UK Economics Update Household Borrowing Monitor (Jan.) Household borrowing fell back a touch in January, providing further evidence that the recovery is not being fuelled by a consumer borrowing binge. Indeed, credit is still well below pre-crisis levels... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
UK Commercial Property Data Response Lending to commercial property (Jan. 14) Net property lending by banks and building societies remains negative. But we suspect this is only because distressed stock is finally being sold and the debt repaid. Indeed, with anecdotal evidence... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response Mortgage Lending (Jan. 13) Mortgage lending got off to a strong start in 2014, with another robust rise in the number of mortgages approved for house purchase. Secured lending will see further gains over the year, helped by the... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Africa Economics Update South African PMI picks up but challenges remain The latest PMI survey for South Africa suggests that, having rebounded in Q4, growth in the manufacturing sector has stabilised in the current quarter. But while this provides grounds for some... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
UK Data Response CIPS Report on Manuf. (Feb.) & Mortgage Approvals (Jan.) February’s CIPS manufacturing report confirmed that the sector’s recovery has not been knocked off course by sterling’s appreciation. Meanwhile, although the latest data show mortgage lending is... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Commodities Chart Pack Unseasonal weather lifts prices Adverse weather played a major role in the upward price movements of both energy and agricultural commodities in February. Harsh winter conditions in the US boosted energy prices while concerns about... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Central European manufacturers leading the recovery February’s PMIs show that manufacturing in Emerging Europe continued to strengthen. Poland and the Czech Republic are leading the way and, encouragingly, the PMI components suggest that domestic... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update What will be the wider fallout from conflict in Ukraine? The crisis in Ukraine has the potential to have a further significant and prolonged impact on global financial markets, even though our current judgement is that the fallout is likely to be short... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update PMIs point to gradual and uneven recovery The February PMIs for Emerging Asia point to a slight deterioration in the region's manufacturing conditions. The pullback in the new orders component suggests Asia's manufacturing recovery is likely... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
China Data Response Manufacturing PMIs (Feb.) The latest PMI surveys confirm the continued slowdown in manufacturing. We think the outlook for the sector remains downbeat. Despite the recent surge in liquidity we suspect that policymakers will... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Capital Expenditure (Q4) The Ministry of Finance's survey on corporate finances casts renewed doubts on the recovery in business investment. Nonetheless, very strong corporate profitability suggests that firms should be able... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Weekly Rebalancing still a distant pipe dream The Bank of Canada admitted in January's monetary policy statement that "there have been few signs of the anticipated rebalancing towards exports and business investment." Not much has changed since... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Competitive gains from weak yen fail to materialise Despite the sharp fall in the yen since 2012, Japanese exporters lost global market share last year. Rising costs and a sluggish world economy have played a part and both factors should fade in... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
UK Economics Weekly Have companies finally joined the party? Last week’s GDP figures showing that investment rose sharply in Q4 should ease concerns that the economic recovery is too dependent on an unsustainable consumer spending splurge. And there are several... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Stars still aligned for more ECB support Despite last week's stronger than expected euro-zone inflation figures, the combination of still very weak price pressures, the strong euro and recent falls in liquidity in the banking sector still... 3rd March 2014 · 1 min read
