Japan Economics Weekly A long way down The sharp contraction in activity in March tipped Japan into recession in Q1. The effect on GDP growth will be more acute in Q2 due to the very low base from which the economy must recover. Even if... 23rd May 2011 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Weekly Housing renovation boom on shaky ground Renovation investment has risen to historically high levels in Canada. This boom in renovation is another symptom of a broader housing bubble. The very high level of construction employment is another... 23rd May 2011 · 1 min read
US Economics Weekly US spends an unhealthy amount on health care There is little prospect of getting the Federal deficit under control in the long-term unless spending on health care is reined in or, at the very least, not allowed to continue growing at a faster... 23rd May 2011 · 1 min read
UK Economics Weekly Consumer outlook still poor The breakdown of the strong 1.1% monthly rise in sales volumes in April suggested that this strength primarily reflected a temporary boost from better weather and the Royal Wedding. What’s more, last... 23rd May 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly No "soft" options for Greece There are growing signs that the EU will allow Greece to undertake a “soft” debt restructuring, probably involving the voluntary exchange of debt for bonds of longer maturities. This could ease the... 23rd May 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Will Istanbul be next to join the office rent recovery? Unlike in Warsaw and Moscow, office rents in Prague, Budapest, Bucharest or Istanbul have not risen over the past year. But the latest macroeconomic and occupier market data signal that Istanbul will... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Retail Sales (Mar.) The latest retail sales data confirm that real consumption growth slowed to just above 1% annualised in the first quarter, well below the 5% pace seen in the final three months of last year. Given the... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Price pressures are mounting Rising global commodity prices have pushed food price inflation up in most Arab countries. The recent depreciation in the dollar and government fiscal stimulus have also contributed to the increase in... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Update Bank of Japan to announce further easing by year-end Even though Deputy Governor Kiyohiko Nishimura today dropped his call for another increase in the asset purchases, our view is still that it is only a question of “when”, rather than “if”, the Bank of... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Consumer Price Index (Apr.) Consumer price inflation remained at 3.3% in April, though still up from 2.3% just three months ago. Measures of underlying inflation, more importantly, remained subdued. Provided that inflation... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Inflation fears to fade by the end of the year Inflation is causing serious headaches for policymakers across Emerging Europe. With the exception of the Czech Republic, headline CPI ticked up everywhere last month, and is now well above target in... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Japan Chart Pack A long way from recovery The detrimental impact of the earthquake and tsunami in March was sufficient to tip Japan into recession in the first quarter. Early evidence for the start of the second quarter shows no sign of a... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
China Economics Focus Is China serious about rebalancing? China’s current account surplus will soon rebound unless the government embraces significant policy reform. The Five-Year Plan signals that there is widespread agreement in principle on the need to... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update What does the outlook for housebuilding imply for land values? Housebuilding activity bounced back strongly in the first quarter, albeit from an extremely low base. However, we doubt that the recovery can maintain this momentum. Indeed, on balance, we believe... 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
Capital Daily Commodity prices vulnerable to more than just the end of QE2 20th May 2011 · 1 min read
