global economics quarterly - credit suisse

31
DISCLOSURE APPENDIX AT THE BACK OF THIS REPORT CONTAINS IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES, LEGAL ENTITY DISCLOSURE AND ANALYST CERTIFICATIONS. 3 April 2017 Europe Economic Research Global Economics Quarterly Research Analysts Berna Bayazitoglu 44 20 7883 3431 [email protected] Alonso Cervera 52 55 5283 3845 [email protected] Vincent Chan 852 2101 6568 [email protected] Ray Farris 65 6212 3412 [email protected] Neville Hill 44 20 7888 1334 [email protected] Santitarn Sathirathai 65 6212 5675 [email protected] Hiromichi Shirakawa 81 3 4550 7117 [email protected] James Sweeney 212 538 4648 [email protected] Nilson Teixeira 55 11 3701 6288 [email protected] Credit Suisse Economics Teams (See inside for contributor names) Reflation – Hype and Reality After a burst of excitement about global “reflation,” investors are beginning to question its actual existence. That may be because “reflation” has not been properly defined. There has indeed been reflation: global growth has sustainably improved across a broad range of economies in both real and nominal metrics after a weak patch in 2015-16. But what the global economy has not seen is acceleration to “escape velocity.” And while such acceleration doesn’t look imminent, risks to growth are generally skewed to the upside. Although expectations for the size and scope of US tax cuts and reforms have diminished, it’s still possible a significant package is passed. One that would provide the global economy with a tailwind in 2018. Investment spending in developed economies could strengthen now that excess capacity in labor markets is diminishing and business confidence is high. There’s potential upside in both the US and Europe, in our view. For now we remain cautious. But that still means real global GDP growth of around 3% this year and next. That implies further tightening in labor markets in developed economies. And central banks are likely to become less accommodative: this “reflation” should be good enough for them. By the end of the year, we expect the Fed to raise rates twice more; the ECB to have pre-announced a tapering of its asset purchase program, and possibly adjusted its deposit rate slightly higher; and the Bank of Japan to have lifted its target rate for government bond yields. Investors remain understandably focused on political risks. Indeed, there are political outcomes in the US, Europe, and Asia that could well lead us to change our forecasts. But the fundamentals should not be ignored. In the absence of political shocks the global economy should grow at a healthy pace and the extraordinary amounts of monetary stimulus seen in recent years should abate. After their recent rally in response to a slight moderation in short-term growth momentum government bonds look vulnerable in the second half of the year.

Upload: others

Post on 13-Jul-2022

3 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

DISCLOSURE APPENDIX AT THE BACK OF THIS REPORT CONTAINS IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES, LEGAL ENTITY DISCLOSURE AND ANALYST CERTIFICATIONS.

3 April 2017 Europe

Economic Research

Global Economics Quarterly

Research Analysts

Berna Bayazitoglu

44 20 7883 3431

[email protected]

Alonso Cervera

52 55 5283 3845

[email protected]

Vincent Chan

852 2101 6568

[email protected]

Ray Farris

65 6212 3412

[email protected]

Neville Hill

44 20 7888 1334

[email protected]

Santitarn Sathirathai

65 6212 5675

[email protected]

Hiromichi Shirakawa

81 3 4550 7117

[email protected]

James Sweeney

212 538 4648

[email protected]

Nilson Teixeira

55 11 3701 6288

[email protected]

Credit Suisse Economics Teams (See inside for contributor names)

Reflation – Hype and Reality

After a burst of excitement about global “reflation,” investors are beginning to

question its actual existence. That may be because “reflation” has not been

properly defined.

There has indeed been reflation: global growth has sustainably improved

across a broad range of economies in both real and nominal metrics after a

weak patch in 2015-16.

But what the global economy has not seen is acceleration to “escape velocity.”

And while such acceleration doesn’t look imminent, risks to growth are

generally skewed to the upside.

■ Although expectations for the size and scope of US tax cuts and reforms

have diminished, it’s still possible a significant package is passed. One that

would provide the global economy with a tailwind in 2018.

■ Investment spending in developed economies could strengthen now that

excess capacity in labor markets is diminishing and business confidence is

high. There’s potential upside in both the US and Europe, in our view.

For now we remain cautious. But that still means real global GDP growth of

around 3% this year and next. That implies further tightening in labor markets

in developed economies. And central banks are likely to become less

accommodative: this “reflation” should be good enough for them.

By the end of the year, we expect the Fed to raise rates twice more; the ECB

to have pre-announced a tapering of its asset purchase program, and possibly

adjusted its deposit rate slightly higher; and the Bank of Japan to have lifted its

target rate for government bond yields.

Investors remain understandably focused on political risks. Indeed, there are

political outcomes in the US, Europe, and Asia that could well lead us to

change our forecasts.

But the fundamentals should not be ignored. In the absence of political shocks

the global economy should grow at a healthy pace and the extraordinary

amounts of monetary stimulus seen in recent years should abate. After their

recent rally – in response to a slight moderation in short-term growth

momentum – government bonds look vulnerable in the second half of the year.

Page 2: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 2

Table of contents

Forecast Table 3

Reflation – Hype and Reality 4

US: Still waiting for policy changes 11

Euro area: Sustainably stronger 13

China: Focus on stability 15

Japan: Reduced chances for meaningful monetary policy normalization 17

Non-Japan Asia: Great expectations, bumpy reality 19

Latin America: Hope endures 22

Europe 25

Emerging Europe, Middle East and Africa: Russia and South Africa to

ease monetary policy while Turkey to stay tight for a while 27

Page 3: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 3

Forecast Table

Source: Credit Suisse estimates, Thomson Reuters DataStream

*Countries with particularly high inflation are removed in the calculation of the global inflation aggregate.

Real GDP Growth (% , Annual Average) Inflation (% , Annual Average)

2015 2016E 2017E 2018E 2015 2016E 2017E 2018E

Global 100% 2.9 2.5 3.0 2.9 1.0 1.4 2.3 2.1

DM 61.7% 2.1 1.6 2.0 1.9 0.2 0.8 1.9 1.7

EM 38.3% 4.2 3.9 4.5 4.6 5.7 9.0 9.0 7.9

US 26.9% 2.6 1.6 2.3 2.2 0.1 1.3 2.3 2.1

Canada 2.3% 0.9 1.3 1.9 2.0 1.1 1.6 2.1 2.1

Latam 7.5% -0.4 -1.3 1.0 2.1 18.8 37.8 35.6 30.4

Brazil 2.7% -3.8 -3.6 0.2 2.0 10.7 6.3 4.3 5.0

Mex ico 1.7% 2.6 2.3 1.7 2.5 2.1 3.4 5.4 3.8

Argentina 0.8% 2.6 -2.3 2.9 2.8 20.6 36.2 20.5 15.5

Venezuela 0.4% -5.7 -10.0 -6.1 -2.8 180.9 501.7 505.0 430.9

Colombia 0.4% 3.1 2.0 2.4 3.0 6.8 5.7 4.2 3.3

Chile 0.4% 2.3 1.6 2.2 2.6 4.4 2.7 3.4 3.0

Peru 0.3% 3.3 3.9 3.8 4.1 4.4 3.2 2.8 2.5

Euro area 17.3% 1.9 1.7 2.0 1.8 0.0 0.2 1.7 1.2

Germany 1.5 1.8 2 1.8 0.1 0.4 1.5 1.4

France 1.2 1.3 1.7 1.8 0.1 0.3 1.4 1.1

Italy 0.6 1 1.3 1.2 0.1 0.0 1.0 1.0

Spain 3.2 3.2 2.8 2.1 -0.6 -0.3 1.5 1.6

Netherlands 2.0 2.0 2.1 1.8 0.2 0.1 1.2 0.8

Belgium 1.5 1.2 1.5 1.6 0.6 1.8 2.8 2.4

Austria 0.8 1.5 1.7 1.8 0.8 1.0 2.4 2

Greece -0.3 0.4 3.2 3.3 -1.1 0.0 0.8 0.4

Finland 0.2 1.5 1.3 1.3 -0.2 0.4 1.7 1.3

Portugal 1.6 1.3 1.7 1.5 0.5 0.7 1.5 1.1

Ireland 26.3 4.4 4.0 3.3 0 -0.2 0.8 0.4

UK 4.3% 2.2 1.8 1.4 1.4 0.0 0.7 2.6 2.8

Sw itzerland 1.0% 0.8 1.0 1.3 1.5 -1.1 -0.4 0.0 0.5

Sw eden 0.7% 3.8 3.1 2.2 2.2 0.9 1.4 1.7 1.8

Norw ay 0.6% 1.0 0.7 1.5 2.0 2.7 3.1 1.7 1.5

EEMEA 6.9% 1.0 1.0 2.2 2.3 1.9 1.4 1.3 1.3

Russia 2.0% -3.7 -0.2 1.5 1.7 12.9 5.4 3.8 4.0

Turkey 1.1% 6.1 2.3 3.1 2.5 8.8 8.5 9.1 8.0

South Africa 0.5% 1.3 0.3 1.4 2.0 5.2 6.7 5.0 5.5

Israel 0.4% 2.5 3.7 3.4 3.2 -1.0 -0.2 0.9 1.0

Ukraine 0.1% -9.9 1.6 3.4 2.2 43.3 12.0 7.7 6.2

Japan 6.2% 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.6 -0.3 0.3 0.7

Australia 2.0% 2.4 2.9 2.7 2.9 1.5 1.3 2.1 2.4

New Zealand 0.3% 3.0 2.8 2.7 2.6 0.3 0.7 1.6 2.0

NJA 23.8% 6.0 5.9 6.0 5.8 1.7 2.3 2.9 2.7

China 16.3% 6.9 6.7 6.8 6.5 1.3 2.2 2.6 2.3

India 3.1% 7.6 6.9 7.4 7.5 4.8 4.0 5.2 5.3

South Korea 2.1% 2.5 2.7 2.3 2.6 1.1 1.4 1.7 1.7

Indonesia 1.3% 4.8 5.0 5.2 5.2 3.4 3.0 4.5 4.1

Taiw an 0.8% 0.7 1.5 1.8 2.0 0.1 1.7 1.5 1.7

Thailand 0.6% 2.8 3.2 3.3 3.4 -0.9 1.1 1.8 2.0

Malay sia 0.4% 5.0 4.2 4.5 4.2 2.7 1.6 3.8 2.4

Singapore 0.4% 2.0 2.0 1.7 1.1 -0.6 0.2 0.8 0.0

Hong Kong 0.5% 2.4 1.9 2.0 2.0 2.5 1.2 2.1 2.0

Philippines 0.4% 5.9 6.8 6.4 6.2 1.5 1.7 3.2 3.7

Weights (%)

Page 4: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 4

Reflation – Hype and Reality For financial markets, the hype of the recent months has been “reflation.” This idea,

imprecisely defined at best, has been associated with the prospect of fiscal stimulus in the

United States. And over the past few months, market price action has largely reflected this

“reflation” theme. Risk assets outperformed, and government bond yields in the US and

Europe rose substantially from the lows of last summer.

