NEWS

Latest updates

• Bahrain and US sign symbolic security pact

  • The deal, signed during a visit to the US by Salman bin Hamad al‑Khalifa, Bahrain’s crown prince and prime minister, is of limited practical import, instead formalising existing close military and economic ties, but is intended to reaffirm US commitment to regional security (amid China’s increasing diplomatic and military outreach to the US’s traditional Gulf partners) and serve as a template for similar agreements under negotiation with the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
• Fed keeps rates on hold in September

  • The Federal Reserve (Fed, the central bank) kept its policy rate unchanged at 5.25-5.5% in September. In its last four meetings (May-September) the Fed has alternated between raising and holding rates as it proceeds cautiously in the final stages of its tightening cycle.
• Global Outlook: capital flows in and out of China

  • In EIU’s latest Global Outlook video, head of forecasting and economics, Tom Rafferty, and analyst, Chim Lee, discuss capital flows in and out of China.
• Bank of England keeps interest rates on hold at 5.25 per cent

  • On September 21st the monetary policy committee (MPC) of the Bank of England (BoE, the central bank) kept the policy interest rate on hold at 5.25%. This marks a pause in the monetary policy tightening cycle that began in December 2021, with the BoE having raised rates 14 consecutive times since then.
• Sluggish output growth in July portends a softening economy

  • We expect economic activity to decelerate further over the coming months, as the aggressive 2021-22 monetary policy tightening cycle takes fuller effect and the impact of Brazil’s early 2023 bumper harvest wanes.
• Republican rifts are likely to prompt a government shutdown

  • The ideologically divided Republican majority in the House of Representatives (the lower house) has been unable to agree on annual appropriations bills needed to fund the US government when the current fiscal year ends at midnight on September 30th.
• China’s economy is stabilising

  • data released on September 15th by China’s National Statistics Bureau (NBS) suggest that the economy has bottomed out.
• Climate ambitions threaten a new wave of trade protectionism

  • National climate policies are driving new trends of trade protectionism, with the EU at the centre of many of these fights. EIU expects disputes between the EU and many developing nations, in particular, to intensify over the 2020s given the inability of many emerging markets to meet the EU’s environmental policy thresholds.
• Geopolitical division widens as US steps up in the Pacific

  • Pacific islands will welcome the opportunity to deepen ties with the US, although some scepticism will persist. A more engaged US offers distinct economic and security benefits for the Pacific islands, which are heavily reliant on external development funding and also welcome US leadership on climate change.
• EU-China trade talks fail to yield results

  • We retain a pessimistic outlook for EU-China ties, primarily as a result of the former’s moves to protect its domestic EV industry. The latest negotiations did not ease these tensions, with the EU reiterating its intent to strengthen its trade defences despite China’s criticisms.

1... << 7879808182838485868788 >> 90