Europe Economics Update Loss of majority curtails Macron’s second term plans French President Emmanuel Macron faces five difficult years after losing his absolute majority in parliament. Proposed reforms, including to pensions and benefits, will be diluted if they happen at... 20th June 2022 · 3 mins read
Europe Economics Update New ECB instrument, same old problems The best way for the ECB to contain peripheral bond spreads would be via a new programme of unlimited, flexible bond purchases. This may be what happens eventually, but we suspect it will take longer... 17th June 2022 · 4 mins read
Europe Economics Weekly ECB has done the easy bit, harder work is to come This week, the ECB arrested the sell-off in peripheral bond markets without announcing very much at all, but there’s only so long that markets will be soothed by encouraging words about a possible... 17th June 2022 · 7 mins read
Europe Economics Update Consumption to increase despite low confidence Despite consumer confidence remaining extremely low, we now think household spending in the euro-zone will edge up in Q2. Excess savings and a tight labour market have helped to cushion the blow from... 17th June 2022 · 3 mins read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Final HICP (May) Final inflation data for May confirm that the headline and core rates both rose to record highs. The recent increases in gas and agricultural commodity prices will keep the headline rate higher than... 17th June 2022 · 2 mins read
Energy Update Europe’s gas supply looking increasingly fragile Russia’s decision to once again cut supplies to Europe makes the region’s gas supply look increasingly precarious. The move will slow regional stock builds and keep prices historically high. 16th June 2022 · 2 mins read
Europe Economics Update Demand for labour to remain strong in the euro-zone Strong demand for labour, not a lack of potential workers, has driven the euro-zone’s unemployment rate to a record low. Employment gains have been biggest in public services and we expect demand for... 16th June 2022 · 4 mins read
Europe Data Response EZ Hourly Labour Costs (Q1) The acceleration in euro-zone wage growth at the start of the year is consistent with the timelier data already published and the message from pay negotiations. Against a backdrop of high inflation... 16th June 2022 · 2 mins read
Europe Economics Update Pressure is on for ECB spread-fighting tool in July The ECB’s press release following its unscheduled meeting fell short of announcing a fleshed out spread-fighting tool that could provide a permanent solution to the problem. Flexible PEPP... 15th June 2022 · 3 mins read
Europe Data Response Euro-zone Industrial Production (Apr.) The increase in industrial output in April only partially reversed the decline in March and shows that the economic fallout from the Ukraine war is still holding back production. With survey data... 15th June 2022 · 2 mins read
Europe Economics Update ECB emergency meeting (June 2022) News that the ECB Governing Council is holding an emergency meeting today shows that policymakers are taking the threat of rising peripheral yields more seriously than they were last Thursday at their... 15th June 2022 · 3 mins read
Europe Economics Update Spreads will keep widening before ECB takes action We suspect that the spread between 10-year Italian and German government bonds would need to widen by another 100bp or so, to around 3.5%, to force the ECB to make a stronger formal statement of... 14th June 2022 · 3 mins read
Europe Commercial Property Update Will property resist the effects of deglobalisation? A recent MSCI article speculated that real estate investment could buck the deglobalisation trend given distinct features of the asset class, though we are not convinced that will bring many benefits... 14th June 2022 · 3 mins read
Europe Data Response German ZEW Survey (June) A second consecutive small monthly rise in the ZEW measure of German investor sentiment in June means it was still well below its level at the start of the year, and pointing to a recession. The... 14th June 2022 · 2 mins read
Europe Economics Update Greece’s rebound has further to run Greece has already made a more complete recovery from the pandemic than most of its peers and the short-term outlook still looks relatively good. The country is less exposed to Russia-Ukraine risks... 13th June 2022 · 4 mins read
Global Markets Update New, higher forecasts for EZ bond yields and spreads We are raising our forecasts for euro-zone 10-year government bond yields and “peripheral” spreads to reflect the ECB’s further hawkish shift as well as its apparent unwillingness to commit to a... 10th June 2022 · 4 mins read
