Global ETF News Older than One Year
IFC Becomes Largest Issuer of London-Listed Renminbi Bonds, Supporting Internationalization of Chinese Currency
September 17, 2014--IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, today became the largest issuer of renminbi-denominated bonds on the London Stock Exchange, issuing bonds totaling 1 billion yuan (equivalent to about $163 million) to increase foreign investment in China and support the internationalization of the Chinese currency.
The five-year issuance marks the second time IFC has issued a benchmark-sized renminbi bond this year. The bond is also the longest-dated renminbi bond by a triple-A rated issuer on the exchange. In all, IFC has issued about 4.25 billion yuan in renminbi-denominated bonds in London.
Source: World Bank
How much does pollution cost?
September 17, 2014--How much do the emissions coming from your car's exhaust pipe cost in terms of damage to the environment? What about the gases that factories emit? Smog can be seen-and felt-in places like Beijing and Mexico City, in other words, it is tangible. But it is difficult to measure and calculate in monetary terms the damage done to the planet, nature and people by greenhouse gases.
Nevertheless, scientists, governments, international institutions and non--governmental organizations are analyzing formulas (some of which already exist) to "charge for polluting," or "put a price on carbon." In other words, those who pollute the most must provide monetary compensation for the harm they do to the environment. The idea is to limit and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are responsible for global warming and climate change.
If emissions continue at the current pace, the average global temperatures will rise and seriously impact the environment, with more severe and frequent climate events affecting agriculture, among others.
Source: World Bank
IMF's 2014 Financial Access Survey Helps to Map Global Financial Inclusion
September 16, 2014--The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released today the results of the fifth annual Financial Access Survey (FAS),the most comprehensive global source of data on access to,and use of,basic consumer financial services by households and nonfinancial corporations. For the first time,the survey includes data on mobile money indicators. The 2014 FAS round was again conducted with financial support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of The Netherlands,while the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided funding to capture data on the use of mobile money services.
The FAS provides geographic and demographic data worldwide,offering a strong quantitative underpinning to the theoretical literature linking financial inclusion and economic growth. The positive correlation between the increase in the use of commercial banks services (a measure of financial inclusion) and the increase in GDP per capita (a measure of economic growth) is especially noteworthy when comparing financial inclusion trends. Among African countries reporting data on commercial bank depositors,for instance,depositors per 1,000 adults experienced a five-fold increase from 2004 to 2013,while simultaneously achieving a 40-percent growth in real GDP per capita.
Source: IMF
September 2014 Quarterly Review: Volatility stirs, markets unshaken
September 14, 2014--Volatility has settled back to exceptional lows after spiking briefly in early August. Risk premia remain compressed, as worries over geopolitical tensions had only a brief impact on financial markets against the backdrop of unusually accommodative monetary conditions.
International banking activity stopped contracting in the first quarter of 2014, when BIS reporting banks lifted their cross-border claims by $580 billion, the first significant uptick since 2011.
Corporate borrowers from emerging markets have lengthened their debt maturities. This reduces their rollover risk but also makes bond prices more sensitive to yield changes, thus shifting risks from borrowers to bondholders.
Global asset managers hold a significant share of emerging market stocks and bonds. Ken Miyajima and Ilhyock Shim (BIS) point to features of the asset management industry that could force funds to sell if prices fall, thus destabilising markets.
view more view the BIS Quarterly Review, September 2014
Source: BIS
UK government to issue the world's first non-Chinese sovereign offshore renminbi bond.
The government is taking these steps in recognition of the increasingly prominent role that renminbi is playing in the global economy and financial markets, including as a potential future reserve currency. The bond is intended to be a one-off issuance, with the benefit of contributing liquidity to the small but fast-growing renminbi offshore market and attracting other market players in both the private and official sectors.
Source: HM Treasury
Basel III monitoring results published by the Basel Committee
The results of previous exercises in this series were published in March 2014, September 2013, March 2013, September 2012 and April 2012.
