RBNZ Watch New Zealand - 1.75% may not be the floor We expect that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand will follow through on its commitment for further policy easing by cutting interest rates from 2.00% to 1.75% at its policy meeting on Thursday 10 th... 3rd November 2016 · 1 min read
US Economics Update Fed on track for December rate hike As widely expected, the Fed left interest rates unchanged at this week’s FOMC meeting, but it appears to be intent on hiking interest rates at the upcoming December meeting. Nevertheless, next week’s... 2nd November 2016 · 1 min read
UK Economic Outlook Fourth quarter 2016 Consumer spending growth is unlikely to maintain its recent strength in the year ahead. But supportive credit conditions should prevent spending from slowing too sharply, with past monetary loosening... 2nd November 2016 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Consumer Confidence (Oct.) While consumer confidence weakened slightly last month, the survey still points to a rebound in consumer spending. Meanwhile, inflation expectations show further signs of stabilising. 2nd November 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Chart Pack Retail sales growth slows sharply as inflation rises The euro-zone’s consumer sector appears to have had another poor quarter in Q3. Retail sales volumes were flat in August, while timelier national data point to a contraction in sales in September... 1st November 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Lat Am central banks turning more dovish Central banks in several countries in Latin America are turning increasingly dovish. Policymakers in Brazil cut interest rates this month on the back of another drop in inflation and further (gradual)... 31st October 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone GDP (Q3 Prel. Flash) & CPI (Oct.) The preliminary flash estimate of euro-zone Q3 GDP supports the message from earlier country data that the pace of growth remains fairly slow. So it is no surprise that October’s inflation data show... 31st October 2016 · 1 min read
UK Economics Update 1992 or 2008? There are some reasons why the recent fall in the pound will be less positive for the economy than that seen after 1992’s ERM exit. But there are also reasons to think that it might be more positive... 28th October 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Germany-France divergence looks set to last Last week brought some good news about the euro-zone economy, with October’s composite PMI and EC ESI both pointing to an acceleration of growth. But both the hard data and survey indicators look much... 28th October 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response German Flash CPI (Oct.) October’s rise in German HICP inflation to +0.7% suggests that euro-zone inflation in the same month rose to its highest level since April 2014. But in Germany at least, the rise reflected energy... 28th October 2016 · 1 min read
Australia & New Zealand Economics Weekly How fast will inflation rise? Both headline and underlying inflation in Australia will probably rise over the next year and, by boosting economic growth and reducing spare capacity, the recent leap in commodity prices raises the... 28th October 2016 · 1 min read
Bank of Japan Watch Policy rate to be lowered further At its upcoming meeting, the Bank of Japan is set to slash its inflation forecasts for the coming fiscal year and may push also back the timeframe for hitting the 2% inflation target yet again. While... 28th October 2016 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Household Spending, Unemployment & Consumer Prices (Sep.) The labour market is getting increasingly tight. However, consumer spending remains sluggish and the slowdown in underlying inflation shows that price pressures continue to moderate. 28th October 2016 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Fuel to push EM inflation up in coming months EM inflation has been driven largely by moves in commodity prices this year. The decline in food inflation seen in recent months has probably now happened, and rising fuel inflation is set to push EM... 27th October 2016 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Data Response Iceland Consumer Prices (Oct.) Headline Icelandic inflation was stable in October and the core rate fell slightly. But with the economy continuing to strengthen, we think that underlying inflation will pick up in the coming months. 27th October 2016 · 1 min read
RBA Watch Rate cutting cycle may not be finished yet While the third quarter inflation data suggest that there is an outside chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will cut interest rates from 1.50% to 1.25% at its policy meeting on Tuesday 1 st... 27th October 2016 · 1 min read