US Economics Focus Dwindling slack will soon lead to surge in wage growth We believe that the slack in the labour market is dwindling and we expect a resulting accelerationin wage growth to be one of the big stories over the next 12 months. Unless productivity growth breaks... 12th August 2014 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Labour Force Survey (Jul.) Canada's labour market continued to misfire in July. We can't help thinking that if the Bank of Canada had a dual inflation/employment mandate like the Fed, then it would now be seriously considering... 8th August 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Consumer spending in Emerging Asia set for recovery Emerging Asia’s consumers have been struggling in recent months. Tight labour markets and improving growth prospects point to some pick-up going forward, but high levels of household debt in a number... 4th August 2014 · 1 min read
US Data Response Employment Report (Jul.) It is a sign of how far the US economy has come in recent months that the 209,000increase in non-farm payroll employment in July will probably be viewed as adisappointment in the markets. The... 1st August 2014 · 1 min read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Flash CPI (Jul.) & Unemployment (Jun.) July’s flash euro-zone consumer prices data underlined the continued weaknessof price pressures in the currency union and supported our view that the ECB hasmore work to do to tackle the risk of... 31st July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook North Africa getting back on its feet Three years on from the “Arab Spring” uprisings, the tide is turning in favour of the economies of North Africa. Admittedly, there are still many challenges, not least reining in large twin current... 31st July 2014 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Labour Cash Earnings (June) While headline wage growth disappointed last month, the rise in base pay is reassuring. 31st July 2014 · 1 min read
Asia Chart Pack Property price worries prompt rate hikes The central banks of New Zealand, the Philippines and Malaysia all tightened monetary policy last month amid signs that policymakers are becoming increasingly concerned that loose monetary policy is... 30th July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Signs of recovery in North Africa Following a difficult few years, the latest data have provided further evidence that things are improving in North Africa. It looks like growth in both Tunisia and Egypt accelerated over the first... 29th July 2014 · 1 min read
US Chart Pack Widening trade deficit due to strong domestic demand Although the trade deficit has widened in recent months, the increase is largely due to the strength of imports rather than the weakness of exports. Our calculations suggest that exports increased at... 29th July 2014 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Small Business Confidence (Jul.) While the renewed improvement in small business confidence in July lifted the index well above its long-term average, the survey still points to sluggish industrial output. 29th July 2014 · 1 min read
Japan Data Response Unemployment, Retail Sales & Household Spending (Jun.) Today's data showed the second consecutive rise in retail sales following April's plunge and a tightening labour market suggests that the recovery in consumer spending should continue in coming months... 29th July 2014 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Are tensions with China hurting exports? Japan’s share of Chinese imports has fallen below that of the EU and South Korea recently. One reason is that large numbers of Japanese firms have shifted production facilities to China. This shouldn... 25th July 2014 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Argentina teeters on the brink of another default With talks between Buenos Aires and holdout bondholders seemingly having stalled, it appears increasingly likely that Argentina will be prevented from making an interest payment that is due on... 25th July 2014 · 1 min read
US Employment Report Preview Surge in part-time employment is not a big concern Our econometric model suggests that non-farmpayroll employment increased by around 225,000in July. That would be smaller than June’s increaseof 288,000, but it would still be consistent withjob growth... 24th July 2014 · 1 min read
US Economics Focus A cyclical rise in wage growth is underway A cyclical rise in wage growth appears to be underway in some sectors of the economy and in some US States. This suggests it is only a matter of time before the decline in the national unemployment... 21st July 2014 · 1 min read