But as can be case with fads and hypes, pushback has begun. Investors have started to

question the likelihood, timing, size and efficacy of any fiscal stimulus, especially after the

failure of US Congress to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. They ask whether

recent optimism over stronger growth will prove another false dawn.

The recent focus on “reflation” is reminiscent of the mania surrounding “deflation” in early

2015 (Figure 1). And for all the thought about risks, and the market repricing that occurred

at the time, we would observe that two years later the world is not in deflation, and

everyone is now talking about “reflation.”

Figure 1: You say “deflation,” I say “reflation”

Bloomberg news story count, 50 day sum

Source: Credit Suisse, the BLOOMBERG PROFESSIONAL™ service

Acceleration is most apparent in the tradeable sector (Figure 2 and Figure 3). Having run

close to zero in 2015 and 2016, global industrial production growth should sustain a trend-

like 3.0% pace in 2017. Although business activity surveys in the US may be buoyed by

political sentiment (US ISM marks the top of the shading in Figure 2), the improvement in

global manufacturing surveys has been unusually synchronized.

The pick-up is also clear from our forecasts: we expect global GDP to grow 3.0% this year

and 2.9% next, an improvement from 2.5% in 2016. That acceleration is broad-based, with

stronger growth in both EM and DM. And the acceleration is even more pronounced in

nominal terms – where the global economy has clearly reflated from the slump of 2015-16.

Neville Hill

44 20 7888 1334

[email protected]

James Sweeney

212 538 4648

[email protected]

Wenzhe Zhao

212 325 1798

[email protected]

Jeremy Schwartz

212 538 6419

[email protected]

Xiao Cui

212 538 2511

[email protected]

Sarah Smith

212 325 1022

[email protected]

Veronika Roharova

44 20 7888 2403

[email protected]

Page 5: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 5

Figure 2: PMIs point to a synchronized upswing Figure 3: IP growth has recovered

High to low range of manufacturing PMI new orders for the US, euro area, China, and Japan

Global IP, y/y% with CS forecast

Source: Credit Suisse, Markit Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream

Figure 4: Real GDP growth is also strong Figure 5: A nominal reflation of the global economy

Real GDP YoY % Nominal GDP, YoY%

Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream

It has also been a synchronized reflation. Most economies and regions should see

stronger growth and higher inflation this year.

Idiosyncratic shocks and headwinds have punished various parts of the global economy in

recent years: bank deleveraging and fiscal tightening; the euro area crisis; tighter financial

conditions in emerging markets after the “taper tantrum”; ongoing slowdown in China; and

a commodity price shock.

Those shocks have passed. China’s inexorable deceleration, seen between 2011 and

2016, has ceased for now. Cyclical indicators are consistent with our view that Chinese

growth will be stronger this year than it was in 2016. The downdraft in commodity demand

driven by slowing Chinese investment has consequently also come to an end, at least for

the time being. And so the terms of trade shock against commodity producers has

additionally ended.

Page 6: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 6

Indeed, the outlook for Chinese growth this year remains promising. We continue to

forecast growth of 6.8%, so the government’s commitment to growth stability looks

achievable. And growth should be supported by ongoing modest fiscal expansion. The

acceleration in nominal growth should buoy corporate profitability and in turn support

industrial fixed asset investment. And although tightening measures are weighing on the

housing market, we expect a correction, not a collapse, which in turn should prevent an

outright contraction in housing investment.

Figure 6: Chinese PMI had its best start to the year

since 2011

Figure 7: Global trade recovers in real and US dollar

terms

China NBS PMI – Jan/Feb average Global Trade YoY %, in volumes and USD

Source: Credit Suisse, Markit Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream

There seems to be limited upside to growth in Japan, where we look for 0.8% GDP growth

this year and next. The lack of further fiscal stimulus looks to be a key constraint, with

growth driven by exports and construction investment.

The prospect for the rest of Asia looks constructive, despite several crosscurrents. Most

Asian economies should post stronger growth in 2017 than they did in 2016. There should

be a moderate slowdown in exports, partly driven by the tech product cycle fading in Q2.

But that should be somewhat offset by stronger domestic demand, driven by higher rural

incomes and expansionary fiscal policy.

The US economy appears to have recovered from its dip last year, and we look for GDP

growth of 2.3%. The improvement is largely due to headwinds abating: better global

growth, stabilization in the energy sector, and lower inventories. At the same time,

consumer spending should remain strong, supported by solid real labor incomes. And

there are tentative stirrings of an improvement in business investment. Fiscal expansion

remains an upside risk in 2018.

Growth in Latin America, though still weak, has improved markedly this year. We look for

1.2% growth for the region as a whole, up from -1.1% in 2016. The forecast is largely a

consequence of Brazil, Argentina and Ecuador moving out of recession. The stronger

global economy has clearly been a driver of improvement, as have more generous

financing conditions. Looking ahead, Mexico poses some upside risk if the outlook for its

future relationship with the US improves.

Page 7: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 7

After several years of insipid growth, the expansion in the euro area has accelerated.

Cyclical indicators are consistent with growth stronger than our (above consensus)

forecast of 2.0%. This acceleration looks durable. The main drivers of expansion in recent

years – consumer spending and business investment – should sustain their recent pace.

And they should be accompanied by greater contributions to growth from exports and an

emerging – albeit heterogeneous – recovery in residential construction.

So the global economy has seen a synchronized acceleration, and is now growing at a

brisk, albeit not spectacular pace. Risks, for once, seem skewed to the upside. Having hit

growth of about 3.0%, could global GDP accelerate further? We see the key upside risks,

and uncertainties, as follows.

Can developed market investment improve?

One persistent area of weakness in global demand in recent years has been investment in

developed economies, in contrast to more robust consumer spending and retail sales.

Most recently, the slump in commodity prices crushed investment in that sector. But what

are the chances investment could improve from here?

We think there are a couple of factors that could support a modest improvement in

investment spending.

First, the recent acceleration in global IP and trade could lead firms to raise spending

plans. As Figure 8 shows, there is a close correlation between trade and investment, and

trade growth is picking up. And although we’re inclined to downplay the importance of the

recent surge in “animal spirits,” the more time confidence is sustained alongside stronger

production growth, the more likely it is that such euphoria translates into greater financial

outlays.

Second, labor markets continue to tighten. Unemployment in developed economies

continues to fall steadily (Figure 9). A simple Okun’s law relationship between GDP growth

and labor market dynamics suggests that the pace of growth we expect in the global

economy should be consistent with further declines in unemployment.

Since the global financial crisis, there has been a substitution of labor for capital in

developed economies. Firms have increased output by hiring more, not by investing. The

separation between investment and employment in this cycle is captured in Figure 11.

However, a trend can only continue for so long. As labor markets become genuinely

“tight,” and wage growth starts to rise (as is the case in the US), the relative appeal of

investment may improve. Of course, in other economies – Europe and Japan – there’s

little sign yet of upward pressure on wages.

There are also reasons to be cautious about investment. Commodity prices are still low.

So while mining investment has stopped falling, there’s little price incentive for recovery.

But overall, we think a combination of stronger global growth, heightened corporate

confidence, and tightening labor markets all skew the risks to investment over the next

year or so to the upside.

Page 8: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 8

Figure 8: Improving trade may spur investment Figure 9: Unemployment falling steadily in DM

Global trade volumes and investment goods demand DM Unemployment Rate %

Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream

Figure 10: Growth in DM is consistent with further

falls in unemployment

Figure 11: Investment has lagged employment so

far in this cycle

GDP growth in DM and changes in unemployment rates G3 real investment as % of GDP and DM unemployment rate

Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream Source: Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters Datastream

Can stronger growth in the euro area be sustained given political risks?

One of the most notable areas of improvement has been the euro area. After the end of its

recession in 2013, it spent much of the last few years growing at an unremarkable

1.5%pa. But the last six months have seen acceleration, with PMI surveys consistent with

growth above 2.0%.

The strengthening has been broad-based and seems sustainable – meaning the euro area

may make a modestly stronger contribution to global demand growth.

The key downside rise is, of course, politics. Over the next year, there are several key

elections – France (April/May), Germany (September), and Italy (early 2018). Could any of

these events derail the economic improvement?

Page 9: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 9

We think not. First, the performance of the euro area has shown that political uncertainty

has little effect on the economy. The events of Grexit, Brexit, and the political turbulence in

Spain and Italy all passed without significant economic consequence. So the forthcoming

political calendar should not pose a risk by itself.

The events will however pose a risk if their outcomes call into question the viability of a

country’s membership in the euro, or the euro itself. The French and Italian elections are

the most plausible risks here, with both having candidates contemplating taking their

country out of the euro.

If Marine Le Pen wins in France, there would likely be considerable capital flight and

enough financial stress to depress economic growth. But we think the chances of her

achieving victory are extremely slim. Opinion polls show her trailing in the second round by

20 percentage points, well beyond the margin of error.

And in Italy, the anti-euro convictions of the party that might be able to form a government –

M5S – are not that strong. They are unlikely to make leaving the euro a key part of their electoral

platform and would potentially be constrained by other coalition partners in any anti-EU policies.

