Developed Countries
China is launching a diplomatic charm offensive to improve relations with the world excluding the United States. But China’s proposals in Ukraine and the Middle East are overrated in their ability to restore global stability and reduce geopolitical risk.
The German IFO delivered a positive surprise on Monday. The Business Climate Index increased from 91.1 to a 13-month high of 93.3, beating consensus estimates it would remain broadly unchanged. An unanticipated 2.8-point rise in the Expectations component…
Friday’s flash PMI releases suggest that price pressures continue to moderate in both the US and the Euro Area. Both regions recorded the greatest improvement in supplier delivery times since the beginning of their respective surveys. And although…
According to flash PMIs, service sector activity accelerated across most major DM economies in March. In the US, the preliminary services PMI unexpectedly increased by 3.2 points to an 11-month high of 53.8, beating estimates of a decline to 50.3. Similarly,…
To the extent that Treasury yields typically rise when US economic data is strong, and decline when growth momentum disappoints, changes in bond yields have historically moved in tandem with the level of economic data surprises. However, the two series…
The American Association of Individual Investors (AAII) bull-bear survey shows a deterioration in investor sentiment following the flare up of bank tensions earlier this month. The latest results show that a net 28% of investors are downbeat on the stock…
CAD/NOK tends to trade in perfect harmony with the DXY, but a divergence has emerged of late. For one, the selloff in the Norwegian krone versus the Canadian dollar has not been associated with a similar rise in the DXY. The culprit has been both falling…
According to BCA Research’s Global Investment Strategy service, recent banking stresses will have a moderate but not severe impact on economic activity. On the positive side, banks are much better capitalized than they were in 2008. The quality of their…
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) – a summary statistic of all the important US economic data releases over the month – disappointed on Thursday. It fell from 0.23 to -0.19 in February, below expectations of a more muted decline to 0.10.…
As expected, the Bank of England, Swiss National Bank, and Norges Bank all delivered rate hikes at their Thursday meetings, lifting interest rates by 25bps, 50bps, and 25bps respectively. In the case of the BoE, the Financial Policy Committee’s assessment…