Europe Data Response German Ifo Survey (Jun.) June’s German Ifo survey echoed the slightly firmer tone of other recent indicators. But it certainly did not suggest that the euro-zone’s biggest economy is embarking on a spectacular recovery. 24th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly The periphery is still uncompetitive Labour cost data released last week provided further evidence that the competitiveness gap between the euro-zone periphery and core may be narrowing. While labour costs were little unchanged or lower... 24th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Is it possible that Spanish property is now a good bet? Improvements in Spanish economic sentiment suggest that the recession has eased in the second quarter. Given that there is plenty of headroom for Spanish office and industrial capital values to rise... 20th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Italian public finances remain in a precarious state We doubt that the new growth measures adopted by the Italian government will have much effect on the economy and still expect the 2013 budget deficit to be well above target. Based on this and Italy’s... 20th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Norges Bank rate cut still a possibility The Norges Bank left interest rates unchanged today as concerns about financial stability once again outweighed the need to weaken the currency and boost inflation. But the Bank once again pushed back... 20th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Flash PMIs (Jun.) June’s euro-zone PMI survey continued the upward trend of recent months, but still suggests that the euro-zone economy contracted for a seventh quarter running in Q2. 20th June 2013 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Norges Bank rate cut still a possibility The Norges Bank left interest rates unchanged today as concerns about financial stability once again outweighed the need to weaken the currency and boost inflation. But the Bank once again pushed back... 20th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update How sustainable are Stockholm office yields? The low level of Stockholm office yields reflects safe haven demand and Sweden’s comparatively strong economy. These factors are likely to support yields for the next year or so. On a five-year view... 19th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Could a global bond sell-off reignite the euro-zone crisis? A further rise in global bond yields could push borrowing costs for some euro-zone governments back towards danger levels and underline the limitations of the ECB’s OMT programme. 19th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Greek bail-out appears safe...for now We doubt that the recent bout of political uncertainty, coupled with concerns over the Government’s ability to meet the privatisation targets set by the Troika, poses a serious near-term threat to... 18th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response German ZEW Survey (Jun.) The rise in the headline ZEW index in June reinforced other data in pointing to an acceleration in the German economy. But while expectations picked up, the ‘current situation’ component fell again. 18th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update What the Dutch current account says about the euro-zone As the euro-zone periphery struggles to pay off its external debt, core countries like the Netherlands are still running record current account surpluses. But the Netherlands seems unlikely to reduce... 17th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Will deflation settle the ECB debate? The commencement last week of the German Constitutional Court hearing into the legality of the European Central Bank’s Outright Monetary Transactions (OMTs) programme has re-stoked the debate over the... 17th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Hopes that CEE investment had turned a corner are dashed The likely drop in Central & Eastern European (CEE) investment volumes in Q2 will have dashed any hopes that the trend for activity might have turned a corner. Moreover, the recent sell-off in... 13th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update The external adjustment has only just begun Most peripheral euro-zone economies have made impressive progress in narrowing their current account deficits. But so far this is only a correction in flows; theses economies have made little or no... 12th June 2013 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Industrial Production (Apr.) The solid rise in euro-zone industrial production in April suggests that the sector will expand in Q2. But industry is unlikely to spearhead a wider economic recovery. 12th June 2013 · 1 min read
