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This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. In the mildest of mild recessions, but recovery is in sight The news that the UK slipped into technical recession in 2023, will be a blow for the Prime Minister on a day when he …
15th February 2024
Inflation pressures unlikely to prompt another hike The stabilisation in Russian inflation in January, at 7.4% y/y, should provide cover for the central bank to leave its policy rate unchanged at 16.00% at its meeting on Friday, rather than continue the …
14th February 2024
We survey 12 major advanced economy housing markets to understand why house price falls have been small despite high starting points and sharp increases in mortgage rates. We then use this information to ascertain whether the correction in house prices is …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Economy to remain weak, strong labour market performance likely to end Data released this morning confirm that the euro-zone economy stagnated in Q4 and we expect this to …
At a standstill at the end of 2023 Q4 GDP figures out of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) showed that the region ended last year on a weak note, but the outlook for 2024 looks brighter. While soft external demand is likely to remain a drag on growth over …
Soft surprise supports our view that inflation will fall below 2.0% in April By staying at 4.0% in January rather than rising as widely expected (BoE 4.1%, CE 4.1%, consensus 4.2%), January’s UK CPI inflation figures are better than expected and do not …
We will be discussing whether the next government will move the dial on the economy in a 20-minute online briefing at 3pm GMT on Wednesday 13th March. (Register here .) The next general election won’t be as pivotal for the economy or the markets as the …
13th February 2024
Above-target inflation to keep NBR in a hawkish mood The National Bank of Romania (NBR) left its policy rate on hold at 7.00% again today and, while interest rate cuts are likely to start around mid-year, we think that monetary easing will be less …
Chairman Thomas Jordan’s recent comments about the franc raise questions over whether the SNB might use FX interventions to loosen monetary conditions. But we think policymakers will use the policy rate as the main tool to achieve price stability, and …
Sharp fall in Swiss inflation reinforces our view that rates will be cut in March The large decrease in headline inflation in Switzerland in January means the inflation rate looks sure to undershoot the SNB’s Q1 forecast of 1.8%. Along with the fall in …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Wage growth easing a bit slower While wage growth fell further in December, evidence that the labour market may not be loosening much suggests wage growth may not fall as fast as …
A robust labour market will support Spanish office occupier demand to a greater extent than elsewhere in the euro-zone in the next few years. As a result, we think prime office rent growth will outperform the rest of the region. However, upgrades to the …
12th February 2024
Is euro adoption the path forward for Czechia? The Czech government’s debate on adopting the euro reignited at the start of this year and took another step forward this week, although we think that the potential benefits of joining the single currency …
9th February 2024
A lot of data is being released next week and it might not be a good look for the UK economy. The release of January’s CPI inflation figures on Wednesday may reveal a second rise in as many months, from 4.0% in December to 4.1%. Within that, both core and …
This week, ECB policymakers again pushed back against the prospect of an imminent rate cut, with Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel saying that policymakers “must be patient and cautious”. Ms Schnabel’s main concern was that more clarity is needed on …
The surge in labour costs across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in recent years has led to a sharp loss of competitiveness and raised concern about the impact on the region. We remain relatively optimistic on the medium-term outlook and still think that …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Further easing in core inflation sets up Q2 rate cut January’s continued fall in core inflation in Norway, and renewed fall in the headline rate, support our view that price …
CNB steps up its easing cycle The Czech National Bank (CNB) accelerated the pace of its monetary easing cycle today with a 50bp interest rate cut, to 6.25%, and the post-meeting communications support our view that an even larger interest rate cut is on …
8th February 2024
The euro-zone will remain close to recession in the first half of the year as the effects of higher interest rates continue to weigh on household consumption and investment, and fiscal policy is tightened. Headline inflation will be close to the ECB’s 2% …
Governor Karahan committed to tight policy, rate cuts some way off The communications from new Turkish central bank governor Karahan at today’s Inflation Report briefing will have helped to reassure investors that the change at the helm of the central …
Economy rebounds strongly following war and sanctions shock Russia’s economy expanded by 3.6% over 2023 as a whole, marking a sharp rebound from a contraction of just 1.2% in 2022 (revised from 2.1%). The activity data for December suggest that the …
7th February 2024
Are European and UK commercial real estate markets facing the same level of distress as the US? We held a Property Drop-In on Wednesday, 14th February , A recording of the session can be viewed here . Falling interest rates will not prevent a rise in …
Rates on hold, March rate cut is in the balance The National Bank of Poland (NBP) left interest rates on hold again today, at 5.75%, and we think that an interest rate cut at the next meeting in March looks finely balanced. Our current assumption is that …