A M5S victory would pose far less of a risk than would a Le Pen presidency, in our view.

So we remain confident that the euro area’s cyclical improvement can be sustained, even

against the backdrop of the coming year’s political risks.

Can China’s recent phase of stable growth be sustained?

One of the noteworthy features of the global economy this year is that the Chinese growth

has strengthened, rather than weakened. This has likely supported the stabilization in

commodity prices and upturn in global trade.

Though given the ongoing need for economic reform and adjustment in China, there’s a

clear risk that this year’s bounce proves fleeting. Indeed, much of this year’s strength

appears to have come from policy support, rather than from stronger fundamentals.

Trends in manufacturing investment and bank earnings point to underlying weakening.

And looking ahead, the marginal tightening of monetary and credit conditions this year

could also contribute to slower growth, especially through the housing sector.

Consequently, the political transition later this year may also have a bearing on the outlook for

growth over the next year or so. It’s possible that the new leadership will choose to embrace

reform and accept a growth rate that is meaningfully below the current target of 6.5%.

Although Chinese growth should remain stable for much of this year, the strength is

unlikely to be sustained. So there’s a risk that China’s contribution to global growth softens

in 2018. If the slowdown is modest, it should not be too much of a threat to “reflation.” But

if there is a marked further deceleration in investment, especially in housing, then there’s a

risk of a broader hit to global growth through a renewed downturn in commodity prices.

Will there be a meaningful boost from fiscal policy, particularly in the US?

US fiscal policy remains highly uncertain. Failing to repeal and replace the Affordable Care

Act is a significant setback to the Republican agenda and exposes some of the internal

tensions within the majority party. Even with Trump’s support, the bill failed to pass. This

lack of cohesion does not bode well for some of the more controversial aspects of

corporate tax reform – especially the border adjusted tax. The failure to pass a health care

replacement – which would have provided an easier deficit baseline for fiscal year 2018 –

has also created risks of reductions in the proposed stimulus.

However, we continue to expect an ambitious proposal for personal and corporate tax cuts

and look for a fiscal stimulus of close to 0.6% of GDP in 2018. But for the global economy

as a whole, this means a limited boost to growth. For fiscal policy to present a meaningful

upside risk to global growth next year, the US stimulus would need to be more meaningful

than what is currently expected.

Page 10: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 10

Figure 12: Little evidence of “fiscal reflation” for 2018

Global fiscal tightening or loosening as % of global GDP

Source: Credit Suisse

Taken together, the balance of risks to global growth beyond the next few months seems

skewed to the upside. After a prolonged succession of downside shocks to the global

economy, that bias is significant. It strengthens our conviction that the recent improvement

in global real and nominal GDP growth can be sustained. In that sense, the “reflation” that

has been achieved should endure. But whether it can improve remains an open question.

Solid growth should have policy implications. Cyclical indicators are at levels historically

consistent with both the Fed and the ECB moving in a hawkish direction. The Fed has

already done so, with robust global and US growth prompting it to hike in March. Although

we only expect a further two rate increases this year, the fact is that the Fed is slowly

peeling rates off the zero bound.

A combination of negative rates and aggressive QE by the ECB has sustained an

extremely low rates structure in the euro area. In particular, the low level of German bond

yields (along with the Bank of Japan’s zero yield target) has acted as a powerful anchor to

global yields. But there are signs that stronger growth in the euro area is driving a shift in

tone. Given the ECB’s commitment to undertake QE until the end of this year, no sudden

change is likely. But policymakers are likely to signal their willingness to end “emergency”

measures such as QE and the deeply negative deposit rate later this year. Its September

meeting may prove particularly important.

In Japan, our economists argue that the Bank of Japan will not be willing to lean against a

rise in yields driven by optimism on global growth. Consequently, we expect the BoJ to

raise its 10 year government bond yield target to +20bp in the fourth quarter.

And in the rest of Asia, we generally expect central banks to respond to better global

growth and higher inflation by shifting from a general dovish stance towards neutral, or

even modestly hawkish.

The direction of monetary policy globally looks clear. The US continues to successfully lift

itself from the zero lower bound. And in the second half of this year, the ECB and BoJ

should start to extract themselves from their aggressively easy monetary policies. The one

thing that could disrupt such a process is a meaningful dip in global growth. But not only

do we think such an outcome is unlikely, risks are building in the opposite direction.

And in that respect, once markets have digested the ongoing moderation in the short-term

momentum of global growth, they are likely to face a material shift in the support central banks

have provided to bond markets in the past few years. This might be enough “reflation” for them.

Page 11: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 11

US: Still waiting for policy changes

After a growth slump in 2016, the US economy is set to rebound this year as key

headwinds begin to fade – global growth is improving, the energy sector is stabilizing, and

business inventories are coming down. Although growth appears soft in Q1, we expect the

weakness to be temporary. Solid consumption and an improvement in business

investment should drive real GDP growth to 2.3% in 2017. The recent sharp increase in a

broad range of survey measures, including consumer confidence, ISM, small business

optimism, and CEO confidence all pose upside risks to our outlook. However, we remain

skeptical that strength in these survey measures will translate into a rapid acceleration in

actual spending growth.

The Trump administration has introduced significant political risk to the growth outlook, as

policies on taxes, health care, trade, immigration, and regulations are all likely to shift. We

expect fiscal and regulatory policy to be a tailwind to growth in the coming years. While the

failure to pass a health care replacement bill is a setback that demonstrates some internal

tensions within the Republican Party, we continue to expect some personal and corporate

tax reforms to pass by early 2018. Although the end result may be less ambitious than was

previously anticipated.

Household spending has slipped in Q1, but is likely to be supported by continued progress

in the labor market, in our view. Forward-looking indicators of employment signal some

additional room for improvement and we expect an unemployment rate of 4.5% by year-

end. After slowing in 2016, trend job gains picked up again earlier this year. Combined

with accelerating wages, this has kept total payroll income growth at a solid level.

One of the factors dragging GDP growth last year was weak business investment, but we

expect this component to return to positive growth in 2017. Mining investment was

particularly weak the past two years, but recovery looks likely given the rebound in energy

prices and possibility of deregulation. Outside of energy, we expect investment to

accelerate after a weak patch last year. Business confidence has clearly improved, and

leading indicators suggest investment demand should pick-up in the next few months.

Corporate tax reform could determine investment decisions, but the details of any policy

changes are uncertain and we anticipate reform will have a larger impact on 2018 than on

2017 business spending.

We remain optimistic on housing. Housing construction and home sales have proved

resilient to higher mortgage rates, but financial conditions continue to tighten and

downside risks remain. However, a solid labor market, the current lean housing supply,

and demographics remain supportive of new construction in the medium term.

Net exports have lowered growth by 1.0ppt on average in the past two quarters, and we

expect trade to continue to weight on growth going forward. Although global growth is

improving, renewed dollar strength and solid US growth are likely to boost imports relative

to exports in the quarters ahead. We don’t expect disruptive trade policies as a base case,

but the risk of an absolute decline in the volume of trade is not out of the question.

Government spending, which has contributed mildly to growth after being a huge drag in

the early years of the recovery, remains an area of uncertainty in our forecast. The Trump

administration proposed a 10% increase in defense spending, and no decreases to Social

Security or Medicare. The first version of Trump’s budget (which is only a rough guide)

proposes reductions in non-defense discretionary spending of about one-tenth, affecting

numerous agencies including the State Department, Health and Human Services, and

Education. The administration has also insisted on a $1 trillion infrastructure program,

perhaps through public-private partnerships.

James Sweeney

212 538 4648

[email protected]

Jeremy Schwartz

212 538 6419

[email protected]

Xiao Cui

212 538 2511

[email protected]

Sarah Smith

212 325 1022

[email protected]

Page 12: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 12

Our inflation outlook remains cautiously constructive. Despite the recent strength, we

expect core inflation to remain below the Fed’s 2% target for the remainder of 2017.

Although growth has picked up in the US and globally, inflation expectations remain low by

historical standards and we see few signs of overheating in the labor market. Nonetheless,

the possibility of a policy-driven inflation shock (from fiscal policy, trade, health care

legislation, and turnover at the Fed) has risen under the Trump administration, adding a

great deal of longer-term uncertainty. However, this uncertainty will likely play out over

years, not months.

Our growth and inflation scenario is consistent with some gradual Fed tightening in the

coming years. We expect two more 25bps rate hikes in September and December, and

two rate hikes in 2018. Yellen’s term as Fed Chair will expire in February 2018. We expect

the Trump Fed to be less willing to raise interest rates and more willing to reduce the

balance sheet. We expect no changes to the Fed’s reinvestment policy this year.

