Emerging Europe Economics Update Romania likely to cut rates further Following today's decision to lower interest rates, the Romanian central bank hinted that further policy easing could be on the cards. The country's large external financing needs limit the scope for... 8th January 2014 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Fall in the lira may trigger Turkish rate hike The Turkish central bank has been extremely reluctant to raise official interest rates over the past year or so. However, the recent fall in the lira may now force its hand. On balance, we think it is... 7th January 2014 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update What might Turkey’s political crisis mean for the economy? The eruption of a high-level corruption scandal in Turkey over the past few weeks has cast a spotlight onto the country's political stability. Better governance appears to have played a key role in... 2nd January 2014 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update December’s PMIs highlight fragile recovery Manufacturing PMIs fell across Emerging Europe last month. Russia aside, the PMI readings are still high by the standard of the past couple of years. Even so, today’s data serve as a reminder that the... 2nd January 2014 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update A rollercoaster month for Ukraine’s financial markets Escalating political protests caused Ukrainian bond yields and CDS premia to spike at the start of the month. However, following the announcement that Ukraine will receive financial assistance from... 20th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Central Europe to keep rates low, Turkey set to tighten The Turkish central bank took small steps to tighten monetary conditions today but, given the country's vulnerability to Fed tapering, more aggressive measures could be needed next year. In contrast... 17th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update EM inflation to stay low in 2014 Emerging market (EM) inflation remained low by historic standards in November. Recent declines in global commodity prices should dampen inflation over the coming months, while we see little sign of... 17th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update How big is the deflation threat in Central Europe? The weakness of the latest inflation data in Central Europe has sparked fears that, like the euro-zone, the region could be at risk of falling into a deflationary spiral. In this Watch, we argue that... 16th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Russian rate cuts now look unlikely The latest rise in Russian inflation, coupled with mounting concerns over the rapid expansion of consumer credit, mean that even the modest cuts in interest rates that we had pencilled in for early... 13th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Turkey: a decent Q3, but risks growing Turkish GDP growth held up relatively well in Q3 in spite of the turmoil in the financial markets and a substantial tightening of monetary policy. However, this was made possible by a rapid expansion... 10th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update What are the risks of Russia’s consumer debt build-up? Recent comments from Elvira Nabiullina, the Governor of Russia’s central bank, have raised questions about the sustainability of Russia’s boom in consumer lending. While it may be too early to worry... 9th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Ukraine: currency crisis seems a bigger threat than debt default The recent escalation of political protests in Kiev has put Ukraine's fragile external position back in the spotlight. A full-blown balance of payments crisis remains a real risk. The one crumb of... 5th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Polish interest rate hikes unlikely until 2015 Governor Belka reiterated his “forward guidance” at today’s post-MPC meeting press conference, pledging not to raise interest rates until the end of the first half of 2014 at the earliest. For our... 4th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Recovery in Q3 led by pick-up in export growth The breakdown of GDP data released this morning for several Central and South Eastern European economies confirmed that the moderate recovery in the third quarter was supported in large part by... 4th December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Political unrest could push Ukraine into an economic crisis The reaction in the Ukrainian financial markets to escalating political protests in Kiev has been smaller than might have been expected. There is a large amount of uncertainty about what will happen... 2nd December 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update November’s PMIs suggest recovery is strengthening The latest PMIs for Emerging Europe show that the region's manufacturing sector strengthened further in November. The important exception is Russia, whose PMI fell back last month, adding to the... 2nd December 2013 · 1 min read