Global Economics Update PBOC and Fed policy loosening won’t hinge on tariffs President Trump’s claim that the PBOC will loosen policy in the months ahead may prove accurate, but this will be a justified response to a weaker economy and not a direct retort to tariffs. And while... 15th May 2019 · 1 min read
Africa Economics Update South Africa: Activity data point to grim result in Q1 March retail sales figures released today added to the evidence that South Africa’s economy contracted by about 2.0% in Q1. This strengthens our belief that the next rate move will be a cut. 15th May 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response German GDP, Euro-zone GDP & Employment (Q1) Given that the improvement in Q1 was at least partly due to temporary factors, and that business surveys have remained uniformly downbeat, we suspect that the German economy will lose momentum again... 15th May 2019 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Data Response Central & Eastern Europe GDP (Q1 2019) Another strong batch of GDP data for Central and Eastern Europe suggests that strong domestic demand continued to offset weak external demand in Q1. We expect that growth will remain robust over the... 15th May 2019 · 1 min read
China Data Response Activity & Spending (Apr.) The April activity and spending data were weaker than anticipated across the board, confirming our doubts about the durability of March’s strength and increasing the likelihood of further policy... 15th May 2019 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Update Implications of the escalating trade war The impact of the renewed escalation of trade tensions between the US and China on Japan’s economy should be small even allowing for second-round effects on financial markets and confidence. A bigger... 15th May 2019 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update What the rise in US-Iran tensions means for the Gulf Mounting friction between the US and Iran is likely to cause Iran’s economic downturn to deepen but, on its own, this doesn’t pose a major problem for the Gulf economies. The bigger threat is that... 14th May 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Industrial Production (Mar.) The euro-zone industrial production data for March show that while output in the sector expanded in Q1, this was not enough to offset Q4’s contraction. And with global economic growth set to remain... 14th May 2019 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Data Response Turkey Industrial Production (Mar.) The much better-than-expected 2.1% rise in Turkish industrial production in March adds to signs that the economy grew in Q1, by around 0.5-0.8% q/q. But the recent tightening of financial conditions... 14th May 2019 · 1 min read
India Data Response Wholesale Prices (Apr.) The drop in wholesale price inflation in April will increase the clamour for another rate cut in June. But we think that underlying inflation will soon rise again, which underlines the risks... 14th May 2019 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Update The impact of the trade war on the rest of Asia The trade war between the US and China has so far had a very small impact on the rest of Asia, which has been dwarfed by the much bigger impact of the slowdown in global growth and the downturn in the... 13th May 2019 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Saudi Arabia This Briefing is a reference guide with our latest views and forecasts for Saudi Arabia’s economy, including the prospects for key macroeconomic and financial market variables such as gross domestic... 13th May 2019 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Data Response Norway’s GDP (Q1) The slowdown in mainland Norway GDP growth in Q1, from an upwardly-revised 1.1% q/q in Q4 to 0.3% in Q1, was sharper than we had expected. However, the result was driven in part by a weather-related... 13th May 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly German green shoots and Greek fiscal concerns This week saw further signs that the German economy regained some momentum at the end of Q1, as industrial production rose and exports picked up in March. But with the business surveys for March and... 10th May 2019 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Weekly Regional slowdown, Turkey’s bumpy recovery The raft of Q1 GDP data due next week are likely to show that aggregate growth in Emerging Europe slowed to its weakest pace in over two years. Much of this reflects weakness in Russia; growth in... 10th May 2019 · 1 min read
Latin America Data Response Mexico Industrial Production (Mar.) The much larger-than-expected contraction in Mexican industrial production in March, of 1.3% m/m, will diminish hopes of an upwards revision to the dire provisional Q1 GDP figure. With the economy... 10th May 2019 · 1 min read
