Central Bank Watch
Third Cut of National Bank of Ukraine Easing Cycle, and Many More to Come
September 5, 2019
Ukraine’s central bank policy rate has been cut by 50 basis points to 16.5%. This follows similar-sized easings earlier this year in April and July. Since officials consider 8% to be the rate level that represents a neutral monetary stance and since officials believe that CPI inflation, which is now at 9.1%, will continue falling […] More
Deeper Analysis
Comment about the ISM’s U.S. PMI for Non-Manufacturing
September 5, 2019
U.S. share prices were thrust sharply higher today, initially by news that Chinese officials are coming to Washington to resume trade talks, but again later as investors reacted to released U.S. data. U.S. labor productivity and unit labor costs increased robustly last quarter by 2.3% and 2.6% at annualized quarter-on-quarter comparisons. Factory orders advanced 1.4% […] More
Central Bank Watch
Swedish Repo Rate Kept at -0.25% But Statement More Guarded
September 5, 2019
The Swedish Riksbank kept its repo rate unchanged at minus 0.25% as had been expected. Although forward guidance in the released statement from the Executive Board of the central bank still implies a second rate increase within the next couple of months, official confidence in that path has declined. “However, market rates have fallen substantially […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Problems Deepen in Europe But Appetite for Riskier Assets Returns
September 5, 2019
German industrial orders slumped 2.7% in July, almost twice as steeply as forecast. This wiped out June’s recovery and left orders 5.6% below their year earlier level. Demand weakness was broadly based across industrial sectors but more concentrated exports than domestic demand. The construction purchasing managers index in Euroland sank 1.5 points in August, sliding […] More