The faster-than-expected fall in wage growth in November suggests the unexpected rebound in CPI inflation in December will be fleeting. We still think that by April CPI inflation will have fallen below the 2.0% target, and further declines in utility …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Industrial recession continues The seventh consecutive monthly fall in German industrial output in December confirms that industry remains a significant drag on growth. We expect …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Construction PMIs start 2024 in contractionary territory The rise in the headline CIPS construction PMI from 46.8 in December to 48.8 in January was driven by improvements in …
6th February 2024
The news this morning that the unemployment rate is lower than previously thought increases the chances that interest rate cuts start a little later and are slower. After publishing experimental labour market data for the five months to November due to a …
5th February 2024
Given the rise in rents and the recent decline in mortgage rates, the financial benefit of buying over renting is increasing. This will boost buyer demand and cause tenant demand to soften this year. As housing is a necessity, households must either rent …
Euro-zone investment improved a little in Q4, but that did not prevent it experiencing its worst year in a decade. While we have raised our forecast for through-year growth, we still expect a weak start to 2024 and think that by historic standards it will …
Headline inflation picks up, all eyes on new governor Headline inflation edged up slightly in Turkey to 64.9% y/y in January, and the m/m figure – a 6.7% increase on the back of a large minimum wage hike – looked even worse. The figures highlight the …
If Jerome Powell dampened talk of a March rate cut on Wednesday then the January payrolls report on Friday stamped it out for good. In the latest episode of The Weekly Briefing from Capital Economics, Group Chief Economist Neil Shearing dives into the …
2nd February 2024
The Bank of England caused a lot of waves in the media and some ripples in the markets this week. But it hasn’t altered our thinking that lower inflation than the Bank of England expects will mean rates are cut from 5.25% to 5.00% in June and all the way …
EM Drop-In : We'll be discussing EM policy easing, debt risks and the outlook for bond yields in our monthly EM drop-in on Thursday 8th February . Register here . Ukraine aid deals ends a week of uncertainty Hungary dropped its veto against the EU’s …
Price hikes back on the menu Data released this week support the case of ECB policymakers who are concerned about the strength of domestic inflation. January’s European Commission business and consumer survey, released on Tuesday, suggested that selling …
At face value, the rebound in European equity REIT prices over recent months suggests that capital values could be nearing their trough. But the past relationship is weak and REITs have benefited from the stock market rally. We therefore don’t see the …
While leaving interest rates at 5.25% for the fourth meeting in a row today, the Bank of England sent a signal that the next move will be a cut, but it pushed back strongly against the idea that rates will be cut soon or far. Our forecast that inflation …
1st February 2024
Cuts may come earlier than the BoE implies While leaving interest rates at 5.25% for the fourth meeting in a row today, the Bank of England sent some soft signals that the next move will be a cut, but it pushed back more strongly against the idea that …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Inflation falling but services disinflation stalls January’s euro-zone inflation data were a little stronger than we had expected after the data for Germany and France were …
The Riksbank signalled unequivocally in today’s policy statement that interest rates may be cut sooner than they previously anticipated. While a March rate cut is possible, particularly if the January and February inflation data come in below …
CEE industry still struggling, input prices diverge in Turkey and Russia The manufacturing PMIs out of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) for January remained soft and haven’t changed the broad picture that the region’s industrial sectors continue to …
Riksbank on track for May rate cut The Rikbsank signalled in today’s policy statement that interest rates may be cut sooner than they previously anticipated, supporting our view that the first cut is likley to be in May. The decision to leave the key …
Carbon pricing in the news Amid a flurry of news and action in carbon markets in recent months, this note examines the details and implications of developments around the world, starting in the EU. The EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is the world’s …
31st January 2024
Inflation continued to fall sharply across Central and Eastern Europe at the end of 2023, but we think that the disinflation process is entering a more difficult phase in 2024 as demand is beginning to recover. While monetary easing cycles are likely to …
The drop in inflation across advanced economies has caused real interest rates to rise by even more than nominal rates. While there are various ways to measure real interest rates, they all confirm that policy is now in very restrictive territory, …
Soft annual figure suggests weak end to 2023 The weaker-than-expected 0.2% expansion in Polish GDP over 2023 as a whole suggests that the economy struggled at the end of the year. We think this weakness will prove temporary and that activity should …
Larger-than-expected increase supports our above-consensus forecast The larger than expected +0.7% m/m gain in house prices in January (consensus: +0.1%, Capital Economics: +0.4%) reflected improving public sentiment about the economy and the housing …
Our forecast that CPI inflation will fall below 1.0% later this year suggests that Bank Rate will be cut from 5.25% now to 3.00% rather than the low of 3.50-3.75% priced into the market, 10-year gilt yields will decline from 3.90% now to around 3.25% by …
30th January 2024
MNB errs on the side of caution The Hungarian central bank’s (MNB’s) communications following its meeting today confirm that the decision not to accelerate the pace of its easing cycle was due to the recent ratcheting up of tensions between the government …
January’s European Commission business and consumer survey, released this morning, supports our view that the euro-zone economy will stagnate in Q1. But recent increases in services firms’ price expectations could prompt policymakers to wait a little …
