Inflation eases and to remain low over 2025 This response has been updated with additional analysis of wholesale prices. Saudi Arabia’s headline inflation rate eased a touch from 2.0% y/y in November to 1.9% y/y in December and it is likely to hover …
15th January 2025
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Soft surprise boosts February rate cut odds While a lot of the surprisingly large fall in services inflation from 5.0% in November to 4.4% in December (CE forecast 4.8%, BoE …
Jump in airfare prices bad news for core PCE On the surface, the weaker than expected 0.2% m/m increase in final demand PPI and unchanged level of core final demand PPI in December seems encouraging, but they mask some price jumps in a few of the key …
14th January 2025
Broad credit growth rebounds despite weak private demand Broad credit growth rebounded last month, but bank loan growth continued to hit record lows . We expect robust government bond issuance to continue supporting credit growth over the coming quarters. …
Fall in headline inflation boosts February rate cut odds The further moderation in Indian headline consumer price inflation in December supports our view that the monetary easing cycle will kick off at the RBI’s next policy meeting in February. The …
13th January 2025
Exports to remain strong until Trump tariffs hit Export growth rebounded last month, with both export values and volumes posting double-digit y/y gains. We expect shipments to remain strong in the coming months, as US importers continue to stockpile …
Even Republicans growing concerned about Trump’s policy plans The drop in the expectations index of the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Survey in January and the accompanying jump in inflation expectations suggest that consumers are becoming …
10th January 2025
Strong across the board The larger-than-expected 256,000 gain in non-farm payrolls in December and drop back in the unemployment rate to 4.1% supports the Fed’s decision to slow the pace of rate cuts and has heightened speculation that the loosening cycle …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Jump in employment raises chance of Bank pause The huge gain in employment in December supports our view that labour market conditions are strengthening, despite the recent …
Copom to press ahead with more hikes despite fall in inflation The fall in Brazil’s headline inflation rate in December, to 4.8% y/y, coupled with the rebound in the real over the past couple of weeks, won’t be enough to stop Copom following through with …
Fall in inflation paves the way for further easing The larger-than-expected fall in Mexico’s headline inflation rate, to 4.2% y/y in December keeps the door open for another 25bp cut at Banxico’s February meeting. But a lot will hinge on moves on the …
9th January 2025
Weak retail sales at the end of last year The 0.1% m/m increase in euro-zone retail sales in November was a little worse than expected (CE +0.7%, consensus +0.4%) and follows a fall in sales of 0.3% in October (previously estimated at -0.5%). This …
Inflation to continue on its downward path, rate cuts on the way Egypt’s headline inflation rate slowed from 25.5% y/y in November to 24.1% y/y in December, its slowest pace in two years. With earlier falls in the pound falling out of the annual price …
November pick-up but outlook still poor German industrial production picked up in November. But the level of output was still very low by past standards and with industry facing several structural headwinds we expect the sector to continue to struggle …
Uptick in underlying inflation consistent with demand recovery Headline CPI inflation fell last month but this was driven by weather-related volatility in food prices. More important is that core CPI and PPI both picked up, adding to signs that policy …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Consumer spending showing tentative signs of life Although the boost from November Black Friday sales disappointed expectations a bit, consumer spending does appear to have been …
Regular earnings growth will hold strong at just under 3% this year Growth in base pay rose to its highest figure since 1992 in November, and we think that it will continue to hold strong through to this year. According to today’s preliminary estimate, …
8th January 2025
Fed worried by potential impact of Trump policy agenda After Chair Jerome Powell made a big fuss about claiming in last November’s press conference that the Fed wouldn’t speculate about what policies the incoming Trump administration will adopt, the …
Weak mortgage demand supports our gloomy home sales forecast The small decline in purchase mortgage applications in December is worse than it looks, as it masks a collapse in demand in the final few weeks of the month, driven by mortgage rates climbing …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. EC survey points to economy stagnating and price pressures remaining sticky The EC survey is broadly consistent with euro-zone GDP stagnating in Q4. It also suggests that …
Inflation lower than expected, Riksbank to cut in January The fall in inflation in December will ease policymakers’ concerns about upside risks to inflation. We had previously been expecting them to wait until March before cutting the policy rate for a …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Disinflation gathering momentum The RBA is unlikely to pay much heed to the slight pickup in headline inflation in November. In fact, with underlying price pressures showing …
ISM services index rebounds, but surge in prices paid a worry The rebound in the ISM services index in December will soothe concerns that the services sector is starting to run out of steam. Less positively, the surge in the prices paid index to a nearly …
7th January 2025
Export volumes continue to recover The third consecutive rise in export volumes in November provides further evidence that the economy was gaining momentum at the end of last year. US tariffs could cause the recovery to go into reverse this year, but that …
Exports and imports rebound after port strike disruption The US trade deficit widened again to $78.2bn in November, from $73.6bn, as imports rebounded by 3.4%, outpacing a 2.7% recovery in exports, with shipments in both directions recovering after the …
