Global Economics Update G20 action on trade finance could be the one big positive This week’s London G20 summit is in danger of over-promising and under-delivering. The chances of an additional global fiscal stimulus look remote and there is no sign of agreement on the best ways to... 30th March 2009 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update No dislodging the dollar The suggestion by China’s central bank governor that the dollar be replaced as the world’s reserve currency may have been prompted by concern about the impact of the Fed’s quantitative easing on the... 24th March 2009 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Bank of Canada cuts rates & hints at shift to QE With its key interest rate now perilously close to zero it was no surprise that the Bank of Canada (BoC) announced today that next month it will unveil a framework for the possible implementation of... 3rd March 2009 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Does Zimbabwe provide any lessons for QE? It is tempting to argue that the quantitative easing (QE) now being adopted in the US and the UK, among others, differs only in degree from the reckless printing of money that contributed to the hyper... 17th February 2009 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Bank of Canada cut rates to record low The Bank of Canada cut its key policy rate by 50 basis points today, to a record low of only 1.0, and left the door open to further reductions in the coming months. The close financial and trade links... 20th January 2009 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update What would be the implications of an Ecuadorian default? 9th December 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Global fiscal stimulus still falling short Governments across the world have announced tax cuts and spending increases in an attempt to prevent global recession from turning into a prolonged depression. However, the measures still fall well... 28th November 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update How low can interest rates go? There may be some practical reasons why the floor for official interest rates should be set slightly higher than zero - perhaps 0.25% or 0.5%. But the long period of zero interest rates in Japan... 20th November 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update G20 short on specifics but long on good intentions 16th November 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update How much should we worry about deflation? It is increasingly likely that headline inflation will turn negative in many major economies at some point in the coming year. But whether this would be a bad thing or a good thing depends largely on... 3rd November 2008 · 1 min read
