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Treasury unveils Secretary Lew's improved signature for nation's currency

The Canadian PressJune 18, 2013 15:02

WASHINGTON - Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew won't win any prizes in penmanship, but his official signature which will go on the nation's currency is at least a slight improvement over the loopy scrawl he had a few months ago. The Treasury Department unveiled the new signature on Tuesday. It takes the Bureau of Engraving and Printing about 18 weeks to put new engraving plates into production. That means Lew's signature will not show up on the various currency denominations until sometime this fall.

Factbox: Likely candidates to replace Bernanke at Fed in 2014

Thomson ReutersJune 18, 2013 12:04

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama hinted in a television interview on Monday that U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke would step down when his second term expires on January 31. Obama told Charlie Rose, host of a PBS interview program, that Bernanke was like longtime FBI Director Robert Mueller, who agreed to stay two years longer in the job than he had planned and is to leave in the coming months.

ECB chief defends controversial bond purchase scheme

Agence France-PresseJune 10, 2013 15:35

European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi defended one of his key anti-crisis measures on Monday, saying it did not overstep the bank's mandate. Speaking on German television a day before Germany's highest court was scheduled to examine the controversial OMT bond purchase programme, Draghi rejected concerns that the scheme was effectively a way of printing money to pay for government debts. "It will only come into action if confidence in the euro fails, not to finance states," Draghi told ZDF public television.

Five criteria Obama may weigh in seeking Bernanke successor

Thomson ReutersJune 7, 2013 05:21

By Alister Bull and Jeff Mason and Mark Felsenthal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In the summer of 2009, with the U.S. economy badly wounded and the nation's financial calamity still a vivid memory, President Barack Obama's closest aides began a vital discussion about who he should nominate to run the Federal Reserve.

Factbox: Likely candidates to replace Bernanke at Fed in 2014

Thomson ReutersJune 7, 2013 05:20

(Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is widely expected to step down when his second term at the helm of the U.S. central bank expires on January 31, 2014. If history is any guide, President Barack Obama will pick a candidate to succeed the one-time Princeton University professor sometime during the summer, allowing ample time for the Senate to consider the nominee before a final confirming vote. Here is a quick look at the likely leading choices: JANET YELLEN

ECB's Draghi defends offer to purchase government bonds ahead of German court hearing

The Canadian PressJune 2, 2013 23:16

FRANKFURT - European Central Bank head Mario Draghi is defending a central bank program that has been credited with calming market turmoil over the continent's debt crisis, ahead of closely watched hearings in a court challenge to the program next week. In the text of a speech to a conference in Shanghai, China, Draghi on Monday rejected criticism of the bank's program to purchase government bonds, saying it had defused fears the eurozone might break up.

Draghi says high debt countries must not row back on budget goals

Thomson ReutersMay 8, 2013 18:33

ROME (Reuters) - The euro zone must keep control of its public finances and high debt countries in particular must not reverse budget reforms, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on Monday. In a speech delivered in Rome, Draghi addressed growing concern among governments and policymakers at the social strains appearing in many countries as efforts to contain the bloc's sovereign debt crisis crush economic growth. But he said there could be no prospect of sustainable growth without sound public finances.

Draghi says ECB ready to act as economy weakens

Thomson ReutersMay 8, 2013 18:05

By James Mackenzie and Gavin Jones ROME (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Mario Draghi departed from a prepared speech on Monday to reiterate the central bank's readiness to cut interest rates again if the euro zone economy deteriorates further. The euro hit session lows against the dollar and the yen after Draghi said in Rome the ECB would monitor incoming data closely and would be ready to cut rates further, including the deposit rate currently at zero. "We stand ready to act again," Draghi said.

ECB policymakers play down prospect of deposit rate cut

Thomson ReutersMay 8, 2013 17:28

By Michael Winfrey and Jan Lopatka BRATISLAVA (Reuters) - European Central Bank policymakers played down on Friday prospects of the bank cutting its deposit rate below zero any time soon, saying it was just one of several possible treatments for the sickly euro zone economy. ECB President Mario Draghi said on Thursday the ECB was "technically ready" to shift the deposit rate into negative territory, meaning it would start charging lenders for holding their money overnight - a thorny issue for already strained financial markets.

ECB seeks way to unblock credit to SMEs

Agence France-PresseMay 2, 2013 11:30

The European Central Bank said Thursday it is seeking ways to get credit flowing to small and medium-sized companies in the countries worst hit by the debt crisis. ECB chief Mario Draghi said the bank has decided to consult "other European institutions on initiatives to promote a functioning market for asset-backed securities collateralised by loans to non-financial corporations." ECB watchers and analysts see the European Investment Bank as playing a key role.