Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt: Weak growth even before the crisis June’s PMIs fell across the whole of the MENA region. But they do not take into account the political unrest that has flared up once again in Egypt and could weigh heavily on the economy over the... 2nd July 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt's growth on shaky foundations The most surprising feature of the raft of Q1 GDP data released in the region over the past few days was that Egypt’s economy has continued to grow, despite the country’s political turmoil. However... 1st July 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Reflecting on President Morsi's first year President Morsi’s first year in office hasn’t been easy to say the least. Unemployment is up, the pound has fallen and the authorities are no closer to securing an IMF agreement. These promise to make... 28th June 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update Market turmoil unlikely to cause EMs to slow via wealth effects While at first sight it does look like the recent falls in emerging market (EM) equities could cause growth to slow via “wealth effects”, we think there are only limited grounds for concern. 28th June 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Activity Monitor EM growth slows to weakest pace since global financial crisis Our GDP Tracker suggests that the EM slowdown has continued into the start of Q2. Although all three main regions have reported disappointing growth, there are signs that the downturn in Emerging... 27th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egyptian markets in turmoil Financial markets in Egypt have been hit by a triple whammy of rising political tensions, growing concerns over the fiscal position and the continued deadlock in negotiations with the IMF. Equities... 26th June 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Financial Risk Monitor QE tapering unlikely to trigger an EM crisis We do not expect the tapering and eventual ending of QE by the US Fed to be the trigger for a systemic Emerging Market (EM) crisis. Our Capital Economics Risk Indicator (CERI) suggests that financial... 26th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Egypt back in the spotlight Investors have lost even more confidence in Egypt over the past month. The equity market has tumbled and, while this could in part be related to signals by the US Fed that it will begin to taper QE3... 24th June 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update The economic impact of Fed tapering on EMs Yesterday’s FOMC meeting cemented expectations that the Fed will start to taper its asset purchases under QE3 later this year and has weighed on EM financial markets today, but the economic impact of... 20th June 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Currency sell-off unlikely to push EM inflation up Emerging Market (EM) inflation edged down last month and looks likely to remain subdued, in spite of the recent sell-off in EM currencies. 19th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Saudi economy appears to have slowed in Q1 Our Saudi Arabia GDP tracker suggests that the economy slowed to around 3.5% y/y in Q1. Encouragingly though, there are tentative signs that the slowdown bottomed out at the start of the second... 19th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt: pound's devaluation has further to go In spite of the Central Bank of Egypt’s best efforts, it appears to be only a matter of time before the Egyptian pound breaks through 7/US$. And there is a growing risk that, without an IMF deal, the... 18th June 2013 · 1 min read
Commodities Update Are oil prices set to take off due to Syria risks? Fears that Western intervention in Syria could increase the risks of a broader Middle East conflict have already put some upward pressure on the price of Brent crude. However, even if tensions do... 17th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update What would the tapering of QE mean for the MENA region? Fears that the US Fed may begin to taper its third round of quantitative easing (QE) have led to a sell-off in emerging market assets over the past few weeks. The MENA region has escaped relatively... 13th June 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update Which EMs should be worried about weaker currencies? Most EMs are likely to tolerate the recent sell-off in their currencies. In some places this may even be welcomed. But there are a few exceptions. Inflation concerns mean that currency weakness will... 12th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update MSCI reclassifications likely to have limited impact Financial markets have reacted positively to the news that MSCI has upgraded Qatar and the UAE to Emerging Market status. But we fear that the eventual benefit may be lower than some seem to expect. 12th June 2013 · 1 min read
