China Economics Update China’s tariff respite may last some time The past week’s shifts in US tariffs have put a large number of Chinese manufacturers back on a level playing field in the US market with other non-US producers. These lower rates look likely to... 26th February 2026 · 5 mins read
Africa Economics Update South Africa gives away revenue windfall once again South Africa’s finance minister used today’s Budget speech to once again offer more fiscal giveaways, mainly in the form of putting off previously mooted tax rises, rather than save the revenue... 25th February 2026 · 3 mins read
Latin America Economics Update Mexico’s war on drugs & what it means for the economy The immediate impact of the outburst of violence in Mexico following the killing of drug kingpin “El Mencho” is likely to be a hit to tourism. But the longer the unrest drags on, the bigger the risk... 23rd February 2026 · 4 mins read
Global Economics Update Questions & answers on the new US tariff regime The imposition of a 10% Section 122 tariff on all countries leaves the weighted-average US tariff rate about 3.5%-points lower than was the case under the IEEPA framework, although the difference will... 23rd February 2026 (Updated 24th February 2026) · 8 mins read
Emerging Europe Economics Focus Four years of war: stagnation grips Russia’s economy Russia’s economy has proven remarkably resilient since the war in Ukraine began four years ago, underpinned by military-related stimulus, an ability to adapt to Western sanctions and disciplined... 23rd February 2026 · 15 mins read
Latin America Economics Weekly Peru ousts another president, Colombia rebalancing? The ousting of Peru's President Jerí this week will have limited immediate economic implications given that Peru's balance sheet is strong. But political instability - which is unlikely to go away... 20th February 2026 · 5 mins read
Emerging Europe Economics Weekly BoI meeting amid Iran tensions, CEE rates, Rubio’s visit Data out of Israel over the past week have increased the probability that the Bank of Israel (BoI) will cut interest rates at its meeting next Monday, but the decision may depend on how tensions with... 20th February 2026 · 7 mins read
Latin America Economics Focus Brazil’s pension problem rears its head again There’s a growing acknowledgement that Brazil’s 2019 pension reform didn’t go far enough to ease fiscal pressures from the social security system. Indeed, Brazil is likely to see one of the largest... 19th February 2026 · 13 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly US-Iran, Kuwait’s budget, Saudi inflation, AI in the Gulf Unless Iran makes major concessions to reach a new nuclear deal with the US, the threat of US military intervention will rise - particularly given the build-up of forces in the region. Elsewhere... 19th February 2026 · 6 mins read
Long Run Economic Outlook US and Asia to lead the AI decade Global growth will slow in the long run as population growth weakens and the scope for emerging market catch-up narrows, but there will be bright spots. We are increasingly confident that advances in... 18th February 2026 · 1 hr, 9 mins read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Does Hungary need a US financial backstop? Marcio Rubio’s comments this week that the US might provide financial support to Hungary if needed seems to have been welcomed by local financial markets. Hungary’s public finances are not in good... 18th February 2026 · 3 mins read
Africa Economics Update Will Africa continue to shrug off surging Chinese Imports Chinese exports to Africa surged last year and we expect Africa’s trade deficit with China to persist presenting risks to domestic industrialisation ambitions. However, China has levers that it can... 17th February 2026 · 5 mins read
Africa Economics Weekly Ramaphosa's SONA, CBN steps up FX liquidity South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa used his State of the Nation address to outline bold plans to tackle crime and improve infrastructure, but delivering on this will be challenging given the... 13th February 2026 · 7 mins read
Canada Economics Weekly Up-and-down week foreshadows CUSMA renegotiation A week of political drama, much of it emanating from south of the border, provides useful insight into how we can expect the CUSMA renegotiation to unfold. 13th February 2026 · 8 mins read
China Economics Weekly China unlikely to accelerate sales of dollar assets Chinese regulators have reportedly asked banks to curb their exposure to US Treasuries. While Chinese banks' holdings of dollar-denominated bonds have decreased over the past year, they've largely... 13th February 2026 · 4 mins read
UK Economics Weekly What has the government ever done for us? The government has been supporting both economic and employment growth over the last year, while private sector activity has been weak and private sector employment has fallen. But this isn't the... 13th February 2026 · 10 mins read