US Economic Forecasts

Quarter-to-Quarter %

Changes at annual rates

2016 2017E Q4/Q4 Annual Average

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 15 16 17E 18E 15 16 17E 18E

Real GDP 0.8 1.4 3.5 2.1 1.9 2.6 2.3 2.4 1.9 2.0 2.3 2.1 2.6 1.6 2.3 2.2

Consumer Spending 1.6 4.3 3.0 3.5 1.5 2.6 2.3 2.5 2.6 3.1 2.2 2.1 3.2 2.7 2.6 2.3

Residential Investment 7.8 -7.8 -4.1 9.6 11.0 1.0 6.5 6.5 13.1 1.1 6.2 4.0 11.7 4.9 4.8 4.6

Business Investment -3.4 1.0 1.4 0.9 6.7 3.8 3.7 3.1 0.8 -0.1 4.3 2.7 2.1 -0.5 3.4 3.0

Equipment -9.5 -3.0 -4.5 2.0 9.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.7 -3.8 4.5 3.0 3.5 -2.9 2.9 3.0

Intellectual Property 3.8 9.0 3.2 1.3 3.5 2.5 2.0 2.0 3.8 4.3 2.5 2.0 4.8 4.7 2.9 2.0

Non-Res Structures 0.1 -2.1 12.0 -1.9 7.0 8.0 8.0 5.0 -8.8 1.9 7.0 3.0 -4.4 -2.9 5.5 4.3

Total Government 1.6 -1.7 0.8 0.2 -0.2 0.8 1.5 1.5 2.2 0.2 0.9 1.5 1.8 0.8 0.4 1.5

Federal -1.5 -0.4 2.4 -1.2 1.3 0.5 1.5 1.5 1.7 -0.2 1.2 1.5 0.0 0.6 0.7 1.4

State and Local 3.5 -2.5 -0.2 1.0 -0.7 1.0 1.5 1.5 2.5 0.4 0.8 1.5 2.9 0.9 0.3 1.5

Net Exports (contr. to GDP, %) 0.0 0.2 0.9 -2.0 0.1 0.1 -0.3 -0.3 -0.7 -0.2 -0.1 -0.1 -0.7 -0.1 -0.2 -0.2

Real Exports -0.7 1.8 10.0 -4.5 3.5 3.5 1.2 1.2 -2.2 1.5 2.3 1.5 0.1 0.4 2.2 1.5

Real Imports -0.6 0.2 2.2 8.9 2.0 2.0 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.6 2.2 2.0 4.6 1.1 3.3 2.2

Inventories (contr. To GDP, %) -0.4 -1.2 0.5 0.9 -0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 -0.1 0.0 -0.1 0.0 0.2 -0.4 0.1 0.0

Nominal GDP 1.3 3.7 5.0 4.2 4.0 3.4 4.4 4.9 3.0 3.5 4.2 4.3 3.7 3.0 4.1 4.4

CPI (y/y%) 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.8 2.6 2.2 2.3 2.2 0.4 1.8 2.2 2.1 0.1 1.3 2.3 2.1

Core CPI (y/y%) 2.2 2.2 2.2 2.2 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.4 2.0 2.2 2.4 2.2 1.8 2.2 2.3 2.2

Core PCE (y/y%) 1.6 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.4 1.7 1.9 2.0 1.4 1.7 1.8 1.9

Industrial Production -1.8 -0.8 1.7 0.4 2.0 3.9 2.0 1.7 -1.6 -0.1 2.4 ... 0.3 -1.0 ... ...

Unemployment Rate (qtr. Avg., %) 4.9 4.9 4.9 4.7 4.7 4.6 4.5 4.5 5.0 4.7 4.5 4.4 5.3 4.9 4.6 4.4

Fed Funds Rate (end of pd, %) .25-.50 .25-.50 .25-.50 .50-.75 .75-1.00 .75-1.0 1.-1.25 1.25-1.5 .25-.50 .50-.75 1.25-1.5 1.75-2.0 … … … …

Source: Credit Suisse estimates, Thomson Reuters DataStream

Page 13: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 13

Euro area: Sustainably stronger The euro area economy has seen a material acceleration over the past six months.

Cyclical indicators are now consistent with growth above 2%, strengthening our conviction

in our above consensus forecast of 2% GDP growth this year, after several years at a

pace of around 1.5%.

This acceleration looks broad-based and self-sustaining. Consumer spending growth has

been solid for the past year or so, supported by decent real income growth. Although the

windfall from lower oil prices passed, stronger employment growth should shore up labor

incomes. Firms’ hiring intentions are extremely high.

Corporate spending should also remain sturdy. Corporate profits continue to strengthen,

buoyed by stronger sales and subdued labor costs. So far, firms have been cautious in

deploying strong cash flows, choosing to save rather than to boost investment or

dividends. But given a growing obsolescence of the capital stock (evident in high capacity

utilization), we think the recent pace of business investment growth can be sustained. And,

as we discuss above, the risks to corporate spending are likely skewed to the upside.

But demand should be supported by other factors as well. For the past two years, exports

have been a limited driver of growth given soft global trade. Given the quickening in

growth looks sustainable, we expect trade to make a greater contribution to euro area

growth in coming quarters.

Finally there are signs that, after prolonged weakness, residential construction is starting

to pick up. The revival is heterogeneous. It is most advanced in economies such as

Germany, where house prices have been rising for some time and construction confidence

is at an all-time high. Even in France and Italy, where housing activity has been depressed

by a long period of cyclical weakness, the economic recovery is supporting a turn in the

housing market. As such, construction investment should make a sustained positive

contribution to growth.

This more vigorous outlook for the euro area will also have positive effects on underlying

financial fundamentals. As noted above, this should be a particularly benign environment

for corporate profitability. But stronger income growth, falling unemployment and extremely

low interest rates should also further the process of private sector deleveraging and drive

down non-performing loans in the banking system.

It should also deliver modest upwards pressure on core inflation. A combination of base

effects, higher energy prices and a spike in fresh food prices has led headline HICP

inflation to surge to 2% in recent months. But headline inflation should abate somewhat in

the next few months.

So far, core inflation has been stable, stuck just below 1% for the past few years. But a

combination of solid demand growth and rising input costs should put sufficient upwards

pressure on core inflation to mean it drifts up in the second half of the year. Although we

don’t expect the rise to be substantial, it is important as an upward trend in core inflation

could meet the ECB’s condition of seeing “a sustained adjustment in the path of inflation

consistent with its inflation aim” necessary for an end to its quantitative easing program.

Indeed, the economy’s recent vigor, if sustained as we expect, is now consistent with the

ECB becoming less accommodative and moving away from the extraordinary easing

measures of the past couple of years. In European Economics: When Hawks Fly we

observed that real cyclical variables, not inflation, have historically been the best guides to

whether the ECB will ease or tighten. A key threshold has been the composite PMI –

which we regard as an excellent coincident indicator of GDP growth. In the past, when this

indicator has risen above 56, the ECB has tended to tighten. It rose above that level in

March.

Neville Hill

44 20 7888 1334

[email protected]

Giovanni Zanni

44 20 7888 6827

[email protected]

Sonali Punhani

44 20 7883 4297

[email protected]

Anais Boussie

44 20 7883 9639

[email protected]

Peter Foley

44 20 7883 4349

[email protected]

Veronika Roharova

44 20 7888 2403

[email protected]

Page 14: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 14

Consequently, a shift in tone should not be a surprise. And in recent weeks some ECB

officials have started voicing thoughts about an exit strategy. Given that the ECB has

committed to buying assets at the pace of €60bn a month until the end of the year, there is

no hurry. But the tone is likely to steadily change in the second half of the year, once key

political risk events have passed.

We expect the ECB to announce in September that it will taper, ending its asset purchases

in 2018. And given growing discomfort, especially from banks, over the deeply negative

deposit rate (at -0.4%), the ECB could even use that announcement, or the process of

tapering, to make a “technical” adjustment to its policy rate structure. In theory the central

refinancing rate – currently at 0.00% – is the active policy rate and there is a symmetric

corridor around it of the deposit (currently at -0.40%) and marginal lending facility

(+0.25%) rates. The ECB’s last cuts of the deposit rate broke that symmetry. By “re-

adjusting” to a symmetrical corridor (of +/-25bps, say), the ECB would be able to reduce

the negativity of the deposit rate without signaling a sustained rise in policy rates.

Strong growth is likely to trigger policies – tapering and a rise in the deposit rate – that will

put upwards pressure on the rates structure in the euro area. We expect markets to

anticipate this in the second half of the year, essentially after the French elections.

As we discuss above, the euro area still has a congested political calendar ahead, with

French Presidential elections in April and May and German parliamentary elections in

September. For markets, the most serious risk event is the French election. If the far right

candidate Marine Le Pen, who is campaigning on a platform of taking France out of the

EU, did win, it would likely prompt capital and deposit flight similar to that seen in the

periphery during the euro crisis of 2011-12 or out of Greece in 2015. As was the case in

those episodes, the financial stress would bring considerable damage to the expansion.

That being said, we remain of the view that a Le Pen victory remains unlikely. She trails

considerably in polls for the second round, well beyond the margin of error. So although

this vote remains a genuine fat tail risk, it is likely to pass without much impact. And with

that risk gone, equity and fixed income investors may have to reconsider valuations in

euro area financial markets in the light of solid economic fundamentals.

Figure 13: Euro area cyclical indicators consistent

with vigorous growth, and a tighter ECB Figure 14: France’s Le Pen unlikely to triumph

Euro area composite PMI and GDP growth Net support for “populist” outcome in opinion polls ahead of UK EU Referendum, US Presidential election & French Presidential election

Source: Credit Suisse Source: Credit Suisse

Page 15: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 15

China: Focus on stability China has set its growth target at “around 6.5%” and “seek[s] better performance in

practice” for 2017 – a year of political transitions. We believe the government is committed

to maintain growth stability and prevent financial risk.

We keep our full year real GDP forecast at 6.8% (consensus 6.5%). High frequency data

has been robust thus far. Investment growth (measured by fixed asset investment growth)

accelerated to 8.9% in January-February. Sales volume growth of key industrial goods is

hitting its highest pace since 2010. Sales volume of loaders jumped by 60%y/y in January-

February. While these growth rates are impressive, the higher base in the coming months

might put downward pressure on headline rates. It is also worth noting that sequential IP

momentum seems to be weaker than the upbeat survey data would imply. However, the

government’s commitment to growth stability suggests a smooth growth dynamic ahead.

We expect the government to be pro-active in supporting growth. While the lower bound is

still set at a well-recognized 6.5%, the new phrase “seek for better performance in

practice” reflects the government’s confidence in achieving better-than-target growth. The

National People’s Congress left the approved headline fiscal deficit of 3.0%, but raised the

budget for the local government special-purpose fund by RMB 400B (0.5% of GDP). The

fund is designated for long-term infrastructure projects. We believe such expansion sends

another signal that the government is committed to overall growth stability in the coming

quarters, especially ahead of the political transition.

We believe China’s nominal GDP growth can reach 13.0%y/y in Q1 2017 and stay in

double digits in 2017. We expect PPI inflation at 5.5% in FY2017 (significantly above

consensus of 2.9%). Such PPI reflation is likely to push up the GDP deflator. This should

work with the acceleration of real GDP growth to support a rebound of nominal growth. On

the other hand, we only expect a modest increase in CPI inflation (2.6% in 2017 versus

2.0% in 2016). Food inflation seems likely to remain subdued. Non-food inflation is the key

driver behind the swing in headline CPI, given the PPI reflation.

