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Georgia is riding an FX wave to its smallest current-account deficit ever
CAUCASUS / CENTRAL ASIA · In Brief · 14 Jul 2026

Georgia's external story has its own defining characteristics, centered around the steady inflow of foreign exchange in the face of complex political relations with the West. The CA registered a deficit of US$356.0mn in 1Q26 on the back of the US$631.1mn deficit posted in 1Q25 and the US$482.5mn ...

Weekly report, July 13, 2026: June CPI in focus; inflation to ease to 1.7%; fiscal data surprise to the upside
ISRAEL · Report · 13 Jul 2026

Key headlines: - The June CPI will be published on Wednesday. We expect inflation to remain unchanged on the month (0.0% m/m), thus lowering annual inflation to around 1.7%, supported by lower fuel prices and the earlier appreciation of the shekel. - We expect one additional 25bp Bank of Is...

Our Take on the Ministerial Commission's Update on Cobre Panama
PANAMA · In Brief · 13 Jul 2026

The government’s latest update confirms that the decision on Cobre Panamá will extend through the end of 2026, ruling out a formal reopening this year and reinforcing the government’s intention to avoid a contract law and preserve negotiating leverage over First Quantum. This was the first substa...

Economics: The USMCA—complex, recurring negotiations amid recent sensitive trade imbalances
MEXICO · Report · 13 Jul 2026

On July 1, Mexico, the U.S., and Canada announced that the USMCA will remain in effect through 2036 (rather than through 2042, as Mexico and Canada had proposed), with annual reviews beginning on that date and formally starting on July 20. Talks are expected to be nearly continuous, covering rule...

A second round in the power fight between Tisza and Fidesz
HUNGARY · In Brief · 13 Jul 2026

Earlier today, Tisza’s parliamentary supermajority approved a constitutional amendment, to oust the President, get rid of the head of the Constitutional Court (and three other judges in the Court, simply by reinstating a previous rule that judges must retire over the age of 70), and cancel the Fi...

Politics: U.S. security strategy and the crisis with Mexico
MEXICO · Report · 13 Jul 2026

President Sheinbaum revived tension with Washington by making the 2024 kidnapping and handover of "El Mayo" Zambada the centerpiece of her press conferences, accusing former Ambassador Ken Salazar of lying about FBI involvement based on a journalistic report describing a disguised aircraft and an...

Synthesis of the Brazilian Economy
BRAZIL ECONOMICS · Report · 13 Jul 2026

The past few weeks, emptied out by the holidays during the World Cup matches, school vacations, and the judicial and parliamentary recesses, have favored the persistence of a frozen electoral scenario, with Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro competing for the lead in opinion polls depending on the tone of...

The political impact of Jair Bolsonaro's letter and other weekly topics
BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 13 Jul 2026

The final week of activity in the National Congress began last Friday, ahead of the legislative recess. In the Senate, lawmakers may vote on the provisional measure establishing a minimum freight rate. Truck drivers are pressuring Congress to vote on the matter. Four presidential polls will be re...

This is the final week of legislative activity, the Senate may vote on the provisional measure on minimum freight rates, and the deadline for negotiations between Brazil and the U.S. on the tariffs ends on Wednesday
BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 13 Jul 2026

Starting Friday (July 17), the National Congress will recess and resume activity on August 3. Upon return, however, lawmakers will maintain a reduced schedule due to the electoral period. The Senate may vote this week on Provisional Measure (MP) No. 1,343/26, which deals with minimum freight rate...

CAATSA OUT, CHP 2.0 on deck
TURKEY · In Brief · 13 Jul 2026 · 1 response

Sunday’s weekly Tracker was supposed to be the victory lap of Politics Author (I), because two of his major predictions are on the verge of materialization. I expect Ankara to announce shipping the dreaded S-400 anti-missile systems to a third country to be yet named. This should in theory elimin...

Azerbaijan's external accounts come with an increasingly large SOFAZ asterisk
CAUCASUS / CENTRAL ASIA · In Brief · 13 Jul 2026

Azerbaijan comes second in my analysis of the external accounts in the CCA region and the improvement it saw in its CA position in 1Q26 was not for the reason one may have anticipated. The CA surplus improved to 9.5 percent of GDP in the quarter from 2.4 percent of GDP in 4Q25 and 6.5 percent of ...

Unexpected Cabinet reshuffle: Svyrydenko out, Naftogaz chief Koretskiy likely to take the lead
UKRAINE · In Brief · 12 Jul 2026

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced today that he has decided to reshuffle the Cabinet and replace current Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko with someone else — the most likely candidate being the head of Naftogaz, Sergiy Koretskiy. Other personnel changes have also been announced. Although it ...

A brief econ update
TURKEY · Report · 12 Jul 2026

Industrial production shrank sharply in May, but that was largely driven by the “other transport equipment” category., while Turkstat’s seasonally-adjusted data pointed to limited improvement in the pace of core inflation, if at all. The cash budget recovered in June, as expected, with the def...

GULF WEEKLY: Iranian attacks on tankers shatter MoU, UAE oil at record 4.1m b/d in June, Kuwait deficit surges to -15% of GDP
GULF COUNTRIES · Report · 10 Jul 2026 · 1 response

A skimmable summary overlaid with our analysis and links. Headlines: * The most serious clashes since April happened after Iran attacked ships, including a Qatari LNG carrier and a Saudi oil tanker. * Trump declared that the MoU is “over”, but Qatari mediators are back in Iran today trying to...

The Gecex approved the temporary maintenance of the 12% Export Tax on crude oil, next week will be the final week of legislative activity before the recess, and the U.S. will decide whether to implement the 25% tariff
BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 10 Jul 2026

At a meeting held yesterday (July 9), the Executive Management Committee of the Chamber of Foreign Trade (Gecex) approved the temporary maintenance of the 12% Export Tax rate on crude oil. According to the committee, the measure was adopted in response to the deterioration of the international en...