A total of 227 banks participated in the current study, comprising 102 large internationally active banks ("Group 1 banks", defined as internationally active banks that have Tier 1 capital of more than €3 billion) and 125 Group 2 banks (ie representative of all other banks).
view the Basel III Monitoring Report
Source: BIS
OTC Derivatives Regulators Issue Report to the G20
The ODRG provided an update regarding two areas in which it is working to develop approaches to address cross-border issues: (i) potential gaps and duplications in the treatment of branches and affiliates; and (ii) treatment of organized trading platforms and implementation of the G20 trading commitment.
Source: CFTC.gov
IMF Working paper-Sovereign Debt Composition in Advanced Economies: A Historical Perspective
Notwithstanding data gaps, we are able to recover some broad common patterns. Episodes of large debt accumulation—essentially, large increases in debt supply- were typically absorbed by increases in short-term, foreign currency-denominated, and banking-system-held debt. However, this pattern did not hold during the debt build-ups starting in the 1980s and 1990s, which were compositionally skewed toward long-term local-currency debt. We attribute this change to higher structural demand for sovereign paper, linked to capital account liberalization in advanced economies, the emergence of a large contractual saving sector, and innovative sovereign debt products. With regard to debt consolidations, we find support for the financial repression-cum-inflation channel for post World War II debt reductions. However, the scope for a repeat of this strategy appears limited unless financial liberalization and globalization were materially rolled back or the current globally agreed monetary policy regime built around price stability abandoned. Neither are significant favorable structural demand shifts, as witnessed in the 1980s and 1990s, likely.
Source: IMF
IOSCO updates survey on commodity derivatives markets supervisory principles
Consistent with the 2012 review of implementation of the IOSCO's principles for commodity derivatives markets, the majority of respondents to IOSCO’s 2014 update were broadly compliant with the Principles. Where commodity derivative markets exist and market authorities were yet to be fully compliant, many of those market authorities had identified initiatives aimed at achieving full compliance over time.
Source: IOSCO
Climate Finance Is Flowing, but It Isn't Enough-Yet
That is barely half the volume considered necessary, but innovations in business and finance and bold policies are laying the foundations to scale it up. Climate change is expensive, and dealing with it will only grow costlier the longer countries, cities, and industries delay reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The good news is that money is flowing to solutions, and a growing number of leaders in government and business are taking action. The challenge is that the volume of finance isn’t enough-yet. view the Infographic: Getting Climate Finance Flowing
Source: World Bank
September 12, 2014--The government announced today (12 September), as part of the conclusion of the Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) with China, that it intends to issue the world's first non-Chinese sovereign offshore renminbi bond and the proceeds will be used to finance the UK government's reserves of foreign currency.
September 11, 2014--The Basel Committee today published the results of its latest Basel III monitoring exercise. The study is based on the rigorous reporting process set up by the Committee to periodically review the implications of the Basel III standards for banks.
September 10, 2014--The Over-the-Counter (OTC) Derivatives Regulators Group (ODRG),which is made up of authorities with responsibility for the regulation of OTC derivatives markets in Australia,Brazil,the European Union,Hong Kong,Japan,Ontario,Quebec,Singapore,Switzerland,and the United States,issued a report today that provides an update to the G20 on further progress in resolving OTC derivatives cross-border implementation issues and identifies a cross-border issue that may call for legislative change.
September 9, 2014--Summary: We examine how the composition of public debt, broken down by currency, maturity, holder profile and marketability, has responded to major debt accumulation and consolidation episodes during 1900-2011. Covering thirteen advanced economies, we focus on debt structure shifts that occurred around the two World Wars and global economic downturns, and the subsequent debt consolidations.
September 9, 2014--The International Organization of Securities Commissions today issued the Update to Survey on the Principles for the Regulation and Supervision of Commodity Derivatives Markets, which updates its 2012 review of the implementation of IOSCO's principles for commodity derivatives markets.
September 5, 2014--STORY HIGHLIGHTS
About US$359 billion a year has been flowing to and within countries to support low-carbon development and clean energy projects that can lower greenhouse gas emissions and increase resilience to the effects of climate change.
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