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Overview – Economies in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) ended last year in stagnation, but headwinds to growth are lifting and we think that 2024 will be a year of modest recovery. Inflation has fallen sharply in recent months but in some parts of the …
26th March 2024
Pace of easing slows, and will slow further before long The decision by the Hungarian central bank (MNB) to slow the pace of its easing cycle today, with a 75bp cut to its base rate (to 8.25%), will probably be followed by a further slowdown in the pace …
One of the key problems for countries with ageing populations is how to tackle the associated fiscal costs. Those countries which have a good record for structural reform and/or scope to raise taxes should be able to mitigate or absorb those costs. But …
Germany's economy is in “troubled waters” and doing “dramatically badly” – and those are just the assessments of its economy minister. But are the recessionary conditions in the euro-zone’s biggest economy merely a cyclical blip or signs of deeper …
14th March 2024
Has Tusk changed the tide in Poland? The 100 day milestone for Poland’s new government is marked today. From an economic perspective, we think there are three key points worth highlighting about how the outlook has and hasn’t changed. First, the release …
22nd March 2024
The Bank of England was never going to do anything except keep interest rates at 5.25% this week, but we and the financial markets were surprised that it took further steps in preparing the ground for the first interest rate cut. (See here .) As a result, …
Data released this week broadly support our view that the euro-zone economy will have stagnated in Q1. The Composite PMI rose a touch in March but remained consistent with GDP flatlining. And the ZEW painted a similar picture. Admittedly, we also learned …
Little change in language, possible easing from mid-2024 Russia’s central bank (CBR) left its key policy rate on hold, at 16.00%, for a second consecutive meeting as expected today and there were few notable changes in its press statement. The central …
Germany Ifo Survey (March 2024) Although the Ifo Business Climate Index rose quite sharply in March, much of the improvement was in the volatile expectations component and it remained at an exceptionally low level. We still think the economy is likely to …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Shoppers largely shrug off wet weather as retail rebound only paused Unchanged retail sales volumes in February (CE forecast 0.0% m/m, consensus -0.4% m/m), as shoppers largely …
This week’s flurry of central bank meeting points to growing confidence among policymakers in most major economies that inflation is on track back to target. That supports our view that long-term government bond yields will fall back a bit further this …
21st March 2024
Note: We will be discussing the outlook for European commercial real estate markets in a 20-minute online briefing at 10am BST on Wednesday 10th of April. (Register here .) Overview – Further near-term yield rises will push property values lower in the …
With the Bank of England striking a slightly more dovish tone whilst keeping interest rates at 5.25% and inflation likely to fall further and faster than the Bank expects, we still think a rate cut in June is possible and that rates will fall to 3.00% in …
Slight dovish tilt, and fast fall in inflation will make BoE more dovish before too long The Bank of England sprung no surprises, leaving interest rates at 5.25% for the fifth time in a row and, despite no MPC members no longer voting to raise interest …
Governor Karahan retakes the initiative Turkey’s central bank unexpectedly raised its key policy rate by 500bp at today’s meeting, to 50.00%, and its hawkish communications leave open the possibility of another rate hike in April. With the potential for a …
The SNB under Chairman Thomas Jordan has never shied away from making big calls, so it was fitting that it surprised markets with a 25bp rate cut today, to 1.5%, only three weeks after Mr Jordan announced he would leave his post in September. We expect …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Further signs of the UK economy having moved out of recession We’ll be discussing the outlook for Fed, ECB and Bank of England policy in a 20-minute online briefing at 3pm GMT …
Recovery strengthens Poland’s stronger-than-expected activity data for February suggest that loose fiscal policy and continued fast wage growth helped the economy to recover at the start of this year. We maintain our above-consensus GDP growth forecast of …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Stagnation continues, price pressures still high The flash PMIs for March suggest that the euro-zone economy is still flatlining, in line with our forecast. Meanwhile, the price …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Disappointing borrowing figures won’t stop the Chancellor unveiling more tax cuts Note: We’ll be discussing the outlook for Fed, ECB and Bank of England policy in a 20-minute …
This publication has been updated with additional analysis from the post-meeting press statement and press conference. CNB’s easing cycle has a lot further to run The Czech National Bank (CNB) cut its policy rate by 50bp again today, to 5.75%, and we …
20th March 2024
We think the Riksbank will leave its policy rate unchanged at 4.0% next week but cut it by 25bp at the following meeting, in May. Beyond that, our forecast is for rates to come down much faster than the Riksbank’s own forecasts imply but broadly in line …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. UK inflation to fall below 2% in April and the rates in the US and euro-zone We’ll be discussing the outlook for Fed, ECB and Bank of England policy in a 20-minute online …
The recent weakness of Germany’s economy is partly due to temporary factors which should ease this year. However, demographic and structural headwinds, partly driven by global fragmentation, mean the economy is likely to grow by little more than half a …
19th March 2024
