Europe Economics Weekly Crunch time for Italy? A rejection of Matteo Renzi’s proposed constitutional reforms in Sunday’s referendum could plausibly set Italy on a path towards an eventual exit from the euro-zone, an outcome not remotely priced in... 2nd December 2016 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update Are euro-periphery bond yields heading higher? The backstops that have been put in place to hold the euro-zone together could limit extra upward pressure on Italian – and other euro-periphery – government bond yields if voters in Italy reject... 2nd December 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Unemployment (Oct.) & Italian GDP (Q3) October’s euro-zone unemployment data show that the labour market recovery has regained some pace. But the rate of unemployment is still high and recent developments are consistent with pretty slow... 1st December 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Should investors be concerned by the rise in Italian bond yields? Italian government bond yields have almost doubled over the past few weeks. Nevertheless, we do not see this as a reason for property investors to panic and expect prime Italian property yields to... 24th November 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update What if Italy votes “no”? The final opinion polls ahead of Italy’s forthcoming referendum suggest that the public will reject the proposed constitutional reforms. The low level of bond yields suggests that investors are not... 21st November 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Where is political risk greatest? Last week’s US election result raised the question of where the next political shock might be. The popularity of far-right candidates and forthcoming major elections make France and the Netherlands... 11th November 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Is Italy now most likely to leave the euro-zone? According to the Sentix investor survey, Italy is now the most likely country to leave the euro-zone in the next 12 months. While we think that Italy remaining in the currency union is still the more... 4th November 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Is investor confidence in Madrid offices misplaced? A sharp decline in prime Madrid office yields has fully closed the spread over Milan for just the third time since 1991. With a stronger economic outlook, we think investors will continue to favour... 13th October 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Italy’s constitutional referendum poses economic risks The Government confirmed today that the constitutional reform referendum will take place on 4thDecember. We think that a rejection of the reforms is a major risk to the economic outlook. 26th September 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update What is Italy’s referendum all about? Italy’s forthcoming referendum on constitutional reform is expected to take place in October or November. If the reform is accepted, it could make governments more stable and passing legislation... 26th August 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Italy’s stagnation may soon turn to recession Italy’s economic recovery is slowing. And with big risks to the near-term outlook from the banking sector and the forthcoming referendum on constitutional reform, we suspect that the economy is... 15th August 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Focus How big a threat are Italy’s banks? Italian banks are in trouble and there are no quick fixes for their problems. We think that policymakers will provide support to lenders this year, but this is unlikely to resolve banks’ underlying... 28th July 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Weakening Italian economy to hit office rental growth Office rental growth in Italy is set to be negatively affected by a slowdown in the Italian economy, including weaker employment growth. And coupled with political uncertainty, the office market looks... 13th July 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update After Brexit, will Quitaly be next? Italian opposition to the EU is strong and several forces could cause that hostility to grow. October’s constitutional reform referendum will provide voters with an opportunity to oust the prime... 29th June 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Retail rental growth to cool in Italy Retail rents in Milan and Rome rose sharply last year. But a slowdown in the Italian economy and consumer spending growth over the coming years will mean that rental growth now eases back. 10th June 2016 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response French & Italian Industrial Production (Apr.) April’s increases in French and Italian industrial production support the message from Germany that the sector had a decent month. But growth still looks set to slow in Q2 and over the rest of the... 10th June 2016 · 1 min read