Asia Economics Update Limited impact from Chinese rate cut Financial markets in Emerging Asia have on the whole had a fairly quiet month despite the recent Chinese rate cut and the expansion of the Bank of Japan’s programme of quantitative easing. 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update ECB to join Bank of Japan in full-blown QE Although the Fed ended its asset purchases in October, and is set to start raising policy rates in the coming months, global monetary conditions will remain ultra-loose as the ECB and BoJ undertake... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update What if the Swiss vote to “save our gold”? This weekend the Swiss public will probably reject a proposal to force the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to increase its gold holdings. Nonetheless, a surprise “yes” would provide a significant boost to... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Has the euro fallen far enough? The fall in the euro since the spring looks likely to have at least some upward effect on both the growth of euro-zone exports and the level of euro-zone consumer price inflation. But the ECB should... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Where could we see an upside surprise next year? We expect most economies in Emerging Asia to record another year of solid, if unspectacular, growth in 2015. That said , there are a number of potential upside surprises. This Weekly looks at some of... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Africa Chart Pack Nigeria forced to hike rates, while SA & Kenya hold fire The slump in the Nigerian naira this month forced the central bank to take drastic action. Interest rates were hiked for the first time in three years and the currency was devalued. But given that the... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
BoE Watch Real pay rises not big enough yet for rate hike While the dovish tone of the November Inflation Report suggested that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is likely to keep Bank Rate on hold for a few more months, the case for starting the process... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Focus How useful are Asia’s manufacturing PMIs? Asia’s manufacturing PMIs are closely watched as some of the most timely gauges of the region’s economic performance. In places such as China, Korea and Taiwan, we find that the PMIs are effective... 28th November 2014 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Two cheers for Brazil’s new economic team The announcement of a new economic team in Brazil – and the nomination of Joaquim Levy as Finance Minister in particular – will strengthen hopes for a return to more orthodox policies during President... 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
China Chart Pack PBOC may be resuming FX intervention There are tentative signs that the People’s Bank (PBOC) has resumed currency intervention. Foreign exchange purchases by all financial institutions, a proxy for purchases by the PBOC, turned positive... 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
ECB Watch QE’s coming, probably in January It seems clear that the ECB will soon embark on a full-blown quantitative easing programme incorporating sovereign debt purchases. The key questions now are when and how big? While we think that the... 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egyptian rates on hold amid high inflation The Central Bank of Egypt left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 9.25% today and, with growth picking up and inflation still high, it looks unlikely that July’s rate hike will be reversed any... 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus Autumn Statement 2014 Preview George Osborne will present his fifth Autumn Statement on 3rd December under mounting pressure from his fiscal and opinion poll deficits. Despite this, he seems unlikely to panic and abandon his tough... 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Euro-zone Monetary Indicators Monitor (Oct.) October’s euro-zone monetary data highlighted the sluggish nature of the recovery in the region’s banking sector and will help to maintain the pressure on the ECB to provide further stimulus. 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
Bank of Canada Watch Higher core inflation doesn't change rate outlook The rise in core inflation further above target doesn't change the interest rate outlook, since that increase mainly reflects the temporary effects of a weaker currency, which the Bank believes will... 26th November 2014 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update What will ECB QE do to core euro-zone bond yields? An ECB quantitative easing (QE) programme will probably not be decisive enough to prompt a rise in inflation expectations like that which lifted US Treasury yields during the Fed’s bouts of QE... 26th November 2014 · 1 min read