Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Interest rate hikes in Norway still a long way off The Norges Bank left its key policy rate unchanged after its meeting today and brought the date at which it forecasts raising interest rates forward to autumn 2018. We think that it will wait until... 14th December 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update SNB sits tight as franc still seen as “highly valued” The Swiss National Bank today reiterated that the Swiss franc remained “highly valued” and that it still needed to keep interest rates at rock-bottom levels and intervene in the currency markets as... 14th December 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Icelandic policy rate on hold next year Following today’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged, the Central Bank of Iceland (CBI) noted that looser fiscal policy is a short-term risk to the monetary policy outlook. While we expect the... 13th December 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Should we be concerned about German house prices? The recent strength of German house price inflation is a justifiable response to increased urbanisation and a shift towards home ownership there. Given that mortgage lending growth remains moderate... 11th December 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Reviewing 2017 and looking ahead to 2018 In this Watch, we evaluate the performance of Nordic and Swiss economies in 2017 and set out our key calls for next year. 5th December 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Euro-zone Fiscal Monitor (Nov.) Recent fiscal data suggest that most of the euro-zone’s peripheral countries have made further progress in reducing their deficits during 2017. 4th December 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Housing market concerns weigh on Swedish markets Concerns about the prospect of a house price correction were felt across Swedish markets in November, with the krona slumping, bond yields declining and equities falling. Most other Nordic and Swiss... 1st December 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update What would a “hard border” mean for Ireland? A so-called “hard border” between Ireland and the UK could hit the Irish economy pretty hard. But it would also present some opportunities, for example from UK financial firms relocating to Dublin. 29th November 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Euro-zone Monetary Indicators Monitor (Oct.) Euro-zone lending growth strengthened in October, and with the ECB set to normalise monetary policy only very slowly, we think that bank lending will continue to support the economic recovery. 28th November 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Swedish house prices to stabilise next year We think that concerns about the Swedish housing market are overblown. While house prices are likely to edge down further in the coming months, we expect them to stabilise next year. 24th November 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Italian banks are on the mend, but recovery will be slow Italy’s banks are on the mend, but it will be a very long time before they get a clean bill of health. As long as they remain weak, the economic recovery will be vulnerable to a loss of confidence in... 22nd November 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Will Finland’s strong economic recovery continue? Finland’s economic prospects look brighter than they have for several years. So as the ECB gradually scales back its stimulus over the next few years, we think that Finland’s government bond yields... 21st November 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update German political crisis to have modest economic effects We doubt that the German political crisis will seriously damage business or consumer confidence. And given the similarities between the major parties’ economic policies, the ultimate form of the... 21st November 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Icelandic monetary policy to be unchanged until 2019 Following today’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged, the Central Bank of Iceland (CBI) appears to have reached the end of its loosening cycle. We expect the Bank to keep rates on hold until... 15th November 2017 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Is the Italian economy finally turning a corner? This year, the Italian economy looks set to record its best performance since 2010. And we doubt that uncertainty in the run-up to next year’s general election will bring the recovery to a halt. But... 14th November 2017 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Markets underestimating Riksbank rate rises As today’s minutes show few signs that policymakers are concerned about the economy overheating, we have pushed back our forecast for a rate rise to September 2018. But we still expect rates to be... 9th November 2017 · 1 min read
