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The recent surge in rental growth to a record high has been widely reported, but the usual explanations are unsatisfactory. Population indicators don’t suggest a sudden rise in demand, and there is little evidence of landlords selling up. Instead, we …
16th November 2022
Even as Central London office vacancy rates rose to a 12-year peak in Q3, annual rental growth ticked-up to a three-year high. That marks a reversal from the situation prior to COVID-19, when a tight market failed to spark a strong rise in rents. But we …
15th November 2022
The eve of recession Euro-zone GDP growth slowed to just 0.2% q/q in Q3 and with all of the timelier surveys pointing downwards, the economy looks set to fall into recession in Q4. Nevertheless, surveys of firms’ hiring intentions suggest that the …
Resilience won’t last much longer The unexpected strength of euro-zone industrial production in September was largely due to the rebound in vehicles production and distortions affecting Ireland’s data. While vehicle output may continue to recover in the …
14th November 2022
US CPI number triggers euro-zone rally Euro-zone financial markets rallied yesterday after US inflation data for October came in lower than expected. Immediately after the data release, Bund yields fell by around 15bp and the euro and DAX rose by 2-3%. …
11th November 2022
Falls in Paris prime retail rents are set to continue into 2023 as weaker domestic and foreign spending weigh on tenant demand. And while the prospects for both are brighter for 2024, we think the high level of vacancy will ensure only a modest rebound in …
Underlying price pressures to remain very strong The rise in core inflation in Germany in October confirms that underlying price pressure in the country are still building. We expect the core rate to remain well above 2% throughout next year. Final HICP …
Commercial property valuations began to stabilise in Q3, as a large rise in property yields helped offset a further rise in alternative asset yields. And with the reversal of the “mini-Budget” meaning 10-year gilt yields have now likely peaked, a …
10th November 2022
We doubt the recent underperformance of UK high-yield corporate bonds relative to those in the euro-zone will continue given the relative outlooks for monetary policy and economic growth. Corporate bond yields in developed markets (DMs), as measured by …
Chief UK Economist Paul Dales and Jonas Goltermann, a senior economist from our Global Markets team, held a client briefing shortly after the Chancellor’s 17th November statement, to discuss his final policy choices and their implications for the UK …
Doves take control at the NBP Poland’s central bank (NBP) announced (very late by its usual standards) that it had left interest rates unchanged at 6.75% at today’s MPC meeting, confirming previous comments from policymakers that they believe the current …
9th November 2022
The ECB might start quantitative tightening next year but that’s not guaranteed, and even if it does so we doubt that it will make much of a dent in its government bond holdings. As a result, interest rates will remain the most important tool for …
Spanish office rental values are expected to be harder hit than the euro-zone average as the looming recession weighs on occupier demand and higher interest rates push up yields. However, at a market level, Barcelona is most exposed given its looser …
The latest activity indicators show that the economy contracted in October, and the forward-looking measures of new orders and expectations suggest that the downturn will get worse. We have pencilled in a contraction in GDP of 0.5% q/q for the fourth …
8th November 2022
In line with changes in our global economic view, we have made significant downgrades to our commercial real estate forecasts for the next couple of years. As a result, we now expect a much bigger drop in property values next year that will cause annual …
Rise in retail sales not a sign of things to come September’s increase in euro-zone retail sales is unlikely to be sustained. Falling real incomes and rock bottom consumer confidence suggest that household spending will fall sharply over the winter. …
German industry still set for a tough winter German industrial production rose significantly in September but we doubt this is a sign of things to come. With industry facing headwinds from high energy costs, rising interest rates and cooling demand, we …
7th November 2022
Despite energy price caps and direct support for households, we think euro-zone private consumption will fall further than most anticipate in the coming months, and we expect investment and exports to fall too. All told, the forthcoming recession is …
4th November 2022
NBP divided on the length of its tightening cycle The divergent views among policymakers at the National Bank of Poland (NBP) make it increasingly difficult to tell whether the central bank’s tightening cycle is coming to an end. We expect the NBP to …
While front-month European natural gas prices have fallen sharply as concerns have eased around shortages this winter, longer-dated futures haven’t fallen by as much. That reflects how difficult it will be to fill storage without Russian gas flows next …
ECB Governing Council members had a busy week, with just under half of them giving speeches or interviews on the outlook for monetary policy. There are four key takeaways from their comments. First, rates will rise further. All policymakers who spoke …
Falling inflation may keep SNB in check The reductions in headline and core inflation in Switzerland in October confirm that inflation has now passed its peak, and both measures look set to continue on a downward path next year. (See here . ) We don’t …
