Emerging Europe Economics Update Russia: Solid Q2 GDP growth unlikely to last The Russian economy expanded by a solid 5.2% y/y in Q2 (up from 2.9% y/y in Q1). But given the impact of the current drought and, more notably, our view that oil prices will fall back later this year... 11th August 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Turkish current account risks on the rise Turkey’s current account deficit was smaller than expected in June, but it widened as a share of GDP over Q2 as a whole. What’s more, while the quantity of financing does not appear to be a concern at... 11th August 2010 · 1 min read
Non-Euro Europe Commercial Property Chart Pack Investment market upturn to fade in H2 2010 (Aug 10) Investment market activity strengthened in the second quarter across the UK, Scandinavia and Emerging Europe with the result that initial yields fell a little further in a number of office, retail and... 10th August 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Czech Rep: rate hikes remain a distant prospect The Czech National Bank (CNB) today kept interest rates on hold at 0.75% for the second consecutive meeting. We are sticking to our view that rates will remain at record lows until 2012. 5th August 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Focus Why Turkey must save its way to sustainable growth Turkey’s medium-term growth prospects are just about the best in Emerging Europe. But realising the economy’s full potential will require raising domestic savings. If the authorities can achieve this... 4th August 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Russia: repeat of 2007/08 inflation surge looks unlikely Concerns that the current drought in Russia will trigger a surge in food prices and a wider pick-up in inflation are increasing. However, a number of factors suggest that a repeat of the food-driven... 3rd August 2010 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Focus How far do Emerging European headline rents respond to FX swings? Our analysis of the recent recession confirms that the volatility of headline retail rents in Emerging Europe can be exacerbated by swings in the exchange rate. Indeed, we estimate that each 1% fall... 3rd August 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Industrial recovery continues to slow Manufacturing PMIs fell in every country with the exception of Russia last month, but remain consistent with double-digit annual increases in industrial production. The key question is whether this... 2nd August 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Chart Pack Biting the fiscal bullet (Jul 10) With the notable exception of Hungary, most countries in Emerging Europe have now started to step up efforts at fiscal consolidation. In particular, the new governments in Slovakia and the Czech... 30th July 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Is Russia's privatisation plan the real deal? Details of Russia’s plans to raise up to $30bn through the sale of state assets have trickled out over the past day or so. The proposals are good news at the margin, although the renewed emphasis on... 29th July 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Turkish policymakers remain resolutely dovish Turkey’s Q3 Inflation Report confirms that policymakers remain resolutely dovish and relaxed about the inflation outlook. We now think that interest rates will stay on hold until 2011. Furthermore... 27th July 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Romania: IMF reforms to come at a cost In stark contrast to recent developments in Hungary, the fiscal cutbacks announced by the Romanian government have so far helped to keep its IMF-led loan deal alive. But these will come at a cost. We... 26th July 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Chart Pack Twin-speed recovery taking shape (Jun 10) The recovery in manufacturing across Emerging Europe has for the most part been pretty impressive. With the notable exceptions of Romania and Bulgaria, industrial output is now growing at doubledigit... 26th July 2010 · 1 min read
Europe Commercial Property Update Moscow office rents are more likely to stabilise than recover The increase in Moscow office rental values in Q2 is likely to prove a one-off. Although the occupier market has seen a continued improvement over the past few quarters, we think that the main driving... 23rd July 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Can Hungary go it alone? Hungary can probably survive without a new IMF/EU programme for the remainder of this year. But we suspect it will eventually be forced to re-engage with the Fund either later this year or early in... 23rd July 2010 · 1 min read
Emerging Europe Economics Update Russian recovery back on track... for now Recent data suggest that the economy is back on track for a robust rebound this year. Nonetheless, we suspect that Q2 will mark the high point for annual GDP growth and the pace of recovery is likely... 20th July 2010 · 1 min read