Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Economic clouds still hanging over Iceland The dust clouds may have cleared but economic gloom continues to hang over Iceland. While the economy returned to growth in Q1, conditions for consumers remain grim and large risks remain over plans... 8th June 2011 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update SNB interest rate hike not around the corner Despite growing domestic price pressures, the Swiss National Bank left its interest rate target at 0.25% at today’s meeting. While the Bank’s tone was a bit more upbeat than expected, the inflation... 17th March 2011 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish Riksbank becoming more hawkish As expected, the Swedish Riksbank responded to the economy’s ongoing robust revival by raising interest rates and revising up its interest rate forecast. Nonetheless, we still think that weaker than... 15th February 2011 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Iceland still faces major challenges The joke about the differences between Iceland and Ireland (one letter and about six months) might provide some encouragement to the latter in the light of recent signs that Iceland is turning the... 4th January 2011 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish Riksbank signals more rate hikes to come The Swedish Riksbank responded to the recent strong economic data by raising interest rates today for the fourth time since July. But while further rate hikes are inevitable, we expect monetary policy... 15th December 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish Riksbank hikes rates and signals more to come Despite the krona’s recent strength, the Swedish Riksbank raised interest rates for the third time in four months. Although further hikes are inevitable, we expect the pace of tightening to ease... 26th October 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish Riksbank continues to strike an upbeat tone The Swedish Riksbank’s decision to raise interest rates for a second meeting running reflects concerns that domestic imbalances may be building. Further hikes seem likely in the near term, but the... 2nd September 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish Riksbank begins monetary policy tightening The widely predicted interest rate hike by the Swedish Riksbank from 0.25% to 0.5% made it thesecond western European central bank to tighten interest rates during the current cycle. But withother... 1st July 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update SNB to scale back currency intervention The SNB’s hints that it will scale back its currency intervention suggest that the franc is set to appreciate more sharply and interbank interest rates should rise back towards the Bank’s target of 0... 17th June 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Weaker euro-zone to stem Swiss recovery Switzerland’s low levels of public and private sector debt suggest that it will continue to out-grow the euro-zone over the next couple of years. But it will suffer from strong trade links with the... 19th May 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Norges Bank strikes a more cautious tone With the Norwegian economic recovery beginning to look a little more fragile, the Norges Bank has begun to strike a more cautious tone. Although the Bank is likely to raise interest rates again later... 24th March 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update SNB may struggle to prevent further franc gains The Swiss National Bank’s assurance that it will intervene to prevent the franc from appreciating too much further is encouraging. But intervention now might not be as successful as in the recent past... 11th January 2010 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swiss National Bank’s exit will be very gradual By announcing an end to its corporate bond purchases, the Swiss National Bank has become the latest to start phasing out its unconventional policy support. But its downbeat forecasts for economic... 10th December 2009 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Finland on track for a pretty healthy recovery Finland has been hit particularly hard by the global economic downturn, faring almost as badly as Ireland. Nonetheless, the foundations are in place for a reasonably strong recovery, suggesting that... 8th December 2009 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Scandinavian housing market recovery unlikely to last The recent surge in Swedish and Norwegian property prices has fuelled concerns that both economies’ central banks may be forced to ratchet up interest rates in order to prevent housing market bubbles... 17th November 2009 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish Riksbank in no hurry to raise interest rates The Swedish Riksbank’s latest economic forecasts suggest that a tightening in monetary policy remains a long way off. This supports our view that interest rates are unlikely to rise as quickly or as... 22nd October 2009 · 1 min read