With CPI inflation below 3.0% (what seems to be the government’s upper bound), we

expect the focus to be on managing potentially risky areas. We expect the PboC to

gradually guide up the interbank rates and conduct more window guidance to cool down

real estate related credit growth in certain cities. However, we do not expect an increase in

benchmark deposit or lending rates. Furthermore, the PBoC is likely to maintain the

stability of overall credit growth and liquidity conditions as the National People’s Congress

sets both the total social financing and M2 growth targets to be around 12.0% (versus

actual growth of 12.8% and 11.3%, respectively).

The leverage issue has seen more attention from the government recently. High and rising

leverage has been a well-known problem for the Chinese economy in the past six to seven

years. We believe the sudden attention it is getting from the Chinese government is due to

the emergence of rising leverage in the financial sector. With a stable short-term interbank

repo market, non-bank financial institutions in China leveraged up aggressively to buy

longer maturity bonds. As a result, interbank activities surged. The rise in the short-term

bond repo rate will drive up the effective lending and deposit rates. But the PBoC should

maintain overall credit growth around target.

Improved nominal GDP growth is likely to support corporate earnings. On the other hand,

fixed asset investment growth has already been decelerating for five years. Against such a

background, we believe the recovery of corporate profits is likely to support industrial

investment growth. Private investment growth has shown further signs of stabilization after

a prolonged deceleration. However, the sustainability of the improvement will depend on

what happens globally.

Vincent Chan

852 2101 6568

[email protected]

Weishen Deng

852 2101 7162

[email protected]

Ray Farris

65 6212 3412

[email protected]

Page 16: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 16

Local governments in higher tier cities have launched further measures to tighten the real

estate market. We believe the central government will continue to take a hawkish stance

towards the cities where housing prices have shown significant increases. However, prices

have not yet risen in lower tier cities. Thus, we maintain our view that the overall housing

market is likely to experience a correction rather than a collapse. New starts could contract

by 2.3%y/y in 2017. On the other hand, real estate fixed asset investment is likely to stay

in positive territory (around 2.0%).

Consumption growth may face some headwinds. The auto buyer’s tax cut (launched in

October 2015) supported China’s production and consumption growth in past quarters.

However, the marginal impact has faded and the over-consumption has reduced potential

purchases in the coming quarters. Auto sales turned negative in January-February and are

likely to remain a drag.

Against the background of stability, we lowered our USDCNY forecasts to 6.98 and 7.18 in

3 and 12 months, respectively (from 7.06 and 7.33). Whereas fundamental factors – such

as relative monetary conditions – point to depreciating pressure, we believe the

government and PBoC will be committed to maintain stability. The decline in China’s

foreign exchange reserves seems to moderating after the government tightened the

implementation of policy regarding cross-border flows. This would help the PBoC maintain

currency stability.

Page 17: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 17

Japan: Reduced chances for meaningful monetary policy normalization

Inflation outlook now looks less promising

In our 2017 Global Outlook, we stressed the possibility of a meaningful acceleration in

wage growth and an upside risk to inflation, particularly amid the continued tightening of

the labor market. However, financial market developments and further analyses have

forced us to adjust our view somewhat. We have become less confident regarding upward

pressure on inflation.

First, the softening of the USDJPY exchange rate and commodity prices since mid-

January is disappointing. While we recognize that CPI inflation rates have been less

sensitive to import inflation pressures in recent quarters, we continue to believe that

waning import inflation pressures will make it harder for retailers to raise prices.

Importantly, the one-year ahead household expected inflation rate from the Consumer

Survey has weakened. Our statistical analysis of CPI found that upward momentum on

prices has peaked and more retailers are in favor of leaving prices unchanged.

Second, there has been little sign of wage growth acceleration for full-time workers. We

know that a wage inflation story mainly relates to a potential non-linear upshift in unit wage

growth for non-regular workers (typically part-time workers), but the recent moderation in

the growth of scheduled earnings for full-timers is not welcome news. While there seemed

to be a high probability of wage negotiations this spring, the results were disappointing.

Given the remaining unstable correlation between CPI inflation rates and unit labor costs,

we think it appropriate to take a more cautious view on wage inflation.

In this context, we have revised down our core CPI inflation forecast for Q4 2017 to

0.6%y/y from 0.8%. The risks to this revision look rather balanced.

Normalization of monetary policy will be delayed

The gradual normalization of monetary policy by the BoJ appears to be more consistent

with the less promising outlook for inflation. While we saw a decent chance for the BoJ to

raise its 10-year JGB rate target (currently 0.0%) by more than 20-30bps this summer, we

now believe that any rate adjustment will be delayed to Q4 2017 and will likely be of a

maximum of 20bps.

Our projection of a small rate hike in Q4 2017 relates to technical aspects of QE and the

long-term purchases of JGBs (currently somewhat below ¥80T per annum on a net basis).

Unless the BoJ allows the pace of QE to reaccelerate while market JGB yields are under

rising pressures, it will be difficult for it to cap the 10-year JGB yield at around 0.0%

(between -0.1% and 0.1%). We believe the BoJ is hesitant to re-boost QE in a situation

where optimism about the global economy invites upward pressures on long-term interest

rates. This in turn means that no rate hike by the BoJ will be a real possibility if global

long-term interest rates don’t rise meaningfully from current levels.

Another fiscal expansion looks unlikely

With its large external surplus, the international community will continue to argue for more

expansionary fiscal policy by Japan. The Prime Minister’s economic advisory team also

appears to favor some further fiscal actions. However, we continue to think the

introduction of another stimulus package remains unlikely this year as public investment is

set to recover (helped by the package launched in summer 2016). Policy makers

additionally seem to be struggling to reach a consensus on potential measures to boost

“still sluggish” personal consumption.

Hiromichi Shirakawa

81 3 4550 7117

[email protected]

Takashi Shiono

81 3 4550 7189

[email protected]

Page 18: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 18

Our forecast for real GDP for CY2017 is unchanged at 0.8%. Although growth momentum

appears to have peaked, we continue to expect the economy to grow at a somewhat faster

pace than its potential (around 0.5%). In addition to the recovery in public investment, net

exports should remain a positive contributor to GDP. Business fixed investment growth will

likely remain steady, as construction investment is likely to show some acceleration.

Japan Economic Forecasts

Quarter-to-Quarter %

Changes at annual rates

2016E 2017E Financial Year Calendar Year

Q1 Q2 Q3E Q4E Q1E Q2E Q3E Q4E 15 16 17E 18E 15 16 17E 18E

Real GDP 1.9 2.2 1.2 1.2 0.2 0.3 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.2 0.8 0.6 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.8

Nominal GDP Growth (y/y%) 1.3 1.3 1.0 1.6 0.6 0.1 0.0 -0.1 2.8 1.1 0.0 -0.4 3.3 1.3 0.1 -0.2

Domestic Demand Growth 0.5 2.3 -0.4 0.2 0.2 0.9 1.4 1.0 1.1 0.6 0.7 0.4 0.7 0.5 0.6 0.7

Consumer Spending 1.5 0.9 1.4 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.4 0.4 -0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Private Residential Investment 5.9 13.8 10.1 0.5 -2.0 -3.0 5.0 0.0 2.7 6.1 0.5 -0.1 -1.6 5.6 1.6 0.3

Corporate Capital Expenditure -0.7 5.7 -0.4 8.4 0.0 -3.0 0.5 1.0 0.6 2.4 0.6 -0.1 1.1 1.4 1.4 0.2

Inventories (contr. To GDP) -1.3 1.3 -1.4 -0.8 -0.2 0.5 0.2 0.0 0.3 -0.3 0.0 0.0 0.6 -0.3 -0.2 -0.3

Government Expenditure 5.5 -4.2 1.0 1.0 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 2.0 0.8 1.4 0.9 1.6 1.5 1.0 1.1

Public Investment -4.6 4.1 -3.6 -9.5 3.0 10.0 8.0 5.0 -2.0 -2.3 3.7 0.8 -2.2 -3.0 1.9 2.6

Net Exports (contr. to GDP) 1.4 -0.1 1.6 1.0 0.0 -0.7 -0.3 0.2 0.2 0.6 0.0 0.1 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.1

Real Exports Growth 3.5 -4.6 8.5 11.0 3.0 -3.0 0.0 3.0 0.8 2.6 2.1 2.4 3.0 1.2 3.0 1.9

Real Imports Growth -4.3 -3.9 -1.0 5.3 3.0 1.0 2.0 2.0 -0.2 -1.0 2.1 1.6 0.1 -1.7 1.9 1.6

Industrial Production (y/y%) -1.6 -1.8 0.4 2.1 2.9 3.5 2.6 1.1 -1.0 0.9 2.1 0.7 -1.2 -0.2 2.5 0.9

CPI excl. fresh food (y/y%) -0.1 -0.4 -0.5 -0.3 0.1 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.0 -0.3 0.5 0.7 0.6 -0.3 0.3 0.7

CPI excl. food and energy (y/y%) 0.6 0.5 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.7 0.2 0.2 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.1 0.5

Rate of IOER (at end of QTR) -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1 - 0.1 -0.1 -0.1 -0.1

Current account bal. to GDP% 3.8 3.6 3.7 3.9 4.2 3.5 2.9 2.5 3.4 3.8 2.7 1.5 3.1 3.8 3.3 1.6

Fiscal balance to GDP % - - - - - - - - -3.3 -2.6 -2.8 -3.3 - - - -

Government debt to GDP % - - - - - - - - 243.6 243.5 246.3 250.6 - - - -

Unemployment rate % 3.2 3.2 3.0 3.1 3.0 3.0 2.9 2.8 3.3 3.1 2.9 2.6 3.4 3.1 2.9 2.7

Source: Credit Suisse estimates, Thomson Reuters DataStream

Page 19: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 19

Non-Japan Asia: Great expectations, bumpy reality

Asian growth momentum could fade, while US rate hikes continue

We think the key macro driver of Asian financial markets this year will be the balance

between the likely improvement in growth and the rise in US interest rates. We think two

more rate hikes by the Fed is manageable for Asia, so long as growth continues to

improve. This has essentially been the story over the past few months, with Asian growth

indicators picking up while the Fed sent more hawkish messages.

