Europe Data Response Euro-zone Final HICP (Aug.) Rising costs – from shipping to energy – are likely to push euro-zone inflation up even further in the coming months. They might also mean that it doesn’t fall quite as quickly next year as we... 17th September 2021 · 2 mins read
UK Economics Retail Sales (Aug.) The fourth consecutive fall in retail sales in August isn’t as bad as it looks as some of it reflects households spending more on non-retail items as life returns closer to normal. But as non-retail... 17th September 2021 · 3 mins read
UK Economics Slowing recovery eases pressure to hike The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) signalled in August that it is getting closer to raising interest rates, but the gloomy tone of the recent news on the global and UK economies will have reduced the... 16th September 2021 · 9 mins read
Europe Commercial Property Outlook Sector fortunes to shift While the Delta variant has slowed economic activity in other parts of the world, this has not yet been the case in the euro-zone, and we are cautiously optimistic that the bloc will continue to grow... 16th September 2021 · 31 mins read
UK Housing Market Update House price boom has further to run The end of the stamp duty holiday may do little to dampen demand and homes for sale are in short supply. The upshot is that house price growth will remain strong into next year, so we have revised up... 16th September 2021 · 3 mins read
Europe Commercial Property Update Are we underestimating the global property upturn? The most recent commercial property data have been surprisingly upbeat and have raised the possibility that the recovery could be stronger than expected. But we think investors may have run ahead of... 16th September 2021 · 3 mins read
UK Economics The rise in consumer prices is not widespread A deeper dive into the CPI figures supports our initial analysis that the bulk of the jump in inflation from 2.0% in July to 3.2% in August is due to base effects linked to falling consumer prices in... 15th September 2021 · 3 mins read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Russia’s election: social redistribution in focus A victory for United Russia in the Duma elections this week will strengthen the government’s recent focus on state intervention in the economy. Social redistribution has become a key priority for the... 15th September 2021 · 5 mins read
Europe Data Response EZ Hourly Labour Costs (Q2) & Ind. Prod. (Jul.) The sharp fall in euro-zone average hourly labour costs in Q2 compared to a year earlier was mainly due to pandemic-related distortions to the data that will continue to muddy the picture for another... 15th September 2021 · 3 mins read
UK Economics Consumer Prices (Aug.) The leap in CPI inflation from 2.0% in July to a nine-year high of 3.2% in August (consensus 2.9%, CE 3.1%) is the first step in a rise that may take inflation to 4.5% or above by November. But as... 15th September 2021 · 3 mins read
Emerging Europe Data Response Israel Consumer Prices (Aug.) The rise in Israeli inflation to an 8-year high of 2.2% y/y in August was partly driven by a chunky rise in housing costs, but there are signs that “re-opening inflation” in services has run its... 14th September 2021 · 2 mins read
Nordic & Swiss Central Bank Watch Stage set for hawkish tweaks to Riksbank’s exit strategy The momentum in the Swedish economy, and jump in inflation in August, gives the Riksbank plenty to ponder at next week’s policy meeting. While repo rate hikes are not on policymakers’ agenda, the... 14th September 2021 · 5 mins read
UK Housing Market Data Response Mortgage Lenders and Administrators Statistics (Q2 21) The further surge in mortgage lending to a fresh post-financial-crisis high and booming house prices begs the question whether there is over-exuberance in the housing market. But as the surge has been... 14th September 2021 · 3 mins read
Nordic & Swiss Data Response Sweden Consumer Prices (Aug.) The stronger-than-expected pick-up in Swedish headline inflation in August ups the ante for the Riksbank ahead of next week’s policy meeting. While repo rate hikes are low down on policymakers’ agenda... 14th September 2021 · 2 mins read
UK Economics Labour Market (Jul./Aug.) The latest data brought more signs that labour market slack is declining fast and that labour shortages are contributing to faster underlying pay growth. We suspect that beyond the next 6-12 months... 14th September 2021 · 3 mins read
Asset Allocation Update Putting risky asset valuations into context This Update compares the valuations of the twelve different “risky” asset classes that we cover on our Asset Allocation service, both relative to one another and to the yields of “safe” assets, as... 13th September 2021 · 5 mins read
