Emerging Europe Economics Update Further downside for the Turkish lira The Turkish lira has strengthened a little today, but it has been the worst-performing major EM currency this month. We have revisited our forecasts and we now expect further falls in the currency... 30th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Inflation nudges down again Aggregate EM inflation ticked down between August and September on the back of a fall in food inflation in East Asia. This appears to have been due to a shift in the timing of holidays in the region... 27th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Russian central bank hints at larger easing cycle The Russian central bank statement, which accompanied today’s decision to cut the policy rate by 25bp, suggests that policymakers have become increasingly confident that inflation will remain low and... 27th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Turkish MPC steps up hawkish rhetoric The hawkish tone of today’s Turkish MPC statement showed an overdue concern with high inflation (and expectations) and suggests that cuts in interest rates are off the agenda. That said, with... 26th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Czech coalition negotiations likely to be a long drag Events over the past 24 hours have confirmed our view that, while the centre-right ANO party would prevail in the country’s elections, the challenging part will be forming a coalition government... 24th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update What’s behind the rise in Turkish inflation? The surprising jump in Turkish inflation in the past few months appears to be mainly due to a combination of a rise in dairy and egg inflation, the lingering impact of previous falls in the lira as... 19th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update A look ahead to the Czech elections The centre-right ANO is likely to emerge as the single largest party in Friday’s parliamentary election in the Czech Republic, which may open the door to looser fiscal policy. That said, there are... 17th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Turkey’s external vulnerabilities back under the microscope Turkey’s recent diplomatic spat with the US – and the subsequent sell-off in financial markets – has refocussed attention on the economy’s external vulnerabilities. We have two areas of concern: the... 11th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Poland’s MPC stays dovish, but rate hikes on the cards in 2018 Poland’s MPC left interest rates unchanged today and the press statement and conference that followed struck a dovish tone. While headline inflation is likely to edge down in the final months of this... 4th October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Romanian MPC begins aggressive tightening cycle The Romanian MPC’s decision to raise its overnight deposit interest rate represents a move to tighten monetary policy – even though the policy rate was left unchanged. Policymakers struck a fairly... 3rd October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Taking stock of our forecasts Growth in Emerging Europe has generally surprised on the upside in recent quarters, which is consistent with the above-consensus forecasts we made at the start of this year. We expect further positive... 2nd October 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Czech MPC set to hike in November The Czech MPC’s decision to keep rates on hold today was a very close call and we think that an interest rate hike at the next MPC meeting on 2nd November is highly likely. Following that, our central... 27th September 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Wages, not the forint, the biggest risk facing Hungary’s MPC The move by Hungary’s MPC to loosen monetary policy last week appears to have been aimed at weakening the forint, which looks to us like a step in the wrong direction. The key threat to inflation and... 26th September 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Turkish equities tumble amid Kurdish referendum fears Worries about spillovers from the independence referendum being held today in Iraq’s Kurdish region have led to a sharp drop in Turkey’s stock market over the past week. However, any impact on Turkey... 25th September 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update EM inflation picks up from eight-year low Aggregate EM inflation rebounded in August, having fallen to an eight-year low in July. But while we expect fuel and food inflation to edge up over the coming months, easing core price pressures... 25th September 2017 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Hungarian MPC underestimating inflation risks The decision by the Hungarian MPC to ease monetary conditions further today looks like a policy misstep. Mounting capacity constraints and rapid wage growth mean that we think inflation will turn out... 19th September 2017 · 1 min read