring the clarity of central bank communication, illustrating it with the case of the European Central Bank (ECB) in 1999-2007. The analysis identifies the ECB's written communication as clear about 95 percent of instances, which is comparable to, or even...

As in other sectors, competition in finance matters for allocative, productive and dynamic efficiency. Theory suggests, however, that unfettered competition is not first best given the special features of finance. I review these analytics and describe how to assess the degree of competition in...

The paper assesses the degree of banking competition and efficiency in Italy?over time as well as compared to that in other countries, such as France, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The paper finds competition in the Italian banking sector has intensified in loan and...

Traditional bank competition policy seeks to balance efficiency with incentives to take risk. The main tools are rules guiding entry/exit and consolidation of banks. This paper seeks to refine this view in light of recent changes to financial services provision. Modern banking is largely...

Since EU accession, trade flows have exhibited strong dynamics in Central-Eastern Europe (CEE). During the period leading to the current global turmoil, the region has also experienced continuous exchange rate appreciation and rapid FDI inflows, both likely to have affected these countries'...

This study assesses the experience of the Common Monetary Area (CMA) based on available empirical evidence over the last two decades. It pays particular attention to member countries' adjustment to economic shocks in recent years and the inter-country linkages, including the spillover effects of...

Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. A LARGE DIVERSITY OF MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEES -- III. NORMATIVE ISSUES IN MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE DESIGN -- IV. PREFERENCE AGGREGATION IN MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEES -- V. BELIEF AGGREGATION IN MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEES -- VI. SUMMARY AND...

Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. A CROSS-SECTIONAL LOOK AT CENTRAL BANK ACCOUNTS -- III. SOURCES AND USES OF SEIGNIORAGE -- IV. WHAT DETERMINES CENTRAL BANKS' OPERATING EXPENDITURES? -- V. CONCLUSIONS -- SAMPLE COUNTRIES -- NOTATION -- VALUATION ADJUSTMENTS -- REFERENCES.