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UPCOMING WEBINAR - CAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA: ECONOMIC UPSWINGS AND POL...

April inflation quickened to 4.9%
PHILIPPINES · In Brief · 05 May 2022

The headline inflation rate reached 4.9% in April, up from 4% in March.On a month-on-month seasonality adjusted basis, inflation continued to rise briskly at 1% for the second straight month.Increases in food and fuel prices are still the main drivers, with the latter pushing up consumers’ electr...

​Inflation @70, as the CBRT watches on
TURKEY · Report · 05 May 2022

Consumer prices rose by an above-consensus 7.2%, m/m, in April, with the 12-month CPI rate hence rising to 70%, from 61.1% a month earlier. Monthly PPI inflation was also high in April, at 7.7%, m/m, which meant a further visible increase in the 12-month rate to 121.8%, y/y, from 115% in March (G...

Russia performs nuclear drills near Poland
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 05 May 2022

On May 4 Russia carried out the simulated nuclear missile attack in Kaliningrad. This is 10 weeks to the day the Ukraine War began. Russia is dropping hints that it is willing to use tactical nuclear weapons. The exercise was an electronic launch of nuclear capable mobile ballistic missile system...

The EU considers banning Russian oil
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 04 May 2022

On May 4 the President of the European Commission announced a sixth round of sanctions. There are new banking restrictions. The EU wants to ban Sberbank and two other Russian banks from SWIFT.The EU will block three Russian TV channels.The EU also intends to help Ukraine pay for reconstruction af...

Pacheco met with Fux to try to alleviate the growing tension between the executive and judicial branches, the House may vote on the national nursing salary floor today, and the Senate may vote on the Auxílio Brasil provisional measure
BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 04 May 2022

Yesterday, Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco met with the president of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), Luiz Fux. Afterward, he gave an interview to the press, stating that the goal of the meeting was to “prevent an escalation of a crisis caused by a lack of dialogue”. In the House today, the main...

EU Commission has come forward with its oil embargo plan
HUNGARY · In Brief · 04 May 2022

Just as expected, the EU Commission revealed its plan to ban oil imports from Russia this morning. Still today, this proposal is set to be discussed by the ambassadors of member states to the EU, a key event to allocate the burden of the embargo.According to the proposal, the imports of crude oil...

Major protests in Armenia against peace deal with Turkey
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 04 May 2022

In Yerevan 200 demonstrators were arrested in May 2. They were irate that the government is considering recognizing Nagorno Karabakh as Azerbaijani territory. At the moment Armenia recognizes Nagorno Karabakh as an independent country called 'Artsakh'. Armenia is the only country in the world to ...

Lula and Bolsonaro exchange remarks on the economy, the União Brasil may leave the third-way alliance, and Central Bank employees go on strike for an indefinite period
BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 03 May 2022

Former President Lula criticized the government for the high rate of inflation. President Bolsonaro responded by calling Lula shameless. For Bolsonaro, the rise in prices was caused by the social isolation measures during the pandemic. There will likely be a meeting between the third way parties ...

Synthesis of the Brazilian Economy
BRAZIL ECONOMICS · Report · 02 May 2022

As the war caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine enters its third month, the hopes of a peace agreement in the near future are fading. The countries that had assumed the role of interlocutors, such as Israel and Turkey, have begun supporting the supply of weapons to Ukraine, and even Germany,...

Economics: April indicators project weakness for the rest of 2022
MEXICO · Report · 02 May 2022

Inegi’s preliminary reading of GDP for the first quarter of 2022 showed that the economy grew slightly more than expected, expanding at an estimated 1.6% yoy pace. While that may have marked an improvement over the more sluggish growth of the fourth quarter of 2021, it constitutes the most recen...

Politics: Pointing to opposition legislators as traitors steps up AMLO´s polarization offensive
MEXICO · Report · 02 May 2022

While President López Obrador and his supporters intensified their attacks on the opposition after the administration’s electric power sector constitutional reform proposal died in Congress on Easter Sunday, over the past week their lambasting of those who voted against the reform for betraying t...

Costa Rican President Elect completes the economic cabinet
CENTRAL AMERICA · In Brief · 02 May 2022

Fernando Naranjo and Félix DelgadoPresident Elect appointed key members of the economic cabinetOn April 30th, President Elect Rodrigo Chaves informed about three important posts in his government: Minister of Finance and Economy and Central Bank President.The Minister of Finance will by Nogui Aco...

The third way in crisis and other weekly topics
BRAZIL POLITICS · Report · 02 May 2022

The União Brasil may decide whether it will leave the third-way alliance. On May 7, former President Lula is expected to launch his candidacy for the Planalto Palace. In the House, deputies will try to vote on the national nursing salary floor. In the Senate, the Auxílio Brasil provisional measur...

Ukraine blowing up facilities in Russia
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 02 May 2022

On May 2 there were two large explosions in the Belgorod Region adjacent to Ukraine. Flashes in the sky preceded the explosions, suggesting it was missile strikes. The governor of the region announced the explosions. He claimed there were no injuries or damage. Why did he even announce the explos...

EU imports embargo against Russian oil coming; Hungary likely to cooperate
HUNGARY · In Brief · 02 May 2022

This morning, German ZDF television cited unnamed sources from around the EU Commission, saying that Hungary and Slovakia have withdrawn their intention to veto an EU embargo on oil imports from Russia. As a basic rule, the embargo, which is expected to come as early as this week, would aim at st...