Tag Archives: Featured

Japan’s central bank has little room for further easing despite a downbeat outlook. At its monetary policy meeting on 30 July, the Bank of Japan (BoJ) decided to keep its monetary policy unchanged, as expected. The decision came as the Japanese economy faces strong external headwinds and a downbeat outlook for domestic demand. However, we do not expect the BoJ to make any changes to its current monetary easing...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.23% to 1.0928 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, August 06(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The escalation of the economic conflict between the world’s two largest economies is dominating the capital markets. The US cited China as a currency manipulator after the North American markets closed, ensuring the troubled start to...

There are no guarantees, no matter how monumental the hubris and confidence. The American lifestyle and economy depend on a vast number of implicit guarantees— systemic forms of entitlement that we implicitly feel are our birthright. Chief among these implicit entitlements is the Federal Reserve can always “save the day”: the Fed has the tools to escape either an inflationary spiral or a deflationary collapse. But there...

President Trump’s tweets last week announcing the end of the tariff truce signaled a new phase in the US-Chinese tensions. China responded as did investors. I was fortunate to have been invited to the Bloomberg set to discuss the issues of the day. In this two-minute clip, I suggest there will be far-reaching implications for investors. World growth is getting marked down as deflationary forces strengthen. The...

Admiring the view above Lake Lucerne, central Switzerland. American visitors to Switzerland have increased by over 40% in five years and represent a major growth motor for the tourism industry, annual statistics show. Chinese and Indian tourists are often seen as the future of Swiss tourism, the SonntagsZeitung and Le Matin Dimanche newspapers reported at the weekend. However, they say, “North America is the real growth...

“I know it, when I see it.” This phrase was first used by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, in a case of obscenity. Instead of defining it—we would think that this would be a requirement for a law, which is of course backed by threat of imprisonment—he resorted to what might be called Begging Common Sense. It’s just common sense, it’s easy-peasy, there’s no need to define the term… This is not a satisfactory...

Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.13% to 1.0893 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, August 05(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Chinese officials took the US tariff hike quietly last week but struck back today. The PBOC fixed the dollar higher (CNY6.90), which it has not done, and will halt imports of US agriculture. The dollar shot through CNY7.0 to finish the...

The die is cast. To defend the uneven expansion and ward off disinflationary forces, monetary authorities will provide more accommodation. The Federal Reserve delivered its first rate cut in more than a decade and stopped unwinding its balance sheet two months earlier than it previously indicated (worth $100 bln of additional buying of Treasuries and Agencies). Following the end of the tariff truce, and after the July...

05.08.2019 – Turnover in the retail sector rose by 0.7% in nominal terms in June 2019 compared with the previous year. Seasonally adjusted, nominal turnover rose by 1.4% compared with the previous month. These are provisional findings from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO). Real turnover in the retail sector also adjusted for sales days and holidays rose by 0.7% in June 2019 compared with the previous year. Real...

After falling against all the major currencies in June, the US dollar rebounded in July. The Dollar Index finished the month at new two-year highs with the Fed’s suggestion it was engaged in a mid-course correction rather than a sustained easing cycle. The dollar also appeared buoyed by the extent of the dovishness by the ECB and the heightened risks that the UK leaves the EU at the end of October without an agreement....