J.L.M. Campuzano (AEB) | It’s the economy! Although the economy was certainly not an issue which weighed on a large part of the vote in the Brexit referendum. And maybe that’s exactly why the outcome took us all by surprise. Are the macro forecasts made prior to the referendum obsolete? I hope not…
BoAML | Even with structural reforms, trend GDP growth may not be consistent with comfortable debt sustainability in key peripherals by the time inflation normalizes. If the euro area does not make progress towards fiscal union in the meantime, the ECB will likely have to remain involved on the bond market.
UBS | A below -consensus payroll print and a 37,000 increase in the pace of initial claims reported in May have caused some to question the health of the US labor market. We examine why these worries are unfounded and how, if anything, these signs of “weakness” may actually be sig ns that wage growth could soon begin to accelerate.
It’s straight out of the textbook that low inflation – and above all deflation – has negative effects on economic growth that we all know about. That’s the main reason why ECB President Mario Draghi implemented an ambitious set of monetary expansion measures in March, with the aim of boosting prices to a level more suitable for economic growth, namely 2%.
BoAML Research | One reason the Federal Reserve has been so dovish recently has been a lack of conviction in wage and price inflation. Fed Chair Janet Yellen ’ s speech earlier this week confirmed that she is not convinced that the recent rise in core inflation would “ prove durable ” and stated that more adverse -than -expected foreign developments could slow the pace of labor market improvement, and with it, “ growth in both wages and prices.
James Alexander via Historinhas | Despite all the pessimism the Euro Area nearly caught up with US NGDP growth in Q4. Now that Italy and Spain have finally reported their Nominal GDP figures Eurostat shows that 4Q15 NGDP growth for the Euro monetary region as a whole was almost as fast, year-on-year, as the US.
In 2015, the Eurozone once again saw positive credit flows and a recovery in credit balance rates as a result of new transactions. But volumes are still well off pre-crisis maximum levels. In Spain, what does limit credit demand is the fact that companies have had positive financing capacity for the last seven years, which means that those with less debt have a strong self-financing buffer.
UBS | Tracking Europe’s resilience In this report, we aim to shed light on the question we have been asked most frequently in recent weeks: “Can Europe hold up when problems elsewhere are getting worse?” So far, the Eurozone has held up respectably, which we attribute to the fact that European growth is mainly driven by domestic demand, not exports. We believe this should also provide Europe with decent resilience going forward.
James Alexander via Historinhas | Where are the John Maynard Keynes’ and Milton Friedman’s when you need them? The Fed, led by Janet Yellen and Stanley Fischer, has made a huge mistake in tightening monetary policy. The other members of the FOMC are largely irrelevant noise, with the possible exception of the NY Fed’s Dudley, though all carry blame.
Emilio Ontiveros | The Spanish economy grew more than its European counterparts and current tailwinds such as low oil prices also favour it over the rest of the member states. But the country still has a lot to do to become a major league player.