House prices are rising according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) but falling according to Halifax and Nationwide. Consistent downward revisions to the ONS House Price Index mean that we think the Nationwide and Halifax indices are a more …
19th October 2023
After several years in a post-Fukushima wilderness, nuclear power’s ability to provide low-emission and reliable electricity generation has slowly brought it back into favour around the world. Several countries, particularly in Asia, are likely to bring …
In a surprise move, Bank Indonesia (BI) today hiked its main policy rate by 25bps (to 6.0%) in an attempt to support the currency. But there is a good chance this will be a case of “one and done”. Our forecast is that US bond yields will drop back over …
The ECB is almost certain to leave interest rates unchanged at next week’s meeting. Emphasis will be on monetary policy staying tight for extended period. Bond market sell-off will persuade policymakers to delay decision to accelerate QT. There is …
Surprise hike aimed at supporting the currency In a surprise move, Bank Indonesia (BI) today hiked its main policy rate by 25bps (to 6.0%), and made clear that supporting the currency would remain its key priority over the coming months. However, with …
We'll be discussing the implications of the end of the ultra-low interest rates era and the rise in r* in an online Drop-In at 12:30 GMT on Tuesday 31st October. (Register here .) As our new higher estimate of the real neutral interest rate, or r*, for …
The Bank of Korea today left its policy rate unchanged (at 3.5%), and while Governor Rhee left open the possibility of further interest rate hikes, there are signs that some members of the central bank are becoming more dovish. With growth struggling but …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication Fall in joblessness complicates picture for the RBA The September data suggest that the labour market could take longer to cool than the RBA currently expects. Accordingly, we …
On hold again, central bank in no rush to loosen policy The Bank of Korea (BoK) today left interest rates unchanged (at 3.5%) for a sixth consecutive meeting. The decision came as no surprise and was correctly predicted by 49 economists polled by …
Drag from net trade unlikely to persist Net trade probably was a large drag on GDP growth in Q3, but we suspect it will become less of a drag this quarter. The 4.3% annual rise in export values in September was stronger than the analyst consensus of 3.1% …
Recession risks rising and inflation falling again Bank to remain on hold but stress too soon to declare victory Bank’s latest analysis implies QT could continue until as late as 2026 The business surveys point to rising recession risks and core inflation …
18th October 2023
Aggregate EM goods exports have struggled for momentum in recent months and, while there were more positive signs from some of the timely September trade data, we think that exports are likely to struggle as demand in advanced economies weakens. That …
We think China’s improving economy may help stop the fall in the country’s stock markets, and see them outperform those of the US for a bit. China’s stronger-than-expected Q3 GDP data, released earlier today, seem to have given the Hang Seng Index a small …
We expect demand to be weakest in the six major markets, but new supply is also set to be low in those markets. Elsewhere, we think southern metros will continue to see stronger absorption, though Austin and Miami have large completions pipelines over the …
Starts rebound, but headwinds remain Single-family starts edged higher in September to 963,000 annualised from 933,000 in August and building permits also rose to a 15-month high. However, we don’t think this means single-family construction activity has …
The ongoing outflow of funds from the Fed’s reverse repo facility has completely offset the downward pressure on bank reserves from quantitative tightening (QT), suggesting that the Fed could continue to let its asset holdings run down for longer than …
The weakness of GDP growth in the second and third quarters means that the Bank of Canada is likely to make a marked re-assessment of its output gap estimates in its October Monetary Policy Report (MPR). Some indicators suggest that output has already …
India’s economy appears still to be holding up well in the second half of the year. And although inflation has dropped back sharply to within the RBI’s target range, the outlook is still clouded by uncertainties related to food prices. This is a key risk …
There is a growing body of evidence that suggests wage pressures are past their peak, but it’s not clear how quickly wage growth will slow. The gradual loosening in the labour market and the experience in the US suggests that UK wage growth may ease only …
Activity improves, but slow growth set to continue The batch of South African activity data for August was a mixed bag, but the overall picture is that the economy struggled for growth in Q3. And tight policy means that growth in 2024 will be modest too. …
The surge in mortgage rates to a 23-year high has caused both buyers and sellers to withdraw from the market, and total home sales to drop to their lowest level since 2011. While we’ve revised down our near-term sales volumes forecasts, our view that the …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Fall in inflation in September will not change ECB's tune The breakdown of euro-zone HICP inflation data for September, published today, reveals that there was a significant fall …
