June ECB Council Meeting Account Review: Divides Continue if Not Widen

July 3, 2025 12:24 PM UTC

The account of the June 3-5 Council meeting just about left the door  open for a move at the July 24 policy verdict given the array of news (probably negative particularly regarding tariffs but also bank lending) due beforehand.  But the account adds to the impression we has initially that a pause

U.S. Assets and Valuation

July 3, 2025 9:30 AM UTC

    The U.S. equity market has returned to be clearly overvalued on equity and equity-bond valuations measures and is vulnerable to a new correction in H2 on any moderate bad news (e.g. further economic slowing and corporate earnings downgrades).   In contrast, U.S. Treasuries are at broadly fai

DM Central Banks: Overlooking Lagged 2021-23 Tightening and QT?

July 2, 2025 8:30 AM UTC

We are concerned that DM central banks are underestimating the lagged impact of 2021-23 tightening and ongoing QT, which impacts the transmission mechanism of monetary policy.  Central banks need to consider cyclical and structural issues, but also need a more rounded view of the stance and implica

EZ HICP and ECB Strategy Review: Headline Up to Target as Services Inflation Rises Back?

July 1, 2025 9:32 AM UTC

Despite its updated its monetary policy strategy detailed yesterday, inflation – now at target – is very much a side issue for the ECB at present, albeit with oil prices possibly accentuating Council divides.  Admittedly, the flash June HICP rose a notch to 2.0% matching the -consensus, but up

German Data Review: Services Dip Further Despite Calendar Effects?

June 30, 2025 12:30 PM UTC

Germany’s disinflation process continues, with the lower-than-expected June preliminary numbers refreshing and reinforcing this pattern, with a 0. Ppt drop to 2.0%, a 10-mth low (Figure 1)!  Previously but there have been signs that the downtrend was flattening out and this impression may have be

Continuum Economics Calendar July 2025

June 26, 2025 1:00 PM UTC

Data and Events Calendar July 2025.

June Outlook: Trump’s Fluid Policies

June 25, 2025 10:00 AM UTC

All chapters of the June Outlook are now available and simply click the link below. 

Outlook Overview: Trump’s Fluid Policies

June 25, 2025 7:20 AM UTC

·       President Donald Trump still wants to use the tariff tool, and we see the eventual average tariff rate being in the 13-15% area, lowered by deals but increased by more product tariffs. Any lasting legal block on reciprocal tariffs will likely see the administration pivoting towards ot

EZ HICP Preview (Jul 1): Headline Stays Below Target as Services Inflation Rises Back?

June 24, 2025 8:57 AM UTC

Inflation – now below target – is very much a side issue for the ECB at present, albeit with oil prices possibly accentuating Council divides.  Indeed, we see the flash June HICP staying at May’s below-consensus, eight-month low and below-target 1.9% (Figure 1).  More notably, having jumped

Equities Outlook: Choppy Then 2026 Gains

June 24, 2025 8:15 AM UTC

       Though the U.S. equity market has rebounded, we still scope for a fresh dip H2 2025 to 5500 on the S&P500 as hard data softens further to feed into weaker corporate earnings forecasts and CPI picks up and delays Fed easing.  However, the AI story is still a positive, while share buybacks

DM FX Outlook: USD uncertainty increases as Trump changes the rules

June 24, 2025 7:05 AM UTC

·       Bottom Line: After making initial gains after the election, the USD has followed a similar path to the first Trump presidency, falling back steadily this year as optimism on the economy has faded, with the introduction of tariffs contributing to more negative sentiment. Much as in the

Iran: Measured Next Steps?

June 23, 2025 3:17 PM UTC

  A measured or modest Iran retaliation could be used by the U.S. to seek a path back towards negotiation.  Israel would likely want to continue to degrade Iran nuclear and military facilities, but the U.S. could eventually pressure Israel to stop.  This is our baseline, though the military attac

German Data Preview (Jun 30): Calm Before the Storm?

June 23, 2025 10:29 AM UTC

Germany’s disinflation process continues, but there have been signs that the downtrend was flattening out and this impression may have been accentuated by the small and lower than expected (ie 0.1 ppt) drop in the headline in May to 2.1%, still an eight-month low (Figure 1).  Adjusted data also s

DM Rates Outlook: Yield Curve Steepening?

