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
Global Economics Update Global interest rates have much further to fall Today’s coordinated half-point rate cuts from all the major central banks (except Japan, where rates were already just 0.5%) are clearly welcome and may provide a temporary boost to confidence. But we... 8th October 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Some better news on food prices Lower oil prices have provided a little support to equity markets in the last few days, but it is worth noting that agricultural commodities have been dropping back too. The scene is being set for... 18th July 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Central banks still have a lot more work to do The Bank of England’s Financial Stability Report, published this morning, suggests that the worst of the global financial crisis may now be over. The immediate threat of a full-blown meltdown has... 1st May 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update World trade slowing, but unlikely to collapse Developments in world trade are one indication of the ability of the global economy to “decouple” from the recession in the US. The most recent numbers are fairly reassuring. We expect the pace of... 24th April 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Why the US should avoid a Japan-style lost decade 17th April 2008 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Is the dollar's reserve currency status under threat? The sub-prime crisis in US financial markets does not yet appear to have turned the dollar into a subprime currency. The latest IMF data show that despite the weakness of the dollar over several years... 15th April 2008 · 1 min read
