Latin America Economics Update Chilean peso to end the year below 500/US$ A strong start to the year for the Chilean peso has led to renewed speculation that the central bank will be forced to intervene in FX markets to weaken the currency. While intervention is possible... 9th January 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update How far and how quickly will the Egyptian pound fall? With the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) loosening its grip on the pound, the key question is whether the authorities will succeed in overseeing an “orderly” devaluation of the currency. If an IMF deal... 8th January 2013 · 1 min read
UK Economics Focus What would Scottish independence mean for the remaining UK? We think that Scotland’s exit from the Union would be unlikely to benefit the rest of the UK and could even represent a net economic cost. The UK would probably retain some of the disadvantages of... 8th January 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Taking stock of developments in Venezuela The recent rally in Venezuelan government bonds, on the back of speculation that the deteriorating health of President Hugo Chávez will lead to a shift towards more market friendly policies, stands in... 7th January 2013 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update Softening of Basel liquidity rules not such a big deal The expansion in the range of assets that can be used to meet the new liquidity requirements under Basel III, combined with their slower implementation, is a small positive for the banking sector, but... 7th January 2013 · 1 min read
Africa Economics Update Further weakness ahead for Kenyan shilling The Kenyan shilling slipped to a seven-month low against the US$ this morning and we think that growing domestic political risk in the run-up to elections in March, coupled with a large current... 7th January 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egyptian pound has further to fall The Egyptian central bank appears to have shifted from keeping the pound pegged to the dollar to allowing a relatively gradual devaluation. We think this process has further to run and the pound could... 2nd January 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Focus Outlook for the Turkish lira still clouded by external risks Concerns are mounting that Turkey will be faced with a fresh wave of “hot” capital inflows. As it happens, we don’t think this is a credible threat – we expect a fresh escalation of the euro-crisis to... 12th December 2012 · 1 min read
UK Markets Chart Pack Gilt market takes broken debt rule in its stride As we had predicted beforehand, the Office for Budget Responsibility’s assessment that the Chancellor will break his debt rule did not prompt government bond yields to rise. Indeed, both gilt yields... 11th December 2012 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Romanian elections to put leu under spotlight The run-up to Romania’s parliamentary election on Sunday has been surprisingly quiet. But we think the markets may be underestimating the risk of fresh turbulence following the vote. 6th December 2012 · 1 min read
Global Markets Update The return of the yen carry trade? Expectations that the yen is about to fall sharply could increase the attractiveness of “carry trades” and hence become self-fulfilling. However, with global interest rates likely to remain low and... 4th December 2012 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Update Negative bank rates won't depress the Swiss franc for long Credit Suisse’s announcement that it will charge other banks for holding large Swiss franc deposits with it has helped to ease the pressure on the currency for now. But while we have revised down our... 4th December 2012 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Update Negative bank rates won’t depress the Swiss franc for long Credit Suisse’s announcement that it will charge other banks for holding large Swiss franc deposits with it has helped to ease the pressure on the currency for now. But while we have revised down our... 4th December 2012 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Focus How would exiting countries fare outside the euro-zone? Contrary to some suggestions, there are good reasons to think that, beyond the initial economic andfinancial disruption caused by an exit from the euro-zone, most of the current peripheral... 3rd December 2012 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Asian currencies undervalued, but still set to weaken Most currencies in Asia look undervalued. However, it would be wrong to conclude that Asia’s currencies are set for rapid appreciation. In 2013, we think an escalation in the euro-zone crisis will... 3rd December 2012 · 1 min read
China Economics Update PBC foreign exchange purchases set to resume Purchases of foreign exchange by the People’s Bank have slowed to a crawl this year. We believe this is a pause in, rather than the end of, China’s era of massive foreign reserve accumulation. 29th November 2012 · 1 min read
