An overview of sanctions against Iran
Jul 14, 2015 20:18 pm UTC| Commentary
Iran holds nearly 10% of the worlds crude oil reserves and 13% of OPEC reserves. About 70% of Irans crude oil reserves are located onshore, with the remainder mostly located offshore in the Persian Gulf. Iran also holds...
Why did oil prices reverse its full drop in prices today?
Jul 14, 2015 18:30 pm UTC| Commentary
The oil market started to price in the return of Iranian oil just before the first deadline for the negotiations was reached on 30 June. Then as the negotiations made progress and a new postponement seemed more and more...
Labour market slack to diminish faster than Fed projects
Jul 14, 2015 17:20 pm UTC| Commentary Economy
A key reason why we expect the Fed to hike in September rather than wait to December is developments in the labour market. The June summary of economic projections showed that the Fed sees the unemployment rate falling to...
Greek deal turns Fed focus back to domestic data
Jul 14, 2015 16:52 pm UTC| Commentary
Long-held view has been that, the Fed would deliver the first Fed funds rate hike in September this year. This view is based on expectation that, US GDP growth should be in the 2.5-3.0% range in the current and coming...
Corporate earnings season trumps geopolitics
Jul 14, 2015 16:27 pm UTC| Commentary
Fundamentals drive markets and there is no more telling fundamental than corporate earnings aka the bottom line. Second quarter earnings have kicked off. So far, they are dripping in positive but will be in full swing in...
Unstable global financial conditions and the BOJ
Jul 14, 2015 16:09 pm UTC| Commentary Central Banks
BoJ is likely to stay on hold and unlikely to significantly change its optimistic growth and inflation outlook. But, BoJs assessment of external risks will be closely watched, especially if risk sentiment deteriorates...
US June retail sales figures, far weaker than expected
Jul 14, 2015 15:11 pm UTC| Commentary
Retail sales fell 0.3% m/m in June, far worse than the median consensus forecast which called for a 0.3% gain. Revisions to the month prior were also negative, taking the headline reading down to +1.0% m/m (originally...
South Africa’s plan to move away from coal: 8 steps to make it succeed
Germany lowers voting age to 16 for the European elections
IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects