Europe Economics Update TLTRO-III to support bank funding, but not economy The ECB’s new “TLTRO-III” programme should help to prevent credit conditions from tightening next year. But any boost to lending growth is likely to be small. 13th March 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Greek recovery likely to lose pace The Greek economy looks set to expand at a modest pace this year. But next year, it will probably slow as investment continues to contract and the slowdown in the rest of the euro-zone weighs on... 13th March 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update ECB likely to be forced into more QE in 2020 We now think that a combination of sluggish economic growth, low inflation, and monetary policy loosening in the US is likely to prompt the ECB to re-launch its net asset purchases next year. 12th March 2019 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update What could the SNB do to ease policy further? The more dovish than expected stance adopted by the ECB at today’s monetary policy meeting supports our view that the SNB will also keep rates lower for longer. And if the euro-zone economy... 7th March 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Probability of more QE this year is rising The ECB did more than expected today, announcing another round of TLTROs and pledging to leave policy rates on hold at least until next year. But with economic growth and inflation likely to remain... 7th March 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Italy’s recession likely to drag on Italy’s economy is unlikely to come out of recession in the first half of this year. Several temporary factors might lead to a small expansion in the second half of the year, but even if this happens... 5th March 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update ECB growth forecasts to remain too optimistic Philip Lane, who is due to take over as the ECB’s Chief Economist in May, acknowledged last week that Q1 2019 will probably be the third successive quarter of below-potential GDP growth. We agree with... 4th March 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Another look at the slowdown in the euro-zone The slowdown in euro-zone GDP growth in the second half of last year resulted from weaker exports and domestic demand, about half of which was due to problems in the car industry. But more recently... 26th February 2019 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Riksbank to keep rates on hold until beyond 2020 We have removed the single 25bp interest rate hike that we had pencilled in for Sweden this year, and forecast rates to remain unchanged at their current level into 2021. In fact, with risks to... 26th February 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Italy: notes from the ground We have just returned from a day of meetings with clients and local contacts in Rome. In this Update, we summarise the key takeaways from the visit. While the banks are heading in the right direction... 25th February 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Leading indicators not (yet) pointing to recession Recent movements in most of the indicators which signalled the only two recessions in the euro-zone’s history suggest that the economic outlook has deteriorated sharply. They do not yet point... 14th February 2019 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Chance of Riksbank rate hikes falling The Riksbank seems to be in denial about the weakening of Sweden’s economy. While it reiterated today that it expects to raise interest rates in the second half of this year, with the economy... 13th February 2019 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update Safe-haven flows to support the Swiss franc this year While the Swiss franc has not benefitted much from recent upheaval in markets, including yesterday’s sell-off in US equities, it has been very stable. We expect this to remain the case in 2019, as... 8th February 2019 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update German stimulus no game changer for euro-zone With the euro-zone economy slowing and the ECB short of ammunition, there will be growing calls for a big fiscal stimulus from Germany. However, we suspect that the German government will fall short... 7th February 2019 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Danish rates to stay on hold despite krone weakness The Danish krone is now close to the centre of the central bank’s exchange rate band – a level at which it has in the past unilaterally raised interest rates. However, we think it is likely to leave... 7th February 2019 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Interest rates hikes in Iceland looking less likely The Central Bank of Iceland had hinted only a few weeks ago that interest rate hikes were likely at the start of this year, but the recent economic data have been weak enough for it to hold fire today... 6th February 2019 · 1 min read