Construction activity continues to expand despite drag from housing The headline CIPS construction PMI eased to a six-month low of 53.3 in December, from 55.2 in November, although that indicates construction activity is still expanding. The decline in …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Sticky services inflation suggests ECB will continue cutting slowly The continued stickiness of euro-zone services inflation means that the ECB is likely to keep cutting interest …
Inflation down in December and to fall sharply this year The fall in Swiss inflation in December suggests that the SNB’s decision to cut by a bumper 50bp in December was fully justified. We think the SNB will cut the policy rate by a further 25bp at its …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. House prices may be losing a bit of momentum going into 2025 The small fall in the Halifax house price index in December is at odds with the chunky rise in the Nationwide measure …
BoI strikes a slightly more dovish tone as rates stay on hold The Bank of Israel (BoI) left its policy rate on hold again today, at 4.50%, but the accompanying communications struck a slightly more dovish tone and we think that it will be in a position to …
6th January 2025
Higher-than-expected inflation in December Data for Germany and Spain suggest euro-zone inflation was higher than expected in December. However, we still think that inflation is likely to undershoot the ECB’s forecasts later this year causing the Bank to …
A softer end to 2024 December’s batch of PMIs declined for the most part across the Gulf but we doubt that the strength of non-oil activity will be sustained in 2025, particularly in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Elsewhere, Egypt’s PMI fell to an eight month …
Manufacturing outlook looking less gloomy Building on the November rebound, the further small rise in the ISM manufacturing index in December suggests the sector is starting the year in better shape after a tough 2024. The 0.9-point rise in the headline …
3rd January 2025
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Downbeat sentiment continues to weigh on households’ financial decisions November’s money and lending data suggests that households’ caution with their borrowing and saving ahead …
Fall in inflation points to 250bp rate cut this month The larger-than-expected fall in inflation in Turkey last month, to 44.4%, points towards another 250bp interest rate cut, to 45.0%, at the next central bank meeting on 23rd January. The outturn was …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Strong end to 2024 and outlook for 2025 better than most expect December’s better-than-expected 0.7% m/m increase in Nationwide house prices means that prices continued to gather …
2nd January 2025
Non-manufacturing sector recovers strongly This report was first published on the 31 st December covering the official PMIs. We added commentary on the Caixin manufacturing PMI on 2 nd January and the Caixin services and composite PMIs on 6 th January. …
31st December 2024
Bank unlikely to cut rates before May The minutes of the RBA’s December meeting struck a slightly dovish tone. However, with the labour market still firing on all cylinders, we doubt the Board will risk loosening policy prematurely. Accordingly, we still …
24th December 2024
Green shoots emerging The stronger-than-expected increase in GDP in October and upward revisions to the prior two months leaves fourth-quarter growth on track to accelerate to 2% annualised, raising the chance of the Bank of Canada pausing at its next …
23rd December 2024
Fall in inflation paves the way for further easing The fall in Mexican inflation in the first half of December, to 4.4% y/y, gives Banxico room to continue to ease monetary policy. But we expect Banxico to continue to cut in 25bp steps, rather than step …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Economy is going nowhere, although households in a decent position The downward revision to Q3 GDP from +0.1% q/q to 0.0% (consensus and CE 0.1%) isn’t quite as bad as it looks …
Real economy still strong; as price pressures ease again The 0.11% m/m increase in core PCE prices in November was the smallest gain in six months, although it follows on the heels of two above-target ~0.25% gains in the preceding two months. That …
20th December 2024
Consumption losing momentum again Retail sales volumes were unchanged in October, bringing a run of strong consecutive monthly gains to an end. Moreover, the preliminary estimate that sales values were unchanged in November too suggests this may be the …
A rare dovish surprise from the CBR The unexpected decision by Russia’s central bank to leave interest rates on hold at 21.00% today, rather than hike further, sparks a lot of questions about the central bank’s reaction function – and whether it may be …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Little festive cheer for retailers The 0.2% m/m rebound in retail sales volumes in November was slightly worse than expected (consensus +0.5% m/m) and leaves sales on course to …
This page has been updated with additional analysis since first publication. Some good news, but extra revenue-raising measures may still be required Christmas has come early for the Chancellor with borrowing undershooting expectations in November. But …
Surge in headline inflation won’t last, but underlying inflation to remain near target November’s surge in inflation wasn’t a surprise – the Bank of Japan will have known it was on the cards when it decided not to hike rates yesterday. But it should add …
19th December 2024
Banxico cuts, but pace of easing unlikely to be stepped up Mexico’s central bank unanimously decided to deliver another 25bp interest rate cut, to 10.00%, at today’s meeting and the statement flagged that the easing cycle will continue in the coming …
Home sales finally gain some momentum The increase in existing home sales in November, despite rising mortgage rates and weakening mortgage applications the month before, points to stronger demand from cash buyers, possibly driven by investors as election …
Easing on pause as the neutral level approaches The Czech central bank (CNB) left its policy rate on hold at 4.00% today, but we think that the easing cycle will resume before long. We still expect rates to fall towards 3.00% by the end of next year. …
