UK Economics Update Export woes not just a Brexit story Brexit is undoubtedly a factor behind the slower post-pandemic recovery in UK exports relative to elsewhere. But doesn’t appear to be the sole reason. Instead, pandemic effects may explain at least... 24th November 2021 · 3 mins read
UK Markets Markets mistaken on speed of rate hikes Although the economic backdrop has recently become less favourable for UK asset prices, we expect that the economic recovery will regain some vigour in the second half of next year, that CPI inflation... 22nd November 2021 · 12 mins read
UK Economics Retail Sales (Oct.) The rebound in retail sales in October adds to the evidence that activity held up well in October and will raise expectations that the Bank of England will hike interest rates from 0.10% to 0.25% in... 19th November 2021 · 2 mins read
UK Economics Inflation on the launchpad We’ve been warning for a while that CPI inflation would rise further than most people expect and have recently pushed our own forecast even higher. We now think CPI inflation will rise from 3.1% in... 10th November 2021 · 9 mins read
UK Economics Budget October 2021 – OBR delivers for Sunak This Budget was perhaps more notable for what the Chancellor didn’t do rather than what he did. The OBR handed Rishi Sunak a significant upgrade to its forecasts for the public finances but, while the... 27th October 2021 · 14 mins read
UK Markets Chart Pack Investors overestimating interest rate hikes The extent of the shift in investors’ expectations of interest rates over the past month has been staggering. Investors are now pricing in an 80% chance of a hike to Bank Rate, from 0.10% to 0.25%, at... 22nd October 2021 · 8 mins read
UK Economics A taste of stagflation The UK economy is experiencing a taste of stagflation. This won’t be anywhere near as severe or as persistent as in the 1970s. But for the next six months, the worsening product and labour shortages... 19th October 2021 · 27 mins read
UK Economics How would the economy cope with electricity shortages? There is an outside risk that the UK could face some limited short-term rationing of electricity this winter if weather conditions were to be unfavourable. This risk isn’t yet significant enough to... 18th October 2021 · 5 mins read
UK Economics High utility prices and tax rises a heavy hit to households The double whammy of higher utility prices and the government’s new “health and social care levy” will reduce real household disposable incomes over the next year or so by £16.5bn, or 0.6% of GDP... 28th September 2021 · 4 mins read
UK Markets Chart Pack Worrying more about higher inflation The recent rises in 2-year and 10-year gilt yields to their highest levels since the “dash for cash” at the start of the pandemic have entirely been driven by the investors revising up their... 21st September 2021 · 9 mins read
UK Economics Shortages stifling activity and boosting inflation The broadening of the recent product and labour shortages appears to be holding back activity and adding to the upward pressure on inflation. The risk is twofold. First, these shortages may prevent... 9th September 2021 · 8 mins read
Commodities Commodity prices on increasingly shaky ground After sharp falls in the middle of the month, most commodity prices ended August broadly flat. However, we doubt it will be long before the downward pressure on prices intensifies again. After all... 3rd September 2021 · 11 mins read
Commodities Weekly Looking for direction There wasn’t a clear direction in commodity markets this week, with most prices driven by commodity-specific factors. Natural gas and coal prices continued to surge, while the prices of some... 3rd September 2021 · 6 mins read
Commodities Weekly Dollar depreciation unlikely to last There was a dramatic turnaround in the fortunes of commodities prices this week, with across-the-board gains as risk appetite picked up and the US dollar eased back. Fed Chair, Jerome Powell, was... 27th August 2021 · 6 mins read
Commodities Weekly Delta to continue to weigh on prices Commodity prices mostly fell this week on the back of a stronger US dollar as well as mounting concerns over the demand outlook. China’s July activity and spending data, published on Monday, were... 20th August 2021 · 5 mins read
Commodities Weekly Alarming UN report could spark more green spending The UN’s latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report warned that ever-increasing greenhouse gas emissions are a ‘code red for humanity’, which could give further momentum to the... 13th August 2021 · 6 mins read
