Retail sales in March rose 0.2% in relation to the preceding month in the restricted measure (without vehicles and construction materials) and +0.6% in the broad measure (which includes ...

Over the coming year, the current account deficit is likely to be 4 per cent of GDP or roughly $80 billion. Under normal circumstances, this is not an outlandishly large number. However,

Positive real interest rates have dominated the Russian economy in the past few months for the first time since the economic crisis of 2008-2009. Current positive rates are the result ...

After months of expectation regarding the content of the tax reform, a preliminary draft of the reform was leaked to the press and published last week. The Government, which had been ...

Growth has been slowing a bit faster than expected, due to a plunge in consumption and export growth. GDP grew 8.1% y/y in Q1, down significantly from last year’s 9.2%. Retail sales ...

After rebounding from the 1998 Asian economic crisis, Indonesia has grown into the world’s 16th largest economy, and in GDP terms will soon be on par with Australia, South Korea and ...

Inflation in April rose to 0.64% versus 0.21% the previous month. However, the 12-month variation is still decelerating, having declined from 5.24% to 5.10% because of the “base effect”....

Economic activity during the first quarter of 2012 is predicted to be enhanced by the positive performance of the retail & wholesale trade sectors as well as the manufacturing sector....

The projections here are based on an international scenario in which we assume: a) the US economy grows between 2.4% and 2.9% in 2012 and between 2.7% and 3.1% in 2013 (projections ...

The government announced a change in the readjustment calculation for savings accounts. The new norm is valid only for new savings accounts, in other words, deposits made after May ...

The Panamanian economy is as robust as ever, with the economic activity index up nearly 9.3% y/y by February, led by transportation and communications; construction, hotels and restaurants; ...

We take stock of where we are on the external adjustment, growth, monetary policy, and the ratings fronts. March trade data impressed on the adjustment front, and next week’s current ...

Many researchers suggest the weakening of the U.S. economy is responsible for stalled Mexican-U.S. immigration. The strengthening of U.S. anti-immigrant policies in the United States,

Industrial production in March dropped 0.5% in relation to February in seasonally adjusted terms. This meant the fourth consecutive quarter with declining variation, with output for ...

President Medvedev will head the United Russia party after leaving the presidential position and becoming the Prime Minister. That development is mostly beneficial for Vladimir Putin....

In this Special Report, we sound the alarm call for our readers, asserting that the next major earthquake to shake up the global political order will emanate from the Turkey-Iran-Syria-Iraq ...

Real retail sales have been expanding and should continue to do so because of: a) the stimulus from the lower real interest rate (it now stands below 3.5% a year); and b) growth of ...

The president’s disregard for Central Bank independence finally came back to haunt him: the government was forced to rescind its joyful announcement of 9% 2011 GDP growth (construction ...

The government’s partial nationalization of oil and gas giant YPF in mid-April substantially erodes the national business environment. This illegal move also narrows the subtle political ...

The outlook for oil production for the rest of the decade is uncertain: with exploration on the rise, there could always be a big new discovery. But current projections suggest a modest ...

President Sebastian Piñera announced last Thursday the contents of a tax reform bill to fund an educational reform. The tax reform seeks to collect between US$ 700 million and US$ ...

On 19 March, the Central Bank of Chile unveiled the new National Accounts series for the period 2003-2011. The principal change is the utilization of the 2008 benchmark compilation,

The Chinese political scene quieted in April, after the events surrounding Bo Xilai and Wang Lijun. We attribute this to intensive Party efforts to minimize any undesirable effects ...

The signal given in the minutes of the last COPOM meeting is that new cuts in the SELIC rate are in store. With the removal of the passage in which the authorities contemplated “the ...

Here is our quick take from today’s Inflation Report presentation in Ankara, which we were able to attend. A summary of the report in English is available at the Bank’s website, which ...