Archive

October 30, 2025
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ECB: Less Downside From The Good Place

  • Downside activity risks have reduced, while the inflation outlook holds steady, keeping the ECB in its “good place” despite an implied shift up in the balance of risks.
  • Upside risks while inflation is seen settling at 2% would imply a hawkish bias, which the ECB isn’t ready to convey. But the skew may have swung within insignificant margins.
  • We still expect no more ECB rate cuts this cycle. If underlying inflation fails to slow as hoped, the ECB’s balanced bias could easily break into a hawkish one in 2026.

By Philip Rush

October 29, 2025
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Credit For Inflation

  • Credit and monetary holdings are booming in the UK, enabling consumers to spend their devalued pounds, supporting CPI inflation beyond the target.
  • Falling rates have neutered the refinancing shock, facilitating the affordability of loan demand. Rapid ongoing wage growth further reduces the debt burden.
  • The ECB also sees bullish monetary trends, but they only took it to a good place. The BoE is not in a good place, with policy accommodating above-target inflation pressures.

By Philip Rush

October 27, 2025
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China/US: Sauce For The Goose…

  • Donald Trump and Xi Jinping’s 30 October summit will likely stave off, for now, any further escalation of trade tensions between China and the US.
  • However, thanks to its monopoly on strategic minerals and Xi Jinping’s willingness to play a long game — even beyond ‘mere’ trade — China holds the stronger hand.
  • Irrespective of whatever Mr Trump concedes this week to secure a ‘headline grabber’, Xi Jinping will therefore come back for more, not least on Taiwan.

By Alastair Newton

October 22, 2025
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UK CPI Trips Into The Fall

  • UK inflation’s march higher ended early as expectations tripped over a drop in airfares to slow slightly in September, ahead of slightly falling back through the Fall seasonal.
  • Weakness elsewhere cut the annualised median rate below 2% for the first time since March. That is likely to be a small soft spot relative to the worrying cumulative upside.
  • Our forecasts remain close to or below the consensus until June, after other forecasts rose in last month’s survey. We still see wages stoking an excessive underlying trend.

By Philip Rush

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