BoK suggests rather disappointing growth considering the “fiscal cliff” in Q4 2014
Apr 20, 2015 06:36 am UTC| Commentary
Koreas Q1 2015 GDP growth is likely to be rather disappointing when the normalization of government spending is considered after the "fiscal cliff" in the previous quarter.The BoKs de facto flash estimate on Q1 GDP in its...
UK retail sales on a firm uptrend
Apr 20, 2015 06:22 am UTC| Commentary
The British retail surveys compare sales with a year earlier so the picture can be distorted at this time of year because of the variable timing of Easter.Easter fell on 18-21 April last year but on 3-6 April this year....
French business confidence to improve in April
Apr 20, 2015 06:17 am UTC| Commentary
Lower oil prices and a weaker euro should play out, while French government measures including tax cuts (CICE) should start to positively impact business confidence. The continuing improvement is expected over the coming...
Stabilization in German Ifo expected
Apr 20, 2015 06:09 am UTC| Commentary
Only a minor improvement is expected in the German Ifo in March, it rose more than expected, showing no signs of moderation. However, with investor surveys weakening in April with the positive news flow ebbing and...
Weakening expected in the ZEW economic sentiment
Apr 20, 2015 05:51 am UTC| Commentary
After five straight months of increases, the ZEW investor economic sentiment indicator is expected to drop back. This follows an already weaker than expected outcome of 54.8 in March, as the positive news flow has been...
Apr 20, 2015 05:45 am UTC| Commentary
It is puzzling to see that: 1) the improvement in Euro area PMIs observed since last autumn mostly stems from the services sector rather than from the manufacturing sector and 2) the increase in the manufacturing PMIs...
US new home sales to correct in March, but remain on a strong trend
Apr 20, 2015 05:39 am UTC| Commentary
US new home sales surged unexpectedly by 7.8% mom in February despite severe temperatures in many parts of the country.Taking a longer-term look at housing data, the recent sharp increases in household formation suggest...
Johannesburg in a time of darkness: Ivan Vladislavić’s new memoir reminds us of the city’s fragility
Economist Chris Richardson on an ‘ugly’ inflation result and the coming budget
Labour can afford to be far more ambitious with its economic policies – voters are on board
Sudan: civil war stretches into a second year with no end in sight