However, we see a number of reasons growth momentum might moderate in Q2.

■ Lead indicator: the CRB metal price index (our preferred lead indicator for Asia

exports and the industrial sector) is pointing toward a mild slowdown in growth

momentum in Q2 (Figure 15). This is consistent with the view that global manufacturing

momentum will moderate in the coming months.

■ Tech product cycle: we think the key tailwind boosting Asian exports – the upturn in

the tech product cycle – could fade in Q2. Soft smartphone demand in China could be

a key drag on production (see here and here). The moderation in the tech sector will

likely weigh on the main electronic exporters in the region including Taiwan, Korea, and

to a lesser extent ASEAN economies except Indonesia (Figure 16).

■ US policies: we think many are too optimistic about the prospect of US fiscal policy

stimulus supporting growth this year and leading to greater Asian exports. If US

stimulus is delayed and US business investment moderates, Asian exports to the US

might slow. Protectionist policies, including a border adjusted tax and stricter

immigration rules, could also weigh on Asian growth (see here and here).

Figure 15: Our preferred lead indicator suggests

moderation in growth momentum in Q2

Figure 16: The upturn in the tech cycle partly

contributed to export strength in TW, KR, and ASEAN

Source: Credit Suisse, CEIC Source: Credit Suisse, CEIC

Shifting to domestic demand

We do not expect growth to collapse. The lead indicator and our views on the global

economy imply only a moderate slowdown. We also think domestic demand growth will

partially offset softer export growth. We expect an improvement in domestic spending

given higher rural incomes and expansionary fiscal policies. The rebound in commodity

prices – especially in coal, rubber, and palm oil – since late last year should support

consumption in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Expansionary fiscal policy should lift

Santitarn Sathirathai

65 6212 5675

[email protected]

Ray Farris

65 6212 3412

[email protected]

Michael Wan

65 6212 3418

[email protected]

Page 20: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 20

growth in China, South Korea, and the Philippines. As a result, we remain constructive on

full year GDP growth in most economies, despite some likely moderation in momentum in

Q2 (Figure 18). In fact, we have seen an upward trend in consensus growth forecast

revisions in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand – with forecasts in the latter two now

matching our projections. We are raising our GDP growth forecast for Hong Kong to 2.0%

from 1.7%. We have however cut GDP projections in South Korea to 2.3% from 2.5%

given the likely downturn in tourism after the bans by the Chinese government on travel

agencies selling packages to Korea.

Figure 17: The likely moderation in US spending on

durables could weigh on Asian exports

Figure 18: We are generally constructive on GDP

growth despite the expected weakening in near-

term export momentum

Green = above consensus, Red = below consensus; () for old forecasts

2016 2017 CS 2017 consensus

China 6.7 6.8 6.5

HK 1.9 2.0 (1.7) 2.0

India 6.8 7.4 7.3

Indonesia 5.1 5.2 5.2

Korea 2.5 2.3 (2.5) 2.5

Malaysia 4.2 4.5 4.3

Philippines 6.8 6.4 6.4

Singapore 2.0 1.7 2.1

Taiwan 1.1 1.8 1.8

Thailand 3.2 3.3 3.3

Vietnam 6.0 6.4 6.6

Source: Credit Suisse, CEIC Source: Credit Suisse, CEIC, Consensus Economics

Higher inflation, Asian central banks shifting to neutral/hawkish from dovish mode

Decent growth and accelerating inflation will likely shift Asian central banks from a dovish

to a neutral/hawkish stance. We expect inflation to surprise on the upside in most places

due to higher commodity prices, administrative price changes, and improving growth

(Figure 19).

At the same time, however, we do not think headline inflation will break above the central

banks’ targets and pressure them to raise rates meaningfully this year. Recent weakness

in the USD and more resilient macro stability across Asian economies should provide

central banks with flexibility to delay rate hikes until they see a stronger economic recovery

(Figure 20).

Only in China and the Philippines do we see central banks undertaking monetary

tightening. The PBoC has already been tightening liquidity open market reverse repo

operations and the Medium Term Lending Facility rates, though we do not expect them to

raise the benchmark rates this year. The Philippines’s BSP has been draining liquidity

from the banking system via its Term Deposit Auction Facilities and we expect it to hike

rates by 25bps in H1 2017. Other countries will likely remain on hold in 2017, but there is a

risk of an earlier tightening move in Vietnam and Malaysia.

Page 21: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 21

Figure 19: We think inflation will likely surprise on

the upside in most places, though not enough to

trigger material rate hikes

Figure 20: All Asian economies except Malaysia and

the Philippines have stronger current account

balances now than in 2013

Green = above consensus, Red = below consensus; () for old forecasts

2016 2017 CS 2017 consensus

China 2.0 2.6 2.3

HK 2.4 2.0 1.9

India 5.0 5.2 4.7

Indonesia 3.5 4.5 4.4

Korea 1.0 1.7 1.8

Malaysia 2.1 3.8 3.3

Philippines 1.8 3.2 3.2

Singapore -0.5 0.8 1.0

Taiwan 1.4 1.8 1.5

Thailand 0.2 1.8 1.6

Vietnam 2.4 4.5 4.4

Source: Credit Suisse, CEIC Source: Credit Suisse, CEIC

Page 22: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 22

Latin America: Hope endures We still project a modest regional growth improvement in 2017. Yet, Latin America

will likely remain an underperformer relative to other EM regions. Our Latam real GDP

growth forecast remains 1.2% in 2017. We revised Brazil’s real GDP growth forecast to

0.2% (from 0.0%). This was however offset by lower growth expectations in Colombia,

Peru, and Ecuador. We maintain our earlier estimates for the rest of the countries while

noting potential upside surprises in Mexico given continued uncertainty regarding its future

relationship with the US.

We now expect slightly lower regional consumer price inflation this year. We

lowered Brazil’s annual headline inflation forecast to 4.3% in 2017 (from 5.3%) due to

lower than expected food inflation, currency appreciation, and less inflation stickiness. In

Mexico, we increased our annual headline inflation projection to 5.4% (from 4.0%) with the

increase in gas prices and the pass-through effects from last year’s currency depreciation.

Argentina and Venezuela will probably continue to post the highest 2017 inflation rates in

the region, and in Venezuela’s case, the world.

Figure 21: Latin America: CS 2016-2017 Real GDP Growth and Inflation Forecasts

2016 Real GDP Growth 2017 Real GDP Growth 2016 Inflation 2017 Inflation

Dec-16 Mar-17 Dec-16 Mar-17 Dec-16 Mar-17 Dec-16 Mar-17

Argentina -2.2 -2.3 2.9 2.9 37.1 36.2 20.1 20.5

Brazil -3.5 -3.6 0.0 0.2 6.8 6.3 5.7 4.3

Chile 1.8 1.6 2.2 2.2 3.0 2.7 3.2 3.4

Colombia 2.0 2.0 2.7 2.4 5.7 5.7 4.2 4.2

Ecuador -2.2 -2.2 0.8 0.5 1.1 1.1 1.5 1.2

Mexico 2.1 2.3 1.7 1.7 3.4 3.4 4.0 5.4

Peru 4.0 3.9 4.5 3.8 3.1 3.2 2.6 2.8

Venezuela -10.0 -10.0 -6.1 -6.1 501.7 501.7 468.7 505.0

Latin America -1.0 -1.1 1.2 1.2 18.3 18.1 16.0 15.3

IMF PPP weights are used to compute regional aggregate figures

Source: National Statistical Agencies, Credit Suisse

Stronger global growth should benefit the region, although it will remain sensitive

to commodity price fluctuations. Oil prices have not risen as much as expected, despite

compliance with OPEC’s production reduction agreements. This could pose downside

risks for fiscal accounts, debt rates, and debt service in certain economies. Meanwhile, the

perceived dovishness of the US Fed has led local currencies and interest rates to rally. A

longer than expected normalization of DM interest rates could help facilitate financing and

boost growth in Latam. In turn, more hawkish US interest rate expectations present a

downside risk.

We now project a marginally narrower regional current account deficit and a smaller

fiscal deficit in 2017. The current account improvement is mainly driven by a slightly

lower deficit expectation in Brazil and notably narrower deficit projections in Mexico and

Colombia. We note, though, the lower current account surplus forecast in Ecuador, and

the higher deficit estimate in Venezuela, given downward revisions to our oil price

assumptions. Moreover, the slightly narrower fiscal deficit forecast stems from improved

expectations in Brazil and Mexico, which more than offset our wider deficit projections in

Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Venezuela.