Vladimir Putin secured a record victory in Russia’s presidential election over the weekend. The focus now will be on whether this emboldens Putin to devote more resources to the war effort, whether policymakers push through unpopular non-war fiscal …
18th March 2024
Pressure building in Turkey ahead of the election Pressures on Turkish policymakers are building ahead of the local elections on 31 st March as capital inflows have slowed and FX reserves are falling again. We doubt the central bank will hike interest …
15th March 2024
Overview – The euro-zone will remain close to recession until the second half of this year and the subsequent recovery is likely to be weak. Household real incomes will pick up only slowly and consumers will be cautious amid a softening labour market. …
January’s GDP figures received the most attention this week, mainly as they suggested the economy may have exited recession. (See here .) But while there was better news on demand, the same cannot be said for the supply-side of the economy. The rise in …
Overview – A slight rise in mortgage rates since the start of the year is likely to mean house prices stall in the near term. But our forecast that Bank Rate will be cut faster than most expect, to 3.00% by the end of 2025, suggests that further …
ECB postpones some big decisions After 15 months of waiting, this week the ECB finally published the outcome of its operational framework review. We set out the key points here . In the near term, the status quo will largely be maintained, with the …
Inflation in Switzerland has surprised most other forecasters, including the SNB, this year by falling to just 1.2% in February, which was the ninth month in a row that it has been below 2%. We think this will encourage the SNB to reduce the policy rate …
Interest rates unchanged at 5.25% and BoE to keep hawkish guidance But data not the guidance counts We think rates will fall to 3.00% in 2025 rather than to 4.00% as investors expect At the policy meeting on Thursday 21 st March, the Bank of England will …
Inflation in Norway has fallen more quickly than Norges Bank expected, so at next week’s meeting it is likely to signal that it will cut interest rates sooner than it previously expected, perhaps in Q3. And we think there’s a good chance that it will make …
The revival of prime retail rental growth in 2023 ended a three-year rental decline for the sector. This likely marks the end of retail’s rental woes and we have nudged up our prime rent forecast for this year, but we doubt there will be a return to the …
Sweden CPI (February) Rapid disinflation sets up May rate February's inflation data will strengthen policymakers' conviction that they can begin to cut interest rates in May. The fall the Riksbank’s target CPIF measure of inflation, which excludes the …
The ECB’s new operational framework for implementing monetary policy, announced this afternoon, was largely in line with our expectations and has no immediate implications for monetary policy. But it does mean that the Bank will maintain a portfolio of …
13th March 2024
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Inflation picks further, rates to stay high for some time The rise in Russian inflation to 7.7% y/y in February highlights that price pressures in the economy remain strong and …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Output to continue falling Euro-zone industrial production fell in January and is likely to continue contracting in the coming months due to weak demand. The 3.2% m/m decrease in …
Improved valuations suggest that the price correction in prime property is almost done. However, with little scope for bond yields in continental Europe to fall from here and property-to-bond yield spreads still narrow compared to the recent past, we …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. UK economy has probably already exited recession Note: We will be discussing whether the next government will move the dial on the economy in a 20-minute online briefing at 3pm …
The timeliest data support our long-held view that the euro-zone economy will remain close to recession in the first half of the year. Beyond that, we think growth will be much lower than the consensus or the ECB are forecasting. However, the labour …
12th March 2024
Turkey’s balance of payments figures for January showed that the current account deficit continued to narrow, but the drop in capital inflows in recent months is a concern and it appears that this forced the central bank to sell FX reserves. This adds to …
Productivity in the euro-zone has been falling for well over a year. We think this is largely because it was unsustainably high in mid-2022 as many companies struggled to fill vacancies. Since then, it has fallen to more manageable levels. The decline in …
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 .) We doubt the big rise in the minimum wage in April will prevent wage growth from …
11th March 2024
Further easing in core inflation sets up Q2 rate cut February’s inflation data from Norway strengthen our conviction that Norges Bank will cut interest rates much sooner than its forecasts suggest. The decline in headline inflation from 5.3% in January to …
June rate cut coming The main event this week was the ECB meeting on Thursday where the key message was that officials are getting closer to easing policy but want to see more evidence that wage growth and underlying inflation are moderating before …
8th March 2024
Setting the record straight on recent HUF weakness The dispute between the Hungarian central bank (MNB) and the government heated up further this week, which has fuelled a narrative that threats to central bank independence are responsible for the recent …
Much ink has been spilled on the Spring Budget this week. For our part, we discussed the macroeconomic and financial market implications in our UK Drop-In and in our UK Economics Focus . The main takeaway is that while the Chancellor was desperate to use …
German Industrial Production (January) January increase but activity still weak The rise in Germany industrial production in January reverses only a fraction of the previous falls and does not change our view that the sector will struggle this year. The …
