Global Economics Focus China’s rising trade surplus and its global implications China’s trade surplus has reached a record 1% of world GDP and looks set to rise further. It’s been driven, in part, by a surge in China’s exports – China has gained export market share across both... 30th April 2026 · 18 mins read
Europe Economics Update Lagarde prepares the ground for rate hikes While today’s decision to leave the ECB deposit rate at 2.0% was expected, President Lagarde used the press conference to signal that interest rates will rise. Unless there is a big drop-back in... 30th April 2026 · 3 mins read
Europe Rapid Response Euro-zone GDP (Q1 2026) & HICP (April 2026) The euro-zone economy lost a little pace even before the Iran war began , and the business surveys point to stagnation at the start of Q2. Meanwhile, the pick-up in inflation in April reflected higher... 30th April 2026 · 2 mins read
Europe Rapid Response Euro-zone EC Survey & German State CPI (April 2026) April’s EC survey suggests the Iran war may hit euro-zone activity a bit harder than we are forecasting. Services firms’ selling price expectations rose further but not enough for the ECB to take... 29th April 2026 · 2 mins read
Europe Economics Update ECB Bank Lending & Consumer Expectations Surveys The ECB’s Q1 Bank Lending Survey (BLS) suggests that the negative effects of higher energy prices on economic activity in the euro-zone could be bigger than we have assumed. At the same time, the jump... 28th April 2026 · 2 mins read
Europe Economics Weekly What to make of the April’s weak surveys The larger-than-expected fall in euro-zone activity surveys in April challenges our view that the hit from the Iran war will be small. But the surveys have not always been a good guide to actual... 24th April 2026 · 8 mins read
ECB Watch ECB will not rush into rate hikes The ECB is not going to raise its interest rates next week and policymakers are likely to say they will need to see more evidence of second-round effects on inflation before doing do. We think the... 23rd April 2026 · 7 mins read
Global Commercial Property Update CRE construction cost rises most impactful in retail and hotels Commercial real estate construction costs are already showing signs of rising due to the Iran war. While this will weigh on profitability of new projects, the impact will vary by sector, with retail... 23rd April 2026 · 3 mins read
Global Commercial Property Update Weaker near-term hotel outlook; Europe better placed ahead A soft consumer spending outlook and subdued business demand, reinforced by the effects of the Iran war, will weigh on global hotel demand in the coming years. Longer term, hotel performance will be... 21st April 2026 · 4 mins read
Europe Economics Weekly EZ energy import bill rising, military production booming This week, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen highlighted the jump in the EU's energy import bill since the conflict in the Middle East began, but in our baseline forecast the increase... 17th April 2026 · 6 mins read
Europe Economics Update EZ headline inflation to rise further, core little changed Headline inflation in the euro-zone rose to 2.6% in March and in our baseline forecast it increases to 3% in April then remains just above that level over the rest of the year. This increase largely... 16th April 2026 · 4 mins read
