Europe Economics Update On the road to fiscal union? Decisive steps towards greater fiscal integration across the euro-zone seem vital if the currency union is going to hold together in its current form. But recent comments from Angela Merkel and... 18th August 2011 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update Does rising credit risk pose a threat to Bunds? The cost of insuring against a default by the German government for five years has nearly doubled since early July and now exceeds the cost of insuring against a default by the UK government for the... 18th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Euro-zone crisis another headache for Iceland The Icelandic central bank’s surprise interest rate hike today was in stark contrast to the increasingly dovish tone of other central banks around the world. The move reflected a sharp increase in... 18th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Does Germany still want to save the euro? Germany’s reluctance or political inability to implement stronger measures to support the euro-zone’s periphery suggests that its appetite for the project might be fading. While euro-zone membership... 18th August 2011 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Euro-zone crisis another headache for Iceland The Icelandic central bank’s surprise interest rate hike today was in stark contrast to the increasingly dovish tone of other central banks around the world. The move reflected a sharp increase in... 17th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Euro-zone GDP figures point to softening property investment market Now that it is clear that the economic weakness observed in the euro-zone’s peripheral economies over the past year or so is spreading to the region’s core, commercial property investors might begin... 17th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Market relief for Portugal likely to be short-lived Market pressure on Portugal has eased over the past weeks. But we remain sceptical that the ECB’s bond purchases and the agreement reached by euro-zone policymakers last month can be a lasting... 17th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone GDP (Q2) Q2’s euro-zone GDP figures revealed that the recovery has slowed dramatically. With even the previously healthy core economies now barely expanding, we maintain our far below consensus forecast that... 17th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Will industrial rents in Belgian and Dutch markets continue to lead? The relatively strong macro drivers of industrial occupier demand in Belgium and the Netherlands are consistent with the fact that industrial rents in Brussels and Amsterdam are outperforming the rest... 16th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly French fears deepen crisis Last week saw markets respond fairly positively to the ECB’s bond purchases and Spanish and Italian bond yields fell sharply from dangerously high levels. At the same time, though, France has been... 16th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Risks of fresh declines in French retail rents have increased To date, the strength of demand from international retailers seeking to enter the French retail market has been sufficient to offset softening demand from incumbent brands, in turn helping to support... 13th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Industrial Prod. (Jun.) & French & Greek GDP (Q2) June’s euro-zone industrial production data and Q2’s French GDP figures provide further strong indications that economic growth in the region as a whole slowed sharply in Q2. 13th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update What more can the SNB do? The Swiss National Bank has not exhausted all options to stem the franc’s appreciation and might yet try capital controls or direct intervention in currency markets. But internationally co-ordinated... 12th August 2011 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update What more can the SNB do? The Swiss National Bank has not exhausted all options to stem the franc’s appreciation and might yet try capital controls or direct intervention in currency markets. But internationally co-ordinated... 11th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Could German courts block the bail-outs? The ongoing case in the German Constitutional Court against providing financial support for Greece is unlikely to lead to an outright ban on bail-outs. But the court could insist that Germany is... 11th August 2011 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Plunging equity markets exacerbate growth risks The recent plunge in equity markets may not necessarily have severe negative consequences for euro-zone growth. But when combined with the region’s other problems it supports our long-held bearish... 11th August 2011 · 1 min read
