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Venezia coronavirus

European economy 25th February 2020

The Coronavirus In Italy And The ECB: Raising Quantum Of Corporate Bonds Purchases Can Be A Good Response

The sudden rise in covid-19 cases in Italy changes the picture for the European economy. Indeed, the activity restrictions already imposed by the national and regional authorities will be implemented in some of the country’s most crucial regions in terms of output. Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna alone account for 40% of Italian GDP and 6% of total Euro area GDP. AXA IM suspect that the demand-side effects will emerge in the next batches of data and discuss options for the ECB.

Net wealth of European households lost in the crisis recovered; now is over seven times disposable income

European economy 14th February 2020

Net Wealth Of European Households Lost In The Crisis Recovered; Now Is Over Seven Times Disposable Income

In its latest monthly report, the European Central Bank has published an interesting study on the recent evolution of the wealth of European families.The monetary authority’s objective is to relate families’ net wealth component (assets less debt) to their spending decision. It’s a fact that, in theory,  net wealth accumulated with job prospects are both key for household consumption. In addition, wealth also has theoretical consequences for the design of monetary policy.

aranceles china

European economy 13th February 2020

The Coronavirus Crisis Could Cut 0.15% Off Spain’s Economic Growth; 0.18 off German Growth

Yesterday, ratings agency Standard & Poor’s published a report where it calculates that China’s coronavirus crisis will subtract one or two tenths off economic growth, both in the Eurozone and in the UK, in 2020. This is due to the impact on exports to China and on business investment. In Spain’s case, the figure may be excessive. This is because the impact on imports from China must also be taken into account and will work in Spain’s favour.

Brexit uncertainty: a drag on UK GDP in Q4 2019, Q1 2020 to improve

European economy 12th February 2020

Brexit Uncertainty: A Drag On UK GDP In Q4 2019, Q1 2020 To Improve

Political uncertainty about the Brexit procedure caused the United Kingdom’s (UK’s) gross domestic product (GDP) to stagnate in the fourth quarter of 2019. However, the strong decrease in political uncertainty since the 12 December parliamentary election should allow the UK economy to rebound back to growth during the first quarter of this year, explains Janwillem Acket, chief economist at Julius Baer.

The ECB bets on buying private debt

European economy 10th February 2020

The ECB Bets On Buying Private Debt

The ECB purchased €20.3bn of QE assets over Jan. Only 61% of the purchases were done in public sector bonds, much lower than the 80% average over 2016-18. This confirms the view of BoA Global Research that QE will now be more focused on corporates & covereds. The country breakdown of monthly PSPP is much more volatile now. In CSPP there are interesting secondary and sectorial flows.

European telcos face the challenge of sustainable investment in 2020

European economy 7th February 2020

European Telecoms Face The Challenge Of Sustainable Investment In 2020

Telecom networks have high energy consumption. Companies in the sector are now taking steps to improve their energy efficiency through the use of renewable energy, network sharing, etc. According to Morgan Stanley, the use of green bonds to finance projects (5G, fibre optic) will increase. About €3.5 billion of the current debt could be refinanced annually via this kind of bond.