UK Data Response UK Retail Sales (Aug.) August’s fall in retail sales volumes tentatively suggested that the surprising resilience of consumer spending of late could be coming to an end. 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
UK Economics Chart Pack Pressures mounting (Sep 10) The pressures on consumers are mounting, with a weakening housing market now adding to the mix. And the drop in the official measure of retail sales in August suggests that consumers might finally be... 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
China Chart Pack Heat rising again over renminbi (Sep 10) A spurt of renminbi appreciation in the last few days may not be enough to dampen growing anger in Washington at how slowly the Chinese currency has moved since the de facto peg was loosened in June... 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Trade Balance (Jul.) July’s fall in euro-zone exports is another sign that GDP growth will weaken in Q3 after Q2’s strong expansion. And with exports set to slow further in the months ahead, a consumer revival would be... 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
UK Data Response UK Retail Sales (Aug.) August’s fall in retail sales volumes tentatively suggested that the surprising resilience of consumer spending of late could be coming to an end. 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update New Zealand's monetary tightening on hold into 2011 The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) today kept policy rates on hold at 3.0%, as expected. The aftermath of the earthquake will inevitably cause some disruption in coming months but the RBNZ even... 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Will a lack of supply drive a recovery in European office rental values? A shortage of supply in the Central London office market is likely to drive relatively strong rental growth this year and next. In Europe, however, although office development pipelines have also been... 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update ECB's unconventional support is still crucial The recent pick-up in ECB bond purchases has been very small when compared to earlier acquisitions or to the size of the euro-zone economy. Meanwhile, its lending to commercial banks in the region as... 16th September 2010 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Colombia: BANREP intervention to stabilise peso, for now The Central Bank of Colombia (BANREP) this afternoon announced that it will resume market intervention to stem the appreciation of the peso. History shows that this may be successful in preventing the... 15th September 2010 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update How reliable is the German ZEW survey? September’s slump in German ZEW investor sentiment was a worrying sign that the recovery is already faltering. Admittedly, it is a less reliable indicator of German GDP than business surveys like the... 15th September 2010 · 1 min read
UK Commercial Property Data Response Financial and business services sector jobs (Q2 10) The number of jobs in the financial & business services (FBS) sector rose again in Q2, taking the increase since the start of the year to 1.7%, or 104,000 jobs. We remain cautiously optimistic about... 15th September 2010 · 1 min read
UK Data Response UK Labour Data (Jul./Aug.) The latest UK labour market figures showed that while employment is still rising strongly, cracks are appearing in the recovery. We still expect unemployment to rise to 3m or so within the next two or... 15th September 2010 · 1 min read
