Monetary Review

Recent Economic and Monetary Trends

Agreement on New Capital-Adequacy Rules in the EU

Domestic Market-Determined Inflation
Bo William Hansen and Dan Knudsen, Economics
The calculation of Danmarks Nationalbank's measure of domestic market-determined inflation (IMI) is described and updated. IMI reflects the development in the market-determined Danish prices for goods and services and can be perceived as an expression of underlying inflation in Denmark .

Sea Freight and the Danish Economy
Niels C. Beier and Erik Haller Pedersen, Economics
Danish shipping increasingly contributes to the current-account surplus. Sea freight exports have more than doubled in less than ten years. This article outlines the sector and its significance to the Danish economy.

Why Are Long-Term US Yields Low?
Allan Bødskov Andersen, Financial Markets, John Hydeskov, Market Operations and Michael Sand, Economics
Since June 2004 the Fed Funds target rate has increased significantly, but nonetheless long-term yields have remained low. This article reviews four explanatory factors: greater stability in inflation rates, globalisation effects, low investments and increased demand for long-term bonds from pension companies and Asian central banks.

Retail Interest Rates in Denmark and the Euro Area
Sabina Persson, Statistics
There are substantial differences between retail interest rates in the various EU member states. A substantial part of the variation is attributable to different financial structures, product characteristics and national regulation. Interest rates differ the most in the household sector, where the barriers to cross-border lending activities are greatest.

Expert Forecasts of Bond Yields and Exchange Rates
Jacob Stæhr Mose, Market Operations
Consensus forecasts, based on an average of forecasts by many experts, are often used as a measure of the market participants' expectations of future economic and financial developments. For selected yields and exchange rates the consensus forecasts have, on average, not been more accurate than the naïve alternative that the level of these yields and exchange rates would remain unchanged.

P oland – the EU's Large New Member State
Niels Peter Hahnemann, Economics
The Polish economy has developed rapidly in the last 15 years. Poland has had a relatively difficult starting point. A number of structural economic problems have been ignored, and in some respects the macroeconomy is faring worse than in several of the other new EU member states, which have seen equivalent economic restructuring. This article deals with some of the problems affecting the Polish economy.

The Winding-Up of Varde Bank
Niels C. Andersen, Legal Affairs and Jens Dalsgaard, Statistics
In the early 1990s the financial problems experienced by Varde Bank reached a point where a winding-up solution for the bank had to be established. For all practical purposes, the winding-up has now been completed. This article sums up the case and describes the background to Varde Bank's problems and the motives and considerations behind the winding-up solution chosen. In addition, the article focuses on some of the problems that arose during the process.

Memorandum of Understanding between Danmarks Nationalbank and the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority of 11 October 2005

Press Releases

Tables and Graphs Section

Vol. XLIV, No. 4