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The Russia-Ukraine crisis poses a challenge for central banks in advanced economies as they weigh the upside risks to inflation against the downside risks to activity. For now, we suspect that the two are finely balanced and have not changed our forecasts …
22nd February 2022
Inflation differentials across the euro-zone are unusually wide, in large part due to differences in energy inflation. But we don’t expect this to last. In the coming years, we think that inflation will be higher in the core countries than in the …
Russia’s decision to send troops to eastern Ukraine has prompted US sanctions on the two breakaway Ukrainian regions, and Western governments are lining up further measures that would hit Russia itself. But there is a wide range of sanctions that could be …
Economic conditions continue to improve The rise in the Ifo Business Climate Index (BCI) in February strengthens our view that conditions in the German economy continued to improve during Q1. While the latest escalation of Russia-Ukraine tensions will …
Large Omicron waves have caused activity to weaken in many EMs in Q1, but the good news is that mobility appears to bounce back quickly once outbreaks subside. As a result, the economic hit is likely to be small and short-lived. Instead, high inflation …
Borrowing in the black, but inflation still a burden Public sector net borrowing was in surplus in January as the figures were flattered by the usual bump from higher income tax receipts. Nonetheless, it was a smaller surplus than the Office for Budget …
The economic and market consequences of a war between Russia and Ukraine will depend on the severity of the conflict, and the response of the West. But in most cases the economic impact on countries beyond Russia and Ukraine is likely to be limited. The …
There was a material improvement in the Scandinavian and Swiss property markets over 2021. Prime office and industrial capital value growth accelerated. And while prime retail values still declined, this was at a slower pace than in 2020. Oslo was an …
21st February 2022
The strength of the latest activity, labour market and inflation data prompted a shift in guidance from the Bank of Israel today in which it said that it may start a tightening cycle in the coming months. We think the firing gun will be started in April …
Yields on 10-year Swiss government bonds have moved in lockstep with those of Bunds since the start of the pandemic, and thus followed their German counterparts above zero in January. (See Chart 1.) While the Swiss yield has dropped back a bit since …
Omicron just a blip, more signs of supply shortages easing February’s punchy flash PMIs provide even more evidence that the economy has rebounded swiftly after the hit from Omicron. And beneath the headline numbers, there are tentative but encouraging …
Activity rebounding The surge in the euro-zone flash Composite PMI in February suggests that activity is recovering well and supports our view that GDP will rise by around 0.5% q/q in Q1. There are tentative signs that supply chain problems are fading – …
Economic activity continued to thrive in January Poland’s economic recovery continued to motor along at the start of this year as industrial production and retail sales growth picked up sharply in January. This came alongside further signs of an …
The threat of sanctions has weighed on Russia’s stock market recently, but even if tensions abated we wouldn’t expect it to make big gains over the next couple of years. Russia’s equities have been volatile lately, but the big picture is that the tensions …
18th February 2022
Strong rebound in GDP supports case for “higher for longer” interest rates The 4.7% expansion in Russian GDP in 2021 is consistent with a marked acceleration in growth in Q4. We expect the recovery to slow this year but the backdrop of a large and …
Overview – The worst of the Omicron wave appears to have passed and we expect growth to rebound later this year, albeit weighed down by weak consumer income growth. But persistently high inflation is now set to bring a concerted tightening in Base Rate, …
With tensions between Russia and Ukraine continuing, the risk of a conflict with far-reaching economic consequences remains uncomfortably high. This Update considers what the impact on global financial markets has been so far, and the potential …
Another week of Russia-Ukraine tensions Russia-Ukraine tensions dominated the headlines again this week and financial markets whipsawed on concerns about an imminent invasion and reports of shelling in eastern Ukraine. But an announcement by President …
This week saw tensions between Russia and Ukraine get close to boiling point. We have written extensively about the economic implications of a further escalation on both our Emerging Europe and Commodities services and all of our research on the topic can …
Earlier this week brought murmurs of a de-escalation in the Russia/Ukraine border crisis. But tensions seem to have flared up again in recent days. We have no particular insight on the likely outcome, but we can offer some thoughts on the economic impact …
Yet another blow to Riksbank’s dovish stance Statistics Sweden made a bid for the most eyebrow-raising data release of the week with the news this morning that core inflation jumped from 1.7% in December to 2.5% in January. (See here .) We, the consensus …
French President Macron is on course to win re-election in April by a comfortable margin, and is likely to push for a lower tax burden and pension reform in his second term. His main rival Marine Le Pen no longer proposes a “Frexit”, but a victory for her …
Hand of the hawkish triumvirate strengthened The increase in Swedish CPIF excluding energy was significantly higher than expected and pushed the core rate above the Riksbank’s 2.0% target for the first time in nearly three years. While we expect headline …
Omicron recovery underway, but cost of living crisis beginning to bite A solid rebound in retail sales in January suggests the hit to activity from Omicron was smaller and shorter than previously thought. Even so, the cost of living crisis will restrain …
We think that the gap between the yields of 10-year German and Swiss government bonds will re-emerge over the next couple of years as the ECB tightens policy more quickly than the SNB. Prior to the pandemic, there was a spread between the yield of the …
