Latin America Economics Update Mexico's job recovery yet to feed into higher wages Mexico’s labour market is on the mend. But while employment has picked up and the quality of new jobs seems to be improving, this has yet to translate into a pick-up in pay growth. 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response International Trade (Jan.) January's merchandise trade data was heavily influenced by activity in the auto sector. Mixed export figures and stronger imports (revisions included) suggest that the first-quarter contribution from... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Is the convergence of Zurich and Geneva office rents justified? The combination of stronger occupier demand from multinational and financial services firms, lower completion volumes and a low starting vacancy rate has helped close the gap between the level of... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
US Data Response International Trade (Jan.) The increase in the monthly trade deficit to a five-month high of $46.3bn in January, from 40.3bn, owed very little to the rising cost of imported oil. Instead, it was mainly due to the strength of... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Global recovery strong for now, but set to slow The latest leading indicators reveal plenty of momentum behind the recovery on both sides of the Atlantic. However, we still expect global growth to slow in the second half of the year and into 2012... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
UK Economics Update Weak economic news could yet stave off a rate hike With the economic outlook little clearer than when it last met, it was never that likely that the Monetary Policy Committee would act today. We still think that the chances of an interest rate rise in... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
UK Commercial Property Update Is the case for London hotels as clear-cut as it seems? The outlook for hotel property total returns over 2011/12 is widely considered to be better in London than in the regions. It is hard to argue with that assessment. However, there are reasons to be... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
UK Data Response UK Industrial Production (Jan.) January’s UK industrial production figures show that the manufacturing recovery has retained a lot of momentum. But given the sector’s relative small share of GDP, it will still make only a modest... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
China Data Response Foreign Trade (Feb.) China’s unexpected trade deficit in February reflects both distortions around Chinese New Year and the impact high commodity prices are having on China’s import bill. Leading indicators of export... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update Korea’s central bank has more work to do The Bank of Korea (BoK) lifted its policy rate by 25bp to 3.0% today, as was universally anticipated. Policymakers are rightly focused on tackling local price pressures, which are not solely due to... 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Mortgage Applic'ns (Feb.) & Negative Equity (Q4) Mortgage applications continued to trend lower in February, underlining the point we've made before that the latest rebound in home sales is being driven almost exclusively by cash buyers and... 9th March 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Is Greece still facing a funding crisis? Recent financial market developments suggest that Greece is as far away as ever from convincing investors that it can get its public finances on a stable footing without defaulting. What’s more, there... 9th March 2011 · 1 min read
US Data Response Mortgage Applic'ns (Feb.) & Negative Equity (Q4) Mortgage applications continued to trend lower in February, underlining the point we've made before that the latest rebound in home sales is being driven almost exclusively by cash buyers and... 9th March 2011 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Focus How does Russia benefit from higher oil prices? If the recent spike in oil prices is sustained, it could add as much as 1.5% to real GDP growth in Russia this year. But while higher commodity prices may boost growth in the near term, they work... 9th March 2011 · 1 min read
