US Economics Weekly Fed fails to understand that sometimes, less is more We were a little surprised by the Fed's conclusion last week that it wasn't ready to begin tapering its asset purchases. As we wrote in our Fed Watch ahead of the meeting, however, a tapering was "far... 23rd September 2013 · 1 min read
US Economics Update Risk of Federal government shutdown can't be dismissed Congress is about to enter the critical stage of negotiations to extend the Federal government's spending authority, which will otherwise expire when the new fiscal year begins on 1st October, and, in... 20th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Consumer Price Index (Aug.) The increased slack in the economy kept underlying inflation under wraps in August. With economic growth likely to remain sluggish through the rest of this year and inflation expectations well... 20th September 2013 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update The market implications of the FOMC's attitude to tapering We have reviewed our key market forecasts in light of the FOMC’s largely unexpected decision to delay a tapering of its asset purchases. The new numbers are presented in the tables on pages 1 and 2... 19th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Existing Home Sales (Aug. 13) The further rise in existing home sales in August may reflect a rush of sales from buyers keen to avoid any further rise in mortgage interest rates. 19th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Update Bank of Canada's economic rebound unlikely Governor Stephen Poloz's speech today indicated that that the Bank of Canada is doubling-down on its earlier bet that the economy is poised for a comeback, led by a rebound in exports and then... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Economics Update Fed delays taper; then fails to offer a clear explanation why The Fed's decision to maintain its asset purchases at $85bn per month was, given that most commentators expected a modest reduction in the pace today, unsurprisingly bond and equity positive. We... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Update Bank of Canada's economic rebound unlikely New Zealand’s economy slowed in Q2, as drought hit agricultural and manufacturing production. However, there were encouraging signs of improvement in other areas of the economy, which bodes well for... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Housing Starts (Aug. 13) The small rise in starts in August, which was below expectations and would have been a fall were it not for downward revisions to earlier data, is not as disappointing as it first appears. The figures... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Economics Update America’s daunting long-term debt problem The CBO's latest projections show that America’s long-term debt problem is slightly less daunting than it previously appeared to be. Nevertheless, at some point policymakers will still need to tackle... 17th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Survey of Manufacturing (Jul.) The robust rebound in manufacturing sales volumes suggest that GDP likely rebounded by 0.3% m/m in July. That suggests the economy began the third quarter on a solid footing, but the weak end to the... 17th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Economics Update Monetary Indicators Monitor (Aug.) The slight moderation in the annual growth rate of the broad monetary aggregates should help to ease fears that the Fed's quantitative easing is putting upward pressure on price inflation. The growth... 16th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Weekly Canada's home ownership fling worse than US The third and final wave of data from Statistics Canada's National Household Survey (NHS) published last week reveal that the Canadian home ownership rate surpassed the record peak at the height of... 16th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Economics Weekly Labour market still strengthening It should only be a matter of time before the recent fall in the number of people losing their job is followed by a rise in the number of people finding a job. Less firing and more hiring is obviously... 16th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Data Response Uni. of Mich. Consumer Confidence (Sep.) The decline in the University of Michigan's consumer confidence index to a five-month low of 76.8 in September, from 82.1, reflects the surge in interest rates and the drop in stock markets, although... 13th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Teranet-National Bank House Prices (Aug.) The latest pick-up in house price inflation is consistent with the reported rebound in existing home sales. But as mortgage rates continue to rise, we expect falling home sales will eventually result... 12th September 2013 · 1 min read