17th February 2022
The further rise in inflation to close to 50% y/y in January was clearly not enough to sway Turkey’s central bank (and crucially, President Erdogan) to shift back to orthodoxy as the one-week repo rate was left at 14.00% at today’s MPC meeting. We expect …
Euro-zone commercial property markets ended 2021 on a stronger note. Prime rental growth picked up in the office and industrial sectors, while retail rents held steady for the third consecutive quarter. Combined with further declines in property yields, …
While the simmering tensions over Ukraine could keep euro-zone inflation higher for longer than most expect, we think that it is unlikely to put the ECB off plans to start normalising policy this year – provided that there is neither a drastic military …
16th February 2022
The rest of Emerging Europe is particularly exposed if a further escalation of Russia-Ukraine tensions lead to higher global energy prices and disruptions to commodity exports, with Bulgaria and the Baltic States most at risk from possible interruptions …
Ukraine’s economy as a whole is in a better position to weather significant capital flight and sharp falls in the hryvnia than at any point in the past decade. But even so, there are key pockets of vulnerability that could be exposed if there is a major …
Rapid acceleration bolsters case for interest rate hike Israel’s economic recovery unexpectedly accelerated at the end of last year, with the 16.6% annualised rise in GDP in Q4 pushing it far above its pre-pandemic trend. Alongside the rise in inflation …
Input shortages remain severe The rise in euro-zone industrial production in December took it above its pre-pandemic level and timelier evidence points to a small increase at the start of this year. But input shortages remain severe and the continued …
The tightening of labour market conditions in the euro-zone is likely to help push hourly wage growth up over the next couple of years to more than 3% y/y by 2023. This will serve to strengthen the calls from those pushing for the ECB to begin …
CPI inflation may rise to a peak of nearly 8.0% in April The rise in CPI inflation in January from 5.4% to a new 30-year high of 5.5%, the latest rise in oil prices and the new item weights mean that we now think CPI inflation will rise to a peak of 7.9% …
A Russian invasion of Ukraine would not make a Chinese attack on Taiwan more likely and would not undermine the willingness or ability of Taiwan’s allies to come to its defence. The argument that hostilities between Russia and Ukraine would heighten the …
15th February 2022
Net capital outflows from emerging markets have intensified over the past month as growing tensions between Ukraine and Russia and the prospect of tighter global monetary policy have caused risk appetite to sour. The external environment will remain …
Tensions between Russia and the West have intensified and rattled global financial markets. Amidst the uncertain situation, this Update brings together some of the key implications of the crisis for Russia, Ukraine and the rest of Emerging Europe . (See …
Our new, higher interest rate forecast suggests that mortgage rates will climb to an eight-year high in 2023, making house prices look expensive by historical standards. But the overvaluation won’t be as extreme as it was on the eve of the financial …
Recovery to resume and labour market to tighten further The small increase in euro-zone GDP in Q4 confirms that the region’s economy was struggling at the end of 2021. But with Omicron under control and restrictions being eased, we expect the recovery to …
Strong end to Q4 but headwinds will put the brakes on recoveries Q4 GDP data for Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) were generally stronger-than-expected as policymakers responded to virus outbreaks with only light-touch restrictions and easing supply …
A recipe for further interest rate hikes Employment has recouped the falls after the furlough scheme, the unemployment rate has fallen to pre-COVID levels, job vacancies are at a record high and wage growth is rising. That’s a recipe for more interest …
Our forecasts suggest that prime all-property rental growth across the main euro-zone markets is likely to keep pace with inflation in the coming years. However, this is more of a reflection of expected demand and supply conditions, than an indication …
14th February 2022
Although last week’s hawkish surprises from the ECB and the Bank of England weaken the case for further US dollar appreciation against the euro, sterling, and other European currencies, we are sticking to our view that the greenback will strengthen a bit …
11th February 2022
After a record-breaking 2021, survey evidence points to a strong start to the year for pan-European (excluding UK) investment volumes. With pent-up demand mostly exhausted, we expect transactions to slow in the second half of the year. Nonetheless that …
Rising inflation has put major DM central banks under pressure and interest rate expectations have risen. But most emerging markets look relatively well placed to weather a period of DM policy tightening. Current account deficits are generally small or in …
The further surge in US CPI inflation from 7.0% in December to a 40-year high of 7.5% in January and some hawkish comments by US Fed officials have rattled global financial markets this week, with UK markets being caught in the crossfire. And recent …
Russia’s central bank (CBR) maintained the pace of its tightening cycle today with another 100bp interest rate hike, to 9.50%, and the hawkish communications suggest that the cycle will not stop until the CBR has confidence that inflation has peaked. This …
Governor Ingves is not for turning We were surely not the only ones to have thought, “What is the Riksbank playing at?”, following the damp squib of its policy announcement on Thursday morning. Recall that the Bank barely changed its dovish messaging, and …
Anybody expecting the ECB to completely undo the hawkish policy shift that Christine Lagarde delivered at last week’s meeting will have been disappointed by this week’s numerous policy statements. Admittedly, Ms Lagarde herself adopted a more balanced …
The exceptionally strong rebound in commercial property returns has been clear from the middle of last year. While this came earlier than most expected, we think it reflected special conditions and won’t last. Despite increased uncertainty from the …
