Today, the European Commission decided to register a European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) entitled ‘Right to Cure'. The organisers of the ECI call on the Union ‘to put public health before private profit make anti-pandemic vaccines and treatments a global public good, freely accessible to everyone'. The ECI lists the following objectives: Ensure that intellectual property rights, including patents, do not hamper the accessibility or availability of any future COVID-19 vaccine or treatment; Ensure that EU legislation on data and market...

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In the midst of the current COVID-19 pandemic, policymakers around the world are undertaking fiscal stimulus—a combination of spending increases and tax reductions—to support their economies. Even before the present crisis, the importance of fiscal policy has been increasing, with monetary policy constrained by near-zero interest rates. Our new staff research finds that age also matters when considering fiscal stimulus. Specifically, we find that fiscal policy isn’t as effective in boosting growth in economies with older populations, compared to economies with younger...

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This questionnaire provides common template for gathering information about continuity of access to financial market infrastructures (FMIs) for firms in resolution. The template takes the form of a questionnaire that all FMIs are encouraged to complete. The responses to the questionnaire should be published or made available in other ways to firms that use the FMI services and their resolution authorities to inform their resolution planning. The use of a common questionnaire should reduce the “many to one” nature...

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Following its stress tests earlier this year, the Federal Reserve Board on Monday announced individual large bank capital requirements, which will be effective on October 1. Under its framework for large banks—those with more than $100 billion in total assets—capital requirements are in part determined by stress test results, which provide a risk-sensitive and forward-looking assessment of capital needs. The below table shows the total common equity tier 1, or CET1, capital requirements for each large bank, which is comprised...

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The Federal Reserve Board on Tuesday announced revised pricing for its Municipal Liquidity Facility (MLF). The revised pricing reduces the interest rate spread on tax-exempt notes for each credit rating category by 50 basis points and reduces the amount by which the interest rate for taxable notes is adjusted relative to tax-exempt notes. Today's changes will ensure the MLF continues to provide an effective backstop to assist U.S. states and local governments as they weather the pandemic. The MLF was established...

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Following a review under the recommendation on the gradual lifting of the temporary restrictions on non-essential travel into the EU, the Council updated the list of countries for which travel restrictions should be lifted. As stipulated in the Council recommendation, this list will continue to be reviewed regularly and, as the case may be, updated. Based on the criteria and conditions set out in the recommendation, as from 8 August member states should gradually lift the travel restrictions at the external...

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