This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication . A smaller-than-expected acceleration Broad credit growth continued to rise in November thanks to a pick-up in government bond issuance, but it still came in below expectations. …
13th December 2023
Inflation drops back, but SARB to remain hawkish as core rate rises South Africa’s headline inflation rate dropped back to a slightly lower-than-expected 5.5% y/y in November, but the fresh rise in core inflation reinforces our view that the Reserve Bank …
Economy slowing at the start of Q4 The further softening in Turkish retail sales and industrial production growth in October suggests that the slowdown in the economy continued at the start of Q4. We think it’s possible that GDP contracts outright this …
Contraction in October sets scene for stagnation in 2024 Note: We’ll be discussing the Fed, ECB and Bank of England December decisions and the policy outlook for 2024 in an online briefing on Thursday, 14 th December . Click here to register for the …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Strong Tankan suggests Japan won’t slip into recession The continued improvement in the Tankan suggests that the drop in Q3 GDP was just a blip, but we still expect GDP growth …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Stronger rise in core prices buys Fed a little more time The slightly stronger 0.28% m/m rise in core consumer prices in November suggests the Fed may be able to hang onto its …
12th December 2023
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Elevated food inflation suggests no chance of imminent loosening Headline consumer price inflation rose to a three-month high of 5.6% y/y in November amid a renewed rise in food …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication . Another 50bp rate cut on the cards tomorrow The small fall in Brazil’s headline inflation rate in November, to 4.7% y/y, makes another 50bp interest rate cut (to 11.75%) at …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Sharp fall in wage growth will further fuel market rate cut expectations The sharp fall in wage growth in October will probably further fuel investors’ expectations that interest …
Sharp fall in inflation, but rates likely to be left on hold next week The fall in Czech inflation to 7.3% y/y in November means that the start of a monetary easing cycle at next week’s policy meeting is still very much a close call. But at this stage we …
11th December 2023
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Sticky inflation to force Norges Bank into one final hike The rise in the headline rate and slight fall in the core rate in November was broadly in line with the central bank’s …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication . Decline in services inflation a concern CPI fell deeper into deflationary territory last month. The main culprit continues to be food and energy prices – the rate of core …
Price pressures continue to mount The rise in Russian inflation to 7.5% y/y in November is likely to be followed by further increases in the coming months as the economy continues to overheat. We think this CPI release supports the case for a 100bp …
8th December 2023
Inflation concerns easing The plunge in the University of Michigan’s consumer inflation expectations measures in December will give reassurance to the Fed ahead of its meeting next week that there are few signs of inflationary pressures reigniting. …
Payrolls boosted by returning strikers The 199,000 increase in November payroll employment included 47,000 workers returning from strikes (30,000 UAW members and 17,000 SAG Aftra members). Stripping out that one-off boost, the 152,000 gain was roughly the …
RBI in no rush to loosen policy The RBI kept the repo rate on hold at 6.50% today as expected and continued to strike a hawkish tone. Against a backdrop of robust economic growth and a renewed rise in food inflation, we doubt the central bank will loosen …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Wage growth will stay strong Regular wage growth accelerated in October and we expect it to stay strong in the coming months as the virtuous cycle between prices and wages …
7th December 2023
Stubborn services inflation means Banxico to tread slowly with cuts Although Mexico’s headline inflation rate was weaker than expected last month (at 4.3% y/y), uncomfortably strong services inflation supports our view that Banxico’s easing cycle (likely …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Industrial recession continues The fifth successive monthly fall in industrial output in October suggests that industry will again be a drag on economic activity in Q4 and will …
Halifax confirms that prices are on the rise again The second consecutive monthly rise in the Halifax house price index in November mirrored the increase in the Nationwide index, confirming that house prices have not only stabilised, but are rising. …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication . Export volumes reach new high China’s export values rose year-on-year for the first time since May while the level of export volumes hit a fresh high, supported by exporters …
Net trade could remain a drag on growth in Q4 Notwithstanding the slight expansion in the goods trade surplus in October, net trade could subtract from growth this quarter. The rise in the goods trade surplus from a downwards-revised $6.2bn in September …
Bank maintains tightening bias, but next move likely to be a cut The policy statement from the Bank of Canada was a bit more hawkish than we expected, with the Bank reiterating that it is still concerned about the outlook for inflation and “remains …
6th December 2023
Imports and exports set for further growth in Q4 Despite the widening in the trade deficit in October, net trade looks set to be only a modest drag on fourth-quarter GDP growth. But the survey evidence suggests renewed weakness in exports may still lie …
Slump in imports only partly due to UAW strike The slump in import volumes in October was partly due to the knock-on effects of the UAW strike in the US, but it also suggests that firms are now drawing down their inventories as demand weakens. That raises …
