On Tuesday of last week, the Reserve Bank of Australia lowered its cash target rate twenty-five basis points to 3.5% after having reduced the rate fifty basis points just the month before. On the next day, Australia reported that its [...]
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Louise Curley
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Global| Jun 12 2012Australia Prepares for a Slowdown in Activity
- Global| Jun 11 2012
China: An Interest Rate Reduction to the Rescue
The Central bank of China reduced its benchmark, one year lending rate 25 basis points to 6.31% and its one year deposit rate to 3.25% on June 7th. This was the first rate decrease since 2008. In the past few years, while inflation [...]
- Global| Jun 05 2012
May PMIs: Services and Composites
European purchasing managers in the service industries continue to report lower activity. In May the PMIs for the service industries in Spain, Italy and France were respectively 41.84, 42,78 and 45.09, compared with 42.11, 42.32 and [...]
- Global| Jun 04 2012
Foreign Banks' Exposure to Spanish Banks
Spain is in trouble once again. Capital is leaving the country and interest rates are rising, as can be seen in the attached chart. The 10 year bond rate was 6.5% on June 1st and probably higher today. The European Central Bank, the [...]
- Global| May 29 2012
The Euro Decline : Good News for the Periphery
The value of the Euro has declined 10% from May 4, 2011 to 1.2523 today. Over roughly the same time period, the broad nominal effective exchange rate has declined 18% to 122.32(2000=100). The daily values of the euro and the broad [...]
- Global| May 22 2012
Another Big Trade Deficit for Japan According to the First 10 and 20 Days trade Balances
The effects of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan last year are still being felt. The disruptions in production led to a decline in exports and a rise in imports. Japan's typical trade surplus, was turned into a deficit [...]
- Global| May 21 2012
Pay Raises for German Workers
The I.G. Metall union and employers agreed to a 4.3% pay rise, a compromise between the union's demand of a 6.5% raise and management's offer of a 2.6% raise. It was also the largest pay rise since the 5.4% negotiated, twenty years [...]
- Global| May 01 2012
Manufacturing PMIs in US, Canada UK and Ireland
Estimates of manufacturing activity in April by purchasing managers in the United States, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom were released today. The majority of those in the United States and Canada were increasingly optimistic. [...]
- Global| Apr 30 2012
Rising Unemployment and Austerity in the Euro Area
The tide is rising and gaining momentum against austerity. The Dutch government was brought down last week over the issue and the Socialist candidate, Francois Hollande, who promises to fight the fiscal pact signed by members of the [...]
- Global| Apr 24 2012
Financial Matters and French Household Confidence
French households have become more confident since the beginning of the year. (In France, the measure of confidence is derived by calculating a weighted average of the balances of opinion on the following underlying series: the [...]
- Global| Apr 23 2012
Netherlands Rebels Against Austerity--The Mood of the People
The rebellion against austerity measures in the Euro Area has spread from the troubled countries such as Greece, Spain and Italy to the Netherlands. The Netherlands, a close ally of Germany and has been a staunch supporter of [...]
- Global| Apr 17 2012
German Financial Community Still Confident About Germany But Wary of the Euro Area
The results of the April ZEW survey for Germany were more up beat than had been anticipated. Among the 275 institutional investors and financial analysts who participated in the survey, the excess of optimists over pessimists [...]
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