Commodities Outlook Hard to be positive on 2019 Our forecast of slower global growth next year points to weaker growth in commodities demand and lower prices. Of course, the prices of many non-oil commodities have already fallen sharply this year... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Weekly From pot to Poloz After the legalisation of cannabis this week, next week the spotlight turns to the Bank of Canada’s policy rate announcement. The Bank looks set to raise interest rates for the third time this year... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Global Economics Update Other countries unlikely to echo the US fiscal stimulus The apparent success of the US’s recent fiscal stimulus, at least in the short term, begs the question of whether other countries should, or will, follow suit. However, we think that most would... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Existing Home Sales (Sep.) The housing market slowdown continued in September, with existing home sales seeing the largest month-on-month drop since early 2016. Sales are likely to stay weak, but with the labour market still... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Weekly Bolsonaro’s reform agenda, BCB rates hikes The plans outlined by Brazil’s likely next president, Jair Bolsonaro, to tackle some of the causes of Brazil’s productivity problem should be welcomed. But his apparent waning commitment to fiscal and... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Nordic & Swiss Economics Weekly Italian tensions will keep Swiss franc in demand Safe-haven demand for the Swiss franc increased this week as the Italian Government clashed with the EU over its 2019 Budget. With worries about Italy set to persist, we think that the franc will... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update EM consumers will continue to feel the pinch Higher oil prices have weighed on consumer conditions in the emerging world recently, but while the impact of higher energy inflation is set to fade in the months ahead, we still expect consumer... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Europe Economics Weekly Tensions between Italy and EU ratcheting up The EU is almost certain to reject Italy’s draft budget. In our view, it is most likely that a re-drafted budget would still fail to meet the EU’s rules, so Italy will probably be put into an... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
China Economics Weekly PBOC restarts FX sales, state media get new buzzword The PBOC has been hiding its efforts to support the renminbi over recent months. But a release this week showed the clear hand of the central bank: the PBOC’s balance sheet for September reveals the... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly BoJ to slow bond purchases, but not due to US US insistence that provisions against currency manipulation be a part of any future trade deal with Japan has raised suggestions this week that Japanese policymakers, particularly those at the Bank of... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
US Economics Weekly Growth still well above trend in third quarter Data next week are likely to show GDP growth slowing to 3.3% annualised in the third quarter. That would still be well above the economy’s potential growth rate but, looking under the hood, there are... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Consumer Price Index (Sep.) & Retail Sales (Aug.) September’s unexpectedly sharp drop in headline inflation will not prevent the Bank of Canada from following through with a widely-expected rate rise at its meeting next week. But further falls in... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Global Markets Outlook S&P 500, Treasury yields and US dollar all likely to fall We think that the S&P 500, Treasury yields and the US dollar will all fall by the end of next year, as a sharp slowdown in the US economy prompts the Fed to stop hiking rates sooner than investors are... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
UK Economics Weekly Brexit deadlock, outlook for real pay brightens The October European Council meeting – long billed as the moment when a Brexit deal would be done and dusted – has come and gone. And the UK and EU positions look as irreconcilable as ever. While we... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read
Asia Economics Weekly Reform hopes in Malaysia, tourists shun Thailand The election of former Malaysian deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim to the parliamentary seat of Port Dickinson last weekend bodes well for reform prospects in the country. A slump in Chinese... 19th October 2018 · 1 min read