June 23, 2025 8:30 AM UTC

•    We see the U.S. yield curve steepening in the next 6-18 months. 2yr U.S. Treasury yields can step down with cautious Fed easing on a modest/moderate growth slowdown and also if the Fed keeps an easing bias in H2 2026. 10yr U.S. Treasury yields face a tug of war between lower short-dated y

Eurozone Outlook: In Tariff Limbo Land?

June 20, 2025 9:24 AM UTC

·       Amid what may still be tightening financial conditions and likely protracted trade uncertainty, we have pared back the EZ activity forecast for 2026. However, the picture this year appears to be slightly better but this is largely a distortion and we think that the economy has instead

Trump Tariffs: China and July 9 Reciprocal Deadline

June 12, 2025 7:17 AM UTC

 We attach a 65% probability to a U.S./China reaching a new trade deal that reduces the minimum overall tariff to 15-20% imposed by the U.S., most likely agreed in Q4 2025 and to be implemented in 2026.  However, a 35% probability exist of no deal and this could eventually mean higher tariffs (Fig

ECB: Time to Reassess and Slow QT?

June 10, 2025 2:25 PM UTC

Further ECB easing is on the cards, the question being whether this should start to encompass toning down quantitative tightening (QT) plans too! Notably, the two ppt fall in the discount rate cuts has come against a backdrop where the ECB has continued unconventional tightening by scaling back its

Eurozone: The Tail Wagging the Dog?

June 6, 2025 10:26 AM UTC

Given what now looks to have been an outstanding first quarter, the ECB’s assertion at this month’s Council press conference that it is a good position to navigate the uncertain conditions looks more tenable.  After all, GDP jumped 0.6%, twice the previous estimate.  But this is no indicator o

ECB Council Meeting Review: Easing Window Stays Open

June 5, 2025 1:58 PM UTC

This widely seen 25 bp deposit rate cut (to 2.0%) now means the previous degree of tightening has been effectively halved.  Notably, it comes alongside an ECB policy and economic outlook/bias little changed from that of recent months.  The door is thus left open for a move at the July 24 policy ve

EZ HICP and Labor Market Review: Headline Back Below Target as Services Inflation Reverses Easter Effect

June 3, 2025 9:42 AM UTC

EZ HICP inflation met our below-consensus expectation in dropping to an eight-month low and below-target 1.9% (Figure 1) helped by rounding and a further m/m fall in fuel prices.  More notably, having jumped 0.5 ppt to 4.0% in April, very probably due to the impact of the timing of Easter affecting

German Data Review: Lower Headline Services Surge Reverses

May 30, 2025 12:47 PM UTC

Germany’s disinflation process continues, but there have been signs that the downtrend was flattening out and this impression may have been accentuated by the small and lower than expected (ie 0.1 ppt) drop in the headline in May to 2.1%, still an eight-month low.  Most notable amid a drop caused

ECB Council Meeting Preview (Jun 5): Much Earlier Sub-Target Inflation Outlook?

May 28, 2025 2:30 PM UTC

What is widely seen as an eighth 25 bp deposit rate cut in the current cycle on June 5 may be overshadowed by the ECB’s implicit if not explicit shift about the outlook thereafter.  The door will be left open for a move at the July 24 policy verdict given the array of news (probably negative part

Continuum Economics Calendar June 2025

May 27, 2025 1:00 PM UTC

Data and Events Calendar June 2025.

EZ HICP and Labor Market Preview (Jun 3): Headline Back Below Target as Services Inflation Reverses Easter Effect?

May 27, 2025 11:17 AM UTC

Exceeding expectations, EZ HICP inflation failed to fall in April, instead staying at 2.2%.  More notably, services inflation jumped 0.5 ppt to 4.0%, very probably due to the impact of the timing of Easter affecting airfares and holiday costs. As already seen in flash French May numbers, and as was

Eurozone: US Stepped-Up Tariff Threat – Negotiations or Concessions?

