BOTTOM LINE: The final Euro area composite PMI for April was unrevised from its flash estimate of 55.8, reflecting a small downward flash-to-final revision in Germany that was offset by upward revisions in France and the periphery. The Italian and Spanish composite PMIs both improved in April, led by a… Read More »
“The decision by Gazprom to halt gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria after both countries refused to use Russia’s proposed mechanism for gas payments in roubles is a significant escalation in the energy stand-off between Russia and the EU. The move also substantially increases risk of further gas-supply interruption to… Read More »
President Emmanuel Macron was re-elected for a second term as expected, but the relatively narrow margin of victory over far-right challenger Marine Le Pen raises questions over the popular support for his reform agenda. “The biggest uncertainty at present is to know whether President Macron will be able to renew… Read More »
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (“Goldman Sachs”) today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire NN Investment Partners from NN Group N.V. for approximately €1.6 billion (1). The transaction is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2022, subject to regulatory and other approvals… Read More »
“Today the EU Parliament ratified the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement. It is an historic day”, says Gunnar Beck, Member of the EU Parliament and Brexit spokesman for the Identity & Democracy Group, “because this is the first time a country is leaving the EU. Undeterred by numerous prophets of doom, the… Read More »
The new year at the ECB marks the conclusion of the transition to new leadership, with two new members joining the Executive Board, and the launch of a year-long strategy review. As expected, the quantitative definition of the inflation objective will be the focal point of the review. We think… Read More »
It’s commonly said that “actions speak louder than words,” and in most cases that would seem to be a sensible statement. It is often related to the idea that people should “watch what I do, and not what I say” as a guide to the most authentic representation of where… Read More »
As widely expected, the FOMC decided to hike its policy rate by 25bp to a range of between 2-2.25%. However, the committee removed the reference that monetary policy remains accommodative, signalling that the FOMC believe that the policy rate is getting closer to neutral. Nevertheless, the Statement makes it clear… Read More »
State Street Global Exchange today released the results of the State Street Investor Confidence Index® (ICI) for September 2018. The Global Investor Confidence Index decreased to 88.3, down 5.7 points from August’s revised reading of 94.0. Confidence among North American investors further declined, with the North American ICI decreasing from… Read More »
Latest PMI surveys point to stabilizing, solid growth in the Eurozone, though the fall in Italian sentiment stands out. While for the Eurozone as a whole, August PMI readings point to 2.2% real GDP growth – a clear improvement compared to H1 2018 numbers – the Italian PMI fell 1.3… Read More »
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