Easing cycle paused The National Bank of Poland (NBP) left interest rates on hold as expected today, and we think the easing cycle will remain on pause until the end of Q1. With the economy recovering and the disinflation process likely to stall over the …
Falling rates allow mortgage demand to recover Falling mortgage rates sparked a modest uptick in mortgage applications for home purchase in November. Recent falls in Treasury yields mean further falls in mortgage rates are imminent, so the trough in …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Construction PMIs once again below 50 in November The headline CIPS construction PMI barely changed in November, settling at 45.5 from 45.6 in October, and was still below the 50 …
GDP growth will continue to disappoint GDP growth was softer than most expected in Q3 and with that weakness set to continue, we think that the RBA is done tightening policy. The 0.2% q/q rise in output fell short of the analyst consensus of 0.4% as well …
Muted ISM services consistent with GDP stagnation; job openings drop back The modest rebound in the ISM services index to 52.7 in November, from 51.8, left our weighted composite index at a level consistent with an outright stagnation in GDP. Admittedly, …
5th December 2023
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication . Entering a period of softer growth Brazil’s economy fared better than expected in Q3, expanding by 0.1% q/q, but the bigger picture is that the strong growth seen in the first …
This report has been updated with additional analysis, including the release of the UAE's PMI on 6th December. Gulf non-oil sectors cushioning slowdown; Egypt’s economy sputtering along The batch of PMIs for November from the Middle East and North Africa …
Economy contracts, but modest recovery likely in 2024 South Africa’s economy contracted by 0.2% q/q in Q3 and more timely indicators point to a weak end to 2023, not helped by recent disruptions to the port and freight network. But there are reasons to …
PMIs show recession and fading price pressures Final PMIs published today were revised up from the flash estimates but still suggest that the economy is probably in recession and that price pressures are fading. The final Composite PMI for the euro-zone …
RBA is done hiking rates Although the RBA won’t tighten policy any further, there is a good chance that the Bank will hold the cash rate at its current peak for longer than we anticipate. The RBA’s decision to leave rates unchanged at its meeting today …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Inflation won’t reach BoJ’s target until end-2024 While inflation excluding fresh food in Tokyo wasn’t far above the Bank of Japan’s 2% target in November, we think it will take …
4th December 2023
This publication has been updated with additonal analysis and charts. Falling inflation means rate cuts are near The unexpected fall in Swiss inflation to 1.4% in November ensures that the SNB will not be at all tempted to raise interest rates in …
This publication has been updated due to an error in the previous version. Further evidence of easing price pressures The small rise in Turkish inflation to 62.0% y/y in November adds to evidence that inflation pressures in the economy continue to cool. …
This page had been updated with additional analysis since the first publication. Manufacturing activity continues to struggle The unchanged reading of 46.7 for the ISM manufacturing index in November suggests that manufacturing activity continued to …
1st December 2023
Labour market conditions loosening The labour market is weaker than the 24,900 rise in employment might suggest, with the unemployment rate rising again and hours worked slumping by 0.7% m/m last month. The fall in hours worked means that the preliminary …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication . Further signs that Brazil’s recent outperformance has ended The meagre 0.1% m/m expansion in Brazil’s industrial production in October adds to the signs that, after a very …
A poor end to 2023 South Africa’s manufacturing PMI rose in November but it still looks like the economy will end 2023 on a weak note. That said, as the drags from loadshedding, high inflation and fiscal austerity ease, we expect a modest pick-up in …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. CEE turning a corner The manufacturing PMIs in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) rose in November suggesting that industrial sectors in the region are turning a corner, while …
This page has been updated with additional analysis and charts. Export-driven strength unlikely to last The 0.3% q/q increase in GDP was better than the consensus and our own forecasts (consensus: 0.1%; CE: 0.0%) but there was a downward revision to Q2 …
Rising prices continue to confound forecasters The further small increase in the Nationwide house price index in November was unexpected and came on the heels of an even larger rise in October. It means house prices are on track to fall by just 2% y/y in …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Manufacturing activity likely to end the year on a high note The manufacturing PMI survey for November suggests that activity continues to remain strong in Q4. The economy is on …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Labour market not out of the woods yet The renewed tightening of the labour market in October probably reflects the lagged effects from the surge in output across the first half …
30th November 2023
Today, OPEC+ announced 1mn barrels per day (bpd) of voluntary cuts to supply in Q1 2024. This comes on top of around 5mn bpd in cuts already in situ, and brings the total cut in the first quarter to around 6% of global production. The group is presumably …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. A bumpy landing so far, but recession risks remain On the face of it, the upward revision to second-quarter GDP growth combined with the preliminary estimate of a strong monthly …
Falling PCE inflation suggests rate cut speculation likely to grow The muted rise in real consumption and further decline in core PCE inflation in October will reinforce the growing belief in markets that interest rate cuts are on the horizon. Real …