Alonso Cervera

52 55 5283 3845

[email protected]

Casey Reckman

212 325 5570

[email protected]

Juan Lorenzo Maldonado

212 325 4245

juanlorenzo.maldonado@credit-

suisse.com

Alberto J. Rojas

52 55 5283 8975

[email protected]

Nilson Teixeira

55 11 3701 6288

[email protected]

Page 23: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 23

Figure 22: Latin America: CS 2016 Current Account, Fiscal Balance,

Government Debt, and Foreign Debt Forecasts

% of GDP

2017 Current Account 2017 Fiscal Balance 2017 Government Debt 2017 Foreign Debt

Dec-16 Mar-17 Dec-16 Mar-17 Dec-16 Mar-17 Dec-16 Mar-17

Argentina -2.8 -2.9 -7.3 -7.6 53.0 50.7 33.4 31.4

Brazil -1.8 -1.5 -10.5 -9.8 79.0 78.0 34.0 28.2

Chile -2.0 -1.9 -2.5 -2.6 21.7 22.7 67.2 64.1

Colombia -4.1 -3.5 -2.6 -2.5 51.2 50.6 41.7 41.0

Ecuador 0.7 0.4 -3.5 -4.4 46.7 49.1 35.9 35.8

Mexico -3.5 -3.0 -3.0 -2.5 50.0 47.7 33.9 32.7

Peru -2.7 -2.7 -2.4 -2.4 27.3 26.2 36.5 36.6

Venezuela -2.1 -4.5 -12.4 -13.1 102.0 106.9 164.3 178.6

Latin America -2.5 -2.2 -6.8 -6.6 60.5 60.4 39.1 35.6

Central government only, IMF PPP weights are used to compute regional aggregates

Source: National Statistical Agencies, Credit Suisse

The most relevant macro and political stories in Latin America will likely continue to

vary from country to country. Below we provide a summary:

In Argentina, the government must navigate increased domestic tensions during Q2

even though economic growth has increased. The uneven nature of the recovery has

limited the rise in sentiment among the general population. At the same time, administered

price increases and combative annual salary talks have renewed concerns about the

trajectory of disinflation. We expect improvement on both fronts in Q2 and Q3, which will

be crucial to the ruling coalition’s performance in October’s legislative elections. We still

project 2.9% real GDP growth this year, but have raised our inflation forecast for

December to 20.5%y/y. Meanwhile, the tax amnesty program has increased the odds of

adherence to the 4.2% of GDP primary fiscal deficit target for 2017. The budget shortfall

remains large, though, and partially funding it through substantial external borrowing is

contributing to the real exchange rate appreciation (which is generating concern among

exporters and investors).

In Brazil, Congress will focus on the discussion of the Bill for Constitutional

Amendment related to social security reform. Approval of this bill is important in

avoiding further fiscal deterioration. Even if this reform is approved, we expect the primary

fiscal deficit to remain at 2.9% of GDP in 2017 and 2.5% of GDP in 2018. Such dynamics

will likely keep gross public debt on an upward trend, reaching 90% of GDP by the

beginning of next decade. We expect the economic recovery to be gradual, with GDP

growth of 0.2% in 2017 and 2.0% in 2018. The unemployment rate should increase slightly

in the next few months with lower growth in payroll jobs than in the labor force. The sharp

decline in inflation should help keep real wages stable in 2017. Inflation is expected to

decline to 4.3% in 2017 from 6.3% in 2016. This decline will likely be mainly driven by the

path of food prices. The benign scenario for inflation will likely allow the central bank to cut

the Selic basic interest rate from 13.75% in 2016 to 9.0% in 2017, its lowest level since

August 2013.

In Chile, we remain unexcited about economic prospects for 2017. We continue to

project a modest acceleration in real GDP growth after a disappointing performance in

2016. Inflation should stay in check, thanks to subdued demand and a stable currency.

This will likely lead the central bank to cut the monetary policy rate further in the coming

months. Fiscal and external imbalances remain modest and are not a concern to us or to

investors. Interest in Chile from abroad will likely gain momentum by the summer months

with more clarity on the November 2017 presidential elections.

Page 24: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 24

Colombia should have a less turbulent 2017 after an eventful 2016. A year ago, oil

prices were at multi-year lows, the government had lost its oil-related revenues, the

current account had risen, the exchange rate was at multi-year highs, inflation was

accelerating, and the peace agreement with FARC guerrillas was delayed. Today, fiscal

reform should make up for a good portion of the lost oil revenues, the current account

deficit has narrowed, the currency has stabilized, the peace agreement was signed, and

inflation is declining. We think Colombia will achieve a new equilibrium within our forecast

horizon, characterized by modest growth rates, a stable current account deficit, and within-

target inflation.

Ecuador will elect either ruling party candidate Lenin Moreno or opposition

candidate Guillermo Lasso as its new president on April 2. Whoever wins will face

important structural challenges in the fiscal, external, and monetary sectors, which need to

be addressed to guarantee the sustainability of the monetary system. We think that, during

the next administration, some sort of adjustment will be either engineered or imposed on

the economy, which is set to go through a multi-year stagnation.

The 2017 economic outlook for Mexico remains uncertain and contingent on the

course of negotiations with the US, particularly on the trade front. We maintain our

view that growth in 2017 will likely be lower than in 2016 as the economy faces headwinds

from lower real wage gains, higher inflation and interest rates, and generally lower

business and consumer confidence. Despite this, sentiment appears to have improved,

aided by “risk-on” sentiment globally, the authorities’ decision to slow the pace of gasoline

price increases, and the friendlier rhetoric from the US about NAFTA. However, whether

this friendlier rhetoric materializes into a “good” NAFTA deal from Mexico’s point of view is

unclear.

Peru will face difficult exogenous challenges to growth this year. The join negative

impact of corruption and natural disasters will be met by fiscal stimulus and reconstruction

efforts, which will likely cause volatility in the data. The government will likely continue to

look to infrastructure investment as the key driver of growth. To do so, a fiscal stimulus

package has been put in place, and more resources will be deployed for reconstruction.

In Venezuela, we remain rather pessimistic about prospects for improvement in the

economic, political, and social conditions in Q2. The authorities appear unlikely to

pursue reforms that could improve fundamentals despite massive distortions and

imbalances. We project a 6.1% contraction in real GDP and inflation over 500% in 2017.

Meanwhile, the constitutional channels for bringing regime change have been blocked,

support for opposition leadership has declined, and the population fears repression. We

expect the public sector to continue repaying its external bond debt in the coming months.

However, downward revisions to oil price assumptions and doubts about China’s financial

support complicate the outlook for debt service later this year and in 2018.

Page 25: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 25

Europe

United Kingdom

We expect UK growth to slow to 1.4%y/y in 2017 from 1.8% in 2016. The outlook depends

critically on consumer demand. Since the referendum, the UK economy has exceeded

expectations, mainly on the back of a resilient consumer sector. However, the fall in sterling

is pushing up inflation and suppressing household real incomes. Consumers can respond to

falls in real incomes by continuing to borrow or by reducing consumption. We have started

seeing signs of a slowdown in consumer spending and expect it to weaken further.

Corporates seem to be responding to increasing input costs due to falling sterling by

raising domestic prices to preserve their margins. But a slowdown of the consumer sector

should hit corporate profitability in the future. For exporters, the weak sterling should

provide a short-term boost. UK exporters are raising export prices in sterling terms in

response to the fall in sterling, yielding limited competitiveness gains. An increase in

export volumes has occurred, but this is due to improving demand rather than

competitiveness gains. So while UK exporters are likely to have seen an increase in

corporate profits, this has not translated into increased levels of business investment. The

uncertainty and fear that the UK’s trading relationships may be less favorable post-Brexit

might also be deterring long-term investments.

The BoE expects the negative effects of the fall in sterling on household spending to be

made up for by positive effects on business investment and net exports. Our analysis

suggests this is unlikely. As a result, we expect growth at 1.4%y/y, which should tone

down the recent hawkish rhetoric of the BoE and keep them on hold in 2017.

Inflation is expected to rise to 2.6% in 2017. While oil prices increased, domestic inflation

(wages) remains subdued. However, if the slowdown doesn’t happen and inflation keeps

rising, the hawkish views could gain more traction in the next few BoE meetings and there

could be more votes for a hike in the coming months.

Theresa May triggered Article 50 on March 29th. The EU leaders will convene a summit on

April 29th to ratify the guidelines for Michel Barnier, the European Commission’s chief

negotiator. EU officials have said the bloc may wait to June to fully engage.

Sweden

We expect the economy to grow at 2.5% in 2017 given expansionary monetary policy. The

outlook is positive for both households and companies, and exports are rising due to

increasing global demand. CPIF inflation has come close to target, but the increase has

been due mainly to energy prices.

The positive growth trend and rising inflation prints should give the Riksbank reasons to

tone down its highly accommodative stance. The Riksbank is however concerned about

political uncertainty abroad. The Riksbank kept the repo rate at -0.50% in February and

said there is a greater probability of a cut relative to a hike in the near term, and that

increases will not begin until 2018. QE continues until June 2017 (adding up to SEK

275B). We expect no further expansions.

Norway

We expect mainland GDP growth to rise to 1.6% in 2017 from 0.8% in 2016. The regional

network survey from March reported moderate output growth in Q1. Growth has picked up

somewhat in all sectors outside exports and is at its strongest since spring 2014, primarily

due to higher public demand. Stronger output growth is expected over the next six months.

Inflation has been lower than expected and underlying inflation declined to 1.6%y/y in

February (1.0% below the Norges Banks’s forecasts). We need to wait and see if there is

a rebound or sustained fall in inflation and how inflation expectations are impacted.

Sonali Punhani

44 20 7883 4297

[email protected]

Neville Hill

44 20 7888 1334

[email protected]

Page 26: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 26

While the fall in inflation and strength in the currency may concern the Norges Bank, it is

important to note that growth has remained relatively robust. The Norges Bank kept rates

on hold in March and signaled they would remain on hold for the medium term. The bank

weighed the lower than expected inflation against stronger growth expectations, the rapid

rise in house prices, and firmly anchored inflation expectations.

Page 27: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 27

Emerging Europe, Middle East and Africa: Russia and South Africa to ease monetary policy while Turkey to stay tight for a while Since the publication of the December issues of the EM Quarterly, we revised

our 2017 real GDP growth forecast higher for South Africa while keeping it

unchanged for Russia and Turkey.

We continue to expect Russia to post real positive GDP growth this year. Rosstat’s

preliminary estimate for 2016 real GDP was 0.2% (compared to our forecast of 0.4%). In

our seasonally adjusted estimates, real GDP growth picked up to 1.0%q/q in Q4 from

0.2% in Q3. Available real sector indicators suggest the recovery in economic activity has

been driven by investment rather than consumer demand. We maintain our real GDP

growth forecasts at 1.5% for 2017 and 1.7% for 2018.

In South Africa, we expect domestic demand to get a boost from the easier monetary

policy stance. We revised our 2017 real GDP growth forecast to 1.4% from 1.1%. We

expect household consumption expenditures to grow by 2.0% (versus 1.2%) and fixed

investment to grow by 0.6% (versus 0.2%). We estimate a growth rate of 2.3% for import

volumes (compared to -3.7% in 2016) and a growth rate of 2.0% in export volumes

(compared to -0.1% in 2016).