Improvement in headline index will not last long As was the case last month, an improvement in delivery times and subcontractor availability drove a surprise rise on the headline construction PMI in October. But a slowing economy and higher financing …
Recession looms while inflation stays exceptionally high The final euro-zone PMIs for October paint a clear picture of falling activity and sky-high inflation. We expect the ECB to prioritise the fight against inflation and press on with raising the …
The differing tones of the Fed, ECB and BoE at their recent meetings have seen yields rise in the US more than elsewhere and reignited the rally in the US dollar. That pattern could last a few more months. But we expect falling inflation in the US to mean …
3rd November 2022
Composite PMIs for Italy and Spain probably fell further in October (09.00 GMT) We think US non-farm payrolls rose by 225,000 in October (12.30 GMT) Sign-up to our Global Economics Drop-In on the upcoming recession Key Market Themes We’re inclined to …
The recent easing of global supply chain problems could put some downward pressure on euro-zone goods inflation soon. But equipment shortages are still a major problem for manufacturers, while their price expectations are high. And with the labour …
Construction activity set to slow as financing constraints bite The latest RICS Construction Survey showed a rise in workloads in Q3, although the gain was small. Looking ahead, a slowing economy and higher financing costs will soon lead to a cut in …
Labour market still strong but likely to soften from here The fall in the euro-zone unemployment rate to 6.6% in September shows that the labour market remained very tight even as the economy headed towards recession. We expect unemployment to rise in …
Today’s decision by the Norges Bank to slow the pace of rate hikes is the beginning of the end for its tightening cycle. But we don’t expect a pivot towards interest rate cuts next year. The Bank signalled at its last meeting that after raising its policy …
German prime office rental growth is expected to slow sharply next year as the economy experiences the deepest recession in the euro-zone. Even so, we don’t expect rental growth to underperform as the low level of vacancy means the German markets are in a …
2nd November 2022
Although the resignation of Liz Truss as Prime Minister leaves the UK without a leader when it faces huge economic, fiscal and financial market challenges, the markets appear to be relieved. The pound has climbed from $1.12 to $1.13 and 30-year gilt …
This dashboard gives a holistic overview of financial conditions across major developed economies. It presents our proprietary financial conditions indices (FCIs) as well as a selection of input variables used in our FCIs. Our FCIs indicate the ease with …
Russia’s decision to withdraw from the Black Sea Grain Initiative will exacerbate sky-high prices and tight global supply, and adds to the likelihood that prices hover around historical highs for the next few months. To recap, the Kremlin announced at the …
1st November 2022
House prices now falling as higher mortgage rates bite The jump in mortgage interest rates is now being felt in house prices, with Nationwide reporting the first month-on-month fall since July 2021. House prices are now set to stay on a sustained downward …
Economists from our UK Economics team held a briefing ahead of the MPC’s November meeting to discuss why we think that rates will rise further than most analysts are expecting and the conditions that would be needed for the Bank to shift to a slower pace …
31st October 2022
Approvals begin to fall as rising rates take effect Mortgage approvals fell in September as buyers began to adjust to rising interest rates. With further rate rises likely in the coming months, we expect this downward trend to continue and for lending to …
Households take caution as real spending power falls The increase in precautionary household saving in September and weakening demand for credit poses an extra downside risk to our forecast that the economy will contract by 2% during a recession. These …
Double-digit inflation will keep ECB hawkish The increase in euro-zone GDP in Q3 does not alter our view that the euro-zone is on the cusp of a recession. But with inflation having jumped to well over 10%, the ECB will prioritise price stability and press …
Investor caution to weigh on net lending Net lending to commercial property was positive in September but, looking through the monthly volatility, there is a clear downward trend in lending. With the economy entering a recession and property yields now …
Overview – The jump in market interest rates following the ill-advised “mini” budget has forced quoted mortgage rates up to over 5%, a level not seen since 2009. That will turn the slowdown in demand already evident in the survey data into a collapse, as …
The reports that the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, will unveil in his Autumn Statement on 17 th November a fiscal tightening of up to £50bn by 2026/27 (1.7% of GDP) suggest that after a period in which fiscal policy has provided the economy with support, it is …
28th October 2022
In general we think the data released this week are consistent with our three key calls on the euro-zone. The first is that the region is heading for a deeper recession than most anticipate. Our forecast is for a 1.8% decline in GDP in 2023 is below both …
Strong inflation prints will keep ECB in tightening mode Renewed inflation shockers in Germany, France and Italy in October pour cold water on expectations that the ECB’s softer tone on rate hikes yesterday will pave the way for a “pivot”. We continue to …
