ECB loses Jürgen Stark to surprise resignation

Martin Weale, an external member of the MPC (Monetary Policy Committee) of the Bank of England, has delivered a speech discussing the United Kingdom’s economic outlook, particularly regarding inflation and interest rates. Weale highlighted the potential dangers to the UK economy of the ongoing crisis in the EU, describing the sovereign debt crisis as a [...]

FOR almost eight years Jean-Claude Trichet has been the public face of the euro and a reassuring presence to steady nerves during the financial crisis of 2007-09 and the euro area’s sovereign-debt tribulations over the past year. But the French president of the European Central Bank (ECB) will step down at the end of October. A behind-the-scenes struggle between the 17 euro-area states over who will succeed him in the world’s second most important central-banking job burst into the open this week as the German front-runner ruled himself out as a candidate in surreal fashion.

European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet has said that its bond-buying programme has not been shelved, amid talk the ECB has attempted to calm fears of a debt crisis by buying Irish and Portuguese debt.

THE French president of the European Central Bank usually presides over his monthly press conference, which follows the monetary-policy meeting of the governing council, with an unruffled bonhomie. But today, in what will be his penultimate performance—he steps down at the end of October after eight years in the job—Jean-Claude Trichet made an impassioned defence of the bank’s record. 

 THE FRENCH president of the European Central Bank usually presides over his monthly press conference, which follows the monetary-policy meeting of the governing council, with an unruffled bonhomie. But today, in what will be his penultimate performance—he steps down at the end of October after eight years in the job—Jean-Claude Trichet made an impassioned defence of the bank’s record.