The Corner | March 11, 2015 | The euro sinked to 12-year lows on Wednesday due to the ECB’s money printing –which is pushing yields down (German 30-year government bonds are now lower than those on U.S. two-year paper), and increasing expectations of a rates hike on the other side of the Atlantic. ECB’s Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny insisted that negative bond yields in the euro area probably won’t remain for long.
The Corner | March 9, 2015 | Peripheral bonds hit minimum lows on Monday as the ECB and the 19 national central banks started the much-awaited sovereign puchases on Monday. Short-term eurozone interest rates are expected to move deeper into negative territory as the QE unfolds. “This programme will mean a safety net for the eurozone equities and bond markets. However, we might see some corrections,” experts at Link Securities commented. Liquidity injected in the system “will first push bond prices up, but almost simultaneously will move towards equities,” Bankinter analysts noted.
The Corner | March 6, 2015 | Markets are likely to be buoyed by the positive assessment of Mario Draghi yesterday, which will probably be backed up by euro zone growth figures for Q4, released later this morning. In other news, Spanish 10-year bonds are up for auction too, while Spain’s industrial sector is expected to return to positive territory
The Corner | March 5, 2015 | Whatever it takes, don’t miss the mechanics of the European Central Bank’s next purchase programme starting on Monday.
The Corner | March 5, 2015 | Markets are again looking to the ECB for a gauge as to where the continent is headed, with Mario Draghi expected to announce more detailed descriptions of the bank’s QE plan. Elsewhere, data from Germany, Italy and Greece are likely to highlight the divergent fortunes of countries within the single currency area.
The Corner | March 4, 2015 | Data released today are expected to confirm that retail sales are on the rise in the euro area. Forecasters are predicting a rise of between 1.5 and 2.0% for the year to January. However, markets are eagerly awating further indications on the finer details of the European Central Bank’s quantitative easing programme, which will be announced in Nicosia on Thursday. Markit composite figures are due today, but traders are more likely to be mindful of tomorrow’s scheduled announcement.
WASHINGTON | March 2, 2015 | By Pablo Pardo | Neil Irwin believes central bankers are the real heroes of the economic crisis that continues to bog down the eurozone. In his book ‘The alchemists’, the New York Times senior correspondent paints Ben Bernanke as a hero and ECB’s Jean-Claude Trichet, as one of the greatest villains.
MADRID | February 27, 2015 | J.J Fernandez-Figares| Link Securities | Efforts by the ECB to inject money into the euro zone are already showing signs of impact as positive M3 figures offer encouragement ahead of March purchases of sovereign bonds.
MADRID | The Corner | February 25, 2015 | Spanish telecom giant Telefonica reported a drop of 34.7% in net profit, although investors celebrated revenue picture brightening up. Elsewhere, the Spanish Producer Price Index falls again, registering a drop of 2.8% for January.
The Corner | February 24, 2015 | Figures published today will give an indication of the current state-of-play in the euro zone, with the release of inflation statistics and final GDP figures from the German economy for 2014.