In Turkey, following a 2.7%q/q contraction in Q3 2016 due to the failed coup attempt, real

GDP probably recovered sharply in Q4. Measures announced by the government since

September 2016 – including tax cuts, employment support schemes, and credit

guarantees for SMEs and exporters – should lead to modestly stronger full-year real GDP

growth in 2017. We maintain our real GDP forecasts of 2.3% for 2016 and 2.1% for 2017,

but acknowledge downside risks given a less accommodative global environment and the

country’s idiosyncratic growth-negative factors. We are revising our 2018 real GDP growth

forecast to 2.5% from 3.0% given higher political and policy uncertainty.

Figure 23: EEMEA: Real GDP Growth Rates

%, Annual

December 2016 Quarterly March 2017 Quarterly

2016E 2017E 2018E 2016E 2017E 2018E

Russia -0.4 1.5 1.7 -0.2 1.5 1.7

South Africa 0.4 1.1 2.0 0.3 1.4 2.0

Turkey 2.3 3.1 3.0 2.3 3.1 2.5

Source: Credit Suisse estimates, National Statistical Agencies

Over the last few months, the inflation outlook has improved in South Africa

and worsened in Turkey.

In Russia, headline inflation fell to 4.6% in February from 5.4% in December 2016.

Although this was driven to some extent by temporary factors (stronger rouble and

favorable harvest), fundamental factors – such as subdued consumer demand and tight

policy – also contributed. Official core inflation fell to 5.0% in February, the lowest level on

record. Our measure of core inflation (net food and energy) fell to 3.5%, also the lowest

level on record. We estimate the run-rate of core inflation fell below the central bank’s

4.0% target in January and moved even lower in February. Due to downside surprises in

headline inflation, we revised lower our end-2017 inflation forecast to 3.9% from 4.2%. We

maintain our end-2018 forecast at 4.0%.

Berna Bayazitoglu

44 20 7883 3431

[email protected]

Page 28: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 28

In South Africa, CPI inflation will likely fall to 5.0% by end-2017 (versus 6.7% at end-

2016). We expect it to fall below 6.0% in April. The key drivers are (i) an expected sharp

deceleration in food price inflation as a result of the continued fall in domestic agricultural

prices (which are down calendar-YTD an average of 27%); (ii) a lower assumption for

Brent oil prices ($52.50/bbl in 2017 versus $58.00/bbl previously); (iii) a lower assumption

for electricity prices following the decision by the National Energy Regulator to approve an

annual average increase for Eskom’s retail tariffs of only 2.2% for the 2017/18 financial

year; and (iv) a revision lower in our forecast for USDZAR (which we now expect to end

2017 at 13.95 versus 15.25).

In Turkey, end-2016 inflation surprised sharply to the upside due to food prices. Additionally,

the lira depreciated in January, leading to deterioration in the inflation outlook. For the first

time since April 2012, year-on-year headline inflation moved into double-digits in February.

The increase in headline inflation to 10.1% in February (from a low of 7.0% in November)

was driven by food (1.5pps) and energy (0.9pps) prices, but core prices (0.6pps) also

contributed. The run-rate of core inflation increased to about 11.5% in February from about

7.0% in September-November due to the lira’s sharp depreciation since late September

2016. We expect headline inflation to hover around 11.0% in Q2, possibly peak in May, and

end 2017 at 9.1%. Our end-2018 inflation forecast remains at 8.0%.

Figure 24: EEMEA: CPI Inflation Rates

%, End-Period

December 2016 Quarterly March 2017 Quarterly

2016E 2017E 2018E 2016E 2017E 2018E

Russia 5.5 4.2 4.0 5.4 3.8 4.0

South Africa 6.5 6.0 4.7 6.7 5.0 5.5

Turkey 7.6 8.4 8.0 8.5 9.1 8.0

Source: Credit Suisse estimates, National Statistical Agencies

We now expect both Russia and South Africa to ease monetary policy this year.

In Russia, the CBR cut the policy rate by 25bps to 9.75% in March and delivered a dovish

statement. This was in contrast to its hawkish statement in February, when it stated the

likelihood of a cut in H1 had decreased given changes in the domestic and external

environments. The change in stance was driven by the resilience of the rouble to the

Finance Ministry’s operations in the FX market and the surprise in inflation to the

downside. We maintain our end-2017 policy rate forecast at 9.00%. In 2018, we expect the

CBR to cut the rate by 150bps (versus 125 bps), bringing the rate to 7.50%.

In South Africa, we expect the MPC to begin lowering the policy rate in July, cutting the

rate by a total of 75bps to 6.25% in 2017. This expectation is based on our view that

inflation will fall sharply this year and that GDP will remain below trend until Q2 2018.

There have bene no public indications from MPC members that they have turned more

dovish. Recent statements rather appear to show they are in no rush to react to the

stronger rand, lower oil prices, or collapse in agricultural prices.

In Turkey, the MPC has tightened monetary policy aggressively since the beginning of

2017. In response to the sharp lira depreciation in early January, the central bank

tightened off-shore (through daily FX swaps) and onshore lira liquidity. The bank’s

effective funding rate increased to 11.3% in March (from 8.31% at the end of 2016)

through a use of the late liquidity window rate. Given the combination of downside risks to

growth and high inflation, the MPC prefers this tightening to be temporary. However, the

outlook for inflation and the balance of payments suggests that this might not be realistic.

We think the MPC might hike the one-week repo rate to 9.00% during the year, but our

conviction is quite low given the MPC’s preference to use liquidity tools. The MPC has

pledged to keep monetary policy tight until the inflation outlook displaces “significant

improvement.” The central bank might decide to ease lira liquidity if USDTRY stabilizes

Page 29: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

3 April 2017

Global Economics Quarterly 29

around 3.50-3.52 (the level that supported the “wait and see” mode in December 2016) or

if there is a notable decline in the headline inflation rate (which might happen in early Q3).

We think the MPC will keep the late liquidity window rate unchanged at 11.75% for the

next few months.

Figure 25: EEMEA: Policy Rates

%, End Period

December 2016 Quarterly March 2017 Quarterly

2016E 2017E 2018E 2016E 2017E 2018E

Russia 10.00 8.75 7.50 10.00 9.00 7.50

South Africa 7.00 7.00 6.00 7.00 6.25 6.25

Turkey* 8.00 9.00 9.00 8.00 9.00 9.00

*Under the assumption of a normalized monetary policy framework in 2016

Source: Credit Suisse estimates, National Statistical Agencies

Page 30: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

GLOBAL FIXED INCOME AND ECONOMIC RESEARCH

James Sweeney, Managing Director Head of Fixed Income and Economic Research

+1 212 538 4648 [email protected]

Dr. Neal Soss, Managing Director Vice Chairman, Fixed Income Research

1 212 325 3335 [email protected]

US / GLOBAL ECONOMICS AND STRATEGY

James Sweeney Chief Economist +1 212 538 4648 [email protected]

Xiao Cui +1 212 538 2511 [email protected]

Zoltan Pozsar +1 212 538 3779 [email protected]

Jeremy Schwartz +1 212 538 6419 [email protected]

Sarah Smith +1 212 325-1022 [email protected]

Wenzhe Zhao +1 212 325 1798 [email protected]

Praveen Korapaty Head of Interest Rate Strategy 212 325 3427 [email protected]

Jonathan Cohn 212 325 4923 [email protected]

William Marshall 212 325 5584 [email protected]

EUROPEAN ECONOMICS AND STRATEGY

Neville Hill Head of European Economics & Strategy +44 20 7888 1334 [email protected]

Anais Boussie +44 20 7883 9639 [email protected]

Peter Foley +44 20 7883 4349 [email protected]

Sonali Punhani +44 20 7883 4297 [email protected]

Veronika Roharova +44 20 7888 2403 [email protected]

Giovanni Zanni +44 20 7888 6827 [email protected]

David Sneddon Head of Technical Analysis 44 20 7888 7173 [email protected]

Christopher Hine 212 538 5727 [email protected]

GLOBAL FX / EM ECONOMICS AND STRATEGY Shahab Jalinoos Head of Global FX Strategy 212 325 5412 [email protected]

Honglin Jiang 44 20 7888 1501 [email protected]

Trang Thuy Le +852 2101 7426 [email protected]

Alvise Marino 212 325 5911 [email protected]

Bhaveer Shah 44 20 7883 1449 [email protected]

Kasper Bartholdy Head of Global EM Strategy +44 20 7883 4907 [email protected]

Ashish Agrawal +65 6212 3405 [email protected]

Daniel Chodos +1 212 325 7708 [email protected]

Nimrod Mevorach +44 20 7888 1257 [email protected]

Berna Bayazitoglu Head of EEMEA Economics +44 20 7883 3431 [email protected]

Alexey Pogorelov +44 20 7883 0396 [email protected]

Carlos Teixeira +27 11 012 8054 [email protected]

Alonso Cervera Head of Latin America Economics +52 55 5283 3845 [email protected]

Juan Lorenzo Maldonado +1 212 325 4245 [email protected]

Casey Reckman +1 212 325 5570 [email protected]

Alberto Rojas +52 55 5283 8975 [email protected]

Nilson Teixeira Head of Brazil Economics +55 11 3701 6288 [email protected]

Paulo Coutinho +55 11 3701-6353 [email protected]

Iana Ferrao +55 11 3701 6345 [email protected]

Leonardo Fonseca +55 11 3701 6348 [email protected]

Lucas Vilela +55 11 3701-6352 lucas.vilela @credit-suisse.com

ASIA PACIFIC DIVISION

Ray Farris, Managing Director Head of Fixed Income Research and Economics, Asia Pacific Division

+65 6212 3412 [email protected]

EMERGING ASIA ECONOMICS

Dr. Santitarn Sathirathai Head of Emerging Asia Economics +65 6212 5675 [email protected]

Vincent Chan Head of China Macro +852 2101 6568 [email protected]

Deepali Bhargava +65 6