Fritz Zurbrügg: A snapshot of the financial situation in Switzerland Introductory remarks by Mr Fritz Zurbrügg, Member of the Governing Board of the Swiss National Bank, at the media news conference of the Swiss National Bank, Berne, 20 June 2013. *  *  *  I will begin today with the situation on the financial markets. Then I will address the management of our currency reserves, before moving on to trends in the money market, as well as the current discussion regarding reference interest rates. Finally, I will say a few words on the future of the repo market infrastructure in Switzerland. Developments on the financial markets In December, at the last news conference, I remarked on an easing of tensions on the financial markets. This easing largely continued in the first half of 2013. The government bonds of the European peripheral countries, in particular, benefited from the greater trust of investors, with Ireland and Portugal raising funds via long-term bonds on the capital market for the first time since 2010 and 2011, respectively. The buoyant mood on the financial markets was also demonstrated on the advanced economies’ stock markets. In May, there were new historical highs in the US, the UK and Switzerland. Investors’ risk appetite was encouraged not least by the very expansionary monetary policy around the world. Various central banks, including the European Central Bank (ECB), again reduced their key interest rates early this year. The prospect of low yields on bond markets induced many investors to increase their equity investments.
Lars Heikensten: Thoughts on how to develop the Riksbank’s monetary policy work Speech by Mr Lars Heikensten, Governor of the Sveriges Riksbank, at the Swedish Economics Association, Stockholm, 22 February 2005. *  *  *  Introduction Allow me to begin by thanking you for the invitation to once again visit the Economics Association and speak about monetary policy. Since I was here a year ago there has been a relatively lively debate, by Swedish standards, on monetary policy. Some commentators have focused on the currently low inflation rate, but what has really added fuel to the debate is the rise in unemployment that has occurred despite record-low interest rates and strong growth. Other participants have centred on the low interest rates, voicing concerns over their implications for credit growth, household debt and the housing market. I don’t intend to enter into this discussion today, however. Instead, I would like to take advantage of the opportunity to have a more fundamental discussion about the Riksbank’s monetary policy framework, its monetary policy analysis and the possibilities to improve the material underpinning our decisions. I shall describe the changes that we are planning to make to our methods. At the same time I should stress that it is not a question of changing the Bank’s monetary policy strategy.