Inflation rise means SARB won’t cut rates until 2024 The larger-than-expected rise in South Africa’s headline inflation rate, to 5.4% y/y, in September supports our view that the Reserve Bank will only turn towards interest rate cuts from next year. The …
The failure of CPI inflation to fall in September from August’s rate of 6.7% will be a bit of a disappointment to most (consensus forecast 6.6%, CE forecast 6.8%). But at 6.7% it is still below the 6.9% rate the Bank of England projected back in August …
This page has been updated with additional analysis and charts since first publication . According to official GDP, growth more than doubled in q/q terms between Q2 and Q3, reaching a healthy 5.3% annualised rate. Our China Activity Proxy suggests that …
Economists from our ANZ and Markets teams held an online briefing following the release of Australian Q3 inflation data. During this discussion, Asia-Pacific head Marcel Thieliant, ANZ Economist Abhijit Surya and Senior Markets Economist Tom Mathews …
17th October 2023
We have recently published detailed analysis arguing that equilibrium interest rates in advanced economies are now higher than they were before the pandemic, and that they will continue to rise over the rest of this decade. (See here .) The key …
We think equilibrium real policy rates in advanced economies will continue to rise over the next decade or so. That has profound implications for government bond yields and risky asset valuations. Discussions of ‘higher for longer’ generally relate to the …
Switzerland’s government looks set to remain largely unchanged after the federal elections this Sunday, and we do not expect a significant change in economic policy. But voters’ grievances about the failure of Credit Suisse will keep the pressure on …
House prices heading lower again The renewed increases in mortgage rates and new listings mean we now expect house prices to fall by 5% over the next six months. The big risk, however, is that we are underestimating the degree to which forced sales are …
The full report is available to download from the button at the top right to Global Economics, Global Markets, Asset Allocation and The Long Run subscribers, as well as to CE Advance clients. If this is outside of your current subscription and you would …
Chapter 4: Financial market implications …
Chapter 3: Where will inflation (and nominal rates) settle? …
Chapter 2: How will the savings/investment balance affect r*? …
Chapter 1: Will stronger potential growth boost r*? …
Introduction and framework …
r* and the end of the ultra-low rates era: executive summary …
Further evidence of economic strength in September The 0.3% m/m rise in industrial production in September is another sign that the real economy remains in solid shape. Production was hit by a slight 0.3% m/m drop-back in utilities output, but that was …
Argentines face the choice between a shock-therapy style approach to tackling the country’s economic issues or more of the same unorthodox policymaking when they head to the polls in Sunday’s presidential election. The latest polls suggest that, while …
It has been almost a year since Egypt reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF, but progress on key policies that form part of the program has stalled. The pound has been a de-facto peg since January. And the Fund has delayed two tranches of …
This is an excerpt from our CE Spotlight series on AI. The whole series can be viewed here . A year ago, China was widely held to be a – perhaps the – global leader in AI. It has an online population larger than the US and Europe combined. Ubiquitous …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Consumption solid heading into Q4 The unexpectedly-strong 0.7% m/m rise in retail sales in September continues the theme of consumer resilience in the face of higher interest …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Fall in inflation to keep Bank on the sidelines The larger-than-expected falls in headline and core inflation in September should be enough to finally persuade markets that there …
What will a world of structurally higher interest rates look like? How will central bank behaviour change in the coming years? What will this mean for market returns? Our senior economist team hosted a special online briefing all about their new work …
German economy still in the doldrums Although the headline ZEW survey for Germany rose in October it was still very weak, while the low reading for the current conditions index supports our view that the economy is in recession. The jump in the ZEW …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Wage growth passed its peak, but it will fall only gradually Cooling labour market conditions appeared to start feeding through into an easing in wage growth in August. That …
RBA will probably hike rates in November The minutes of the RBA’s October meeting support our view that the Bank will deliver a final 25bp rate hike at its November meeting. While the Bank decided to keep rates unchanged at that meeting, it kept …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. RBNZ to remain on hold as inflation continues to soften With price pressures on track to moderate further, we think that Reserve Bank of New Zealand won’t lift rates any higher. …
16th October 2023
Market jitters around the war between Hamas and Israel appear to have stabilised today. But given that the uncertainty on that front is unlikely to fade entirely any time soon, it is worth taking stock of the warning signs evident in commodity markets. …
The reported deal that is close to being reached to lift US sanctions on Venezuela’s oil sector in return for competitive elections would help to raise the country’s oil output from very depressed levels. But the sector requires enormous investment to …