May 27, 2025 9:22 AM UTC

At least within markets there is some relief that President Trump has deferred his ramped up 50% tariff threat from early June to July 9.  Unambiguously positive is the fact that a better line of communication, if not rapport, now seems to exist between the U.S. president and EU Commission Presiden

Eurozone: Waging War on Wages

May 23, 2025 1:35 PM UTC

After a protracted period of elevated EZ cost and price pressures, a reversal seems to be very much underway.  Headline and underlying HICP inflation have moved back toward target, but to reinforce this downtrend there are an increasing array of softer cost pressure signals.  ECB wage tracker and

ECB April Account: Neutral Rate Not Necessarily a Terminal Rate

May 22, 2025 12:46 PM UTC

The account of the April 16-17 ECB Council meeting suggested that the policy decision was more of a clearly agreed consensus, this papering over continued divides regarding the outlook; the risks from tariffs; and where inflation risks lie.  The seventh and widely expected 25 bp deposit rate cut (w

Eurozone: Services Offer Sobering News

May 22, 2025 9:00 AM UTC

The May flash composite PMI data may have fallen into apparent contraction territory as the index dropped to 49.5 in May from 50.4 in April, below the 50.0 no-change mark for the first time in five months and thereby signalling a reduction, albeit a marginal one.  We do not take much issue whether

German Data Preview (May 30): Lower Headline as Easter Effect Reverse Services Inflation Surge

May 21, 2025 11:54 AM UTC

Germany’s disinflation process continues, but there have been signs that the downtrend was flattening out and this impression was accentuated by the small (ie 0.1 ppt) drop in the headline in April to 2.2%, still a seven-month low.  Most notable amid a drop caused by lower m/m fuel prices, was th

Eurozone: The European Commission Diverges From the ECB on Inflation

May 19, 2025 10:07 AM UTC

The European Commission (EC) Spring Forecast projects real EZ GDP growth in 2025 at 0.9%, some 0.4 ppt below its previous (autumn) view.   There is also a downgrade to the 2026 growth picture by 0.2 ppt to 1.4%, projections that carry downside risks and where we think they are still too optimistic

UK-EU: Getting Back on the (Political) Fence

May 19, 2025 8:54 AM UTC

That the UK has seemingly cobbled together a third trade deal in just over a fortnight is of course more of political importance than economic.  The deal to be detailed later today with the EU will help both sides economy wise but only at the margin – the main factor for the UK being an open-ende

Europe Portfolio Leverage Over Trump

May 14, 2025 9:05 AM UTC

The U.S. will likely introduce a 25% tariff on pharmaceuticals, which will increase pressure on the EU and other European countries (e.g. Switzerland) and also delay serious negotiations close to the 90 day reciprocal tariff deadline on July 9, adding to pressure on Europe by deliberately prolonging

Markets: Less U.S. Recession Risk, But Trade Headwinds

May 13, 2025 9:38 AM UTC

Though we had expected a U.S./China trade truce, the terms are more favorable to U.S. growth than we anticipated.  Combined with the UK framework deal, we have revised down the probability of a U.S. recession from 35% to 20%.  In turn we have revised up the end 2025 and end 2026 S&P500 forecasts t

Trump Tariffs: China and UK Precedents

May 12, 2025 8:02 AM UTC

 The U.S./China have announced major reductions in reciprocal tariffs to 10% with other measures postponed for 90 days.  Though the U.S. is still imposing an extra 20% due to fentanyl, China will likely make some moves that could also help to reduce this.  This is in line with our previous thinki

Household Divergence Into the Downturn?

May 9, 2025 10:55 AM UTC

Overall, the shock faced by the U.S. from tariffs is a negative supply shock, which can then be followed by job losses and restrained income and consumption growth.  This 2 round can be amplified if a hard landing is seen and quickens job losses, which would really hurt low income households. Howev

Eurozone Labor Market: Rising Supply Adding to Lower Wage Pressures

May 7, 2025 9:34 AM UTC

With the EZ jobless rate nestling at record lows, it would support the ECB assessment that the EZ labor market is strong, the central bank seeing only a small rise in the jobless rate this year and on to be reversed from early next year onwards.  However, that glosses over the fact that the labor m

Tariff Man

May 6, 2025 8:45 AM UTC

  With the U.S. equity market having rebounded, President Donald Trump instinct on tariffs have seen threats of pharma tariffs and a 100% tariff on non U.S. films. Slow progress is also reported on bilateral deals, despite White House PR spin.  However, Trump will see pressure rising from three so

Markets: China Truce Hopes and More Data

May 5, 2025 8:05 AM UTC

The direction of travel is towards a U.S./China truce followed by postponing/cancelling most reciprocal tariffs and then trade negotiations. While the markets could cheer this as good news, incoming economic data in May and June is the most critical issue.  We still see the U.S. imposing an average

EZ HICP Review: Headline Fails to Fall as Services Inflation Rises on Easter Effect?

May 2, 2025 9:46 AM UTC

EZ HICP inflation failed to fall back toward the 2% target in flash April data, instead staying at 2.2%.  More notably, services inflation jumped 0.4 ppt, very probably due to the impact of the timing of Easter affecting airfares and holiday costs. As was the case when this Easter effect last happe

U.S. Equities: Vulnerabilities Remain

May 1, 2025 10:25 AM UTC

 We are concerned that valuations remain high and inconsistent with nominal and real government bond yields going into a growth slowdown as tariffs hit the U.S. economy.  Our baseline is for the S&P500 to fall to 5000-5200 mid-year before recovering to 5500 by end 2025. The 10yr budget bill is lik

Continuum Economics Calendar May 2025

April 28, 2025 10:03 AM UTC

Data and Events Calendar May 2025.

EZ HICP Preview (May 2): Headline Lower Again But Mainly Energy?

April 24, 2025 8:39 AM UTC

EZ HICP inflation is likely to fall back to the 2% target in flash April data, this six-month low would largely reflect a fall in fuel prices, but with services largely consolidating the clear fall seen last time around (Figure 1).  All of which would mean a stable core reading of 2.4% but where th

Eurozone Flash GDP Preview (Apr 30): The Calm Before the Storm that Surveys May Be Flagging?

April 23, 2025 9:18 AM UTC

Continuing a series of upside surprises, EZ GDP overshot both consensus and ECB expectations in Q4), albeit only after what was a cumulative 0.2 ppt upward revisions compared to the flash. We see a further rise in Q1 data (Figure 1), partly reflecting recent m/m increases in both manufacturing and s

Trump Under Pressure

April 23, 2025 7:15 AM UTC

A deteriorating economic; volatile financial markets and weakening approval ratings are all putting pressure on the Trump administration to do trade deals.  However, Trump instincts means he still likes tariffs, while negotiations will not be quick with China restraints and non-tariffs list desired

German Data Preview (Apr 30): Lower Headline Amid Stable Services Inflation?

April 22, 2025 1:16 PM UTC

Germany’s disinflation process continues, but there had been signs that the downtrend was flattening out but this changed somewhat in February and again in the March. Indeed, HICP inflation fell back from 2.6% to 2.3% in March, this despite a pick-up in food inflation in both months.  Notably the

Foreign Official U.S. Treasury Holders: The Kindness of Strangers

April 22, 2025 7:30 AM UTC

Official holdings of U.S. Treasuries show a mixed picture with China, Brazil and Saudi Arabia well off peak holdings. Two drivers of some of these country flows are the peak in global central bank FX reserve holdings in 2021 and an increased holdings of other currencies in the last decade.  Neverth

ECB Review: Discussing Policy Restriction No Longer Appropriate

April 17, 2025 1:48 PM UTC

A seventh and widely expected 25 bp deposit rate cut was overshadowed by the ECB’s communication shift about the outlook hereafter, no longer talking about how restrictive policy may be.  This shift is entirely appropriate not least given the manner in which financial conditions are now tightenin

Safe Havens Other Than the USD

April 17, 2025 8:30 AM UTC

The USD and U.S. Treasuries are currently not acting like safe havens, as the crisis is U.S. centric with the tariff debacle. 10yr Treasuries can regain safe haven status if a U.S. recession occurs, but U.S. equities are still clearly overvalued versus equity and equity-bond metrics.  We prefer Ind

Eurozone Banks Offer ECB More Cause for Concern

April 15, 2025 11:14 AM UTC

The ECB can draw comfort from signs that credit demand and supply for EZ households continues to improve.  But the ECB’s latest bank lending survey (BLS) also offers worrying signs in regard to firms as well as questioning the alleged neutrality of the QT program.  It shows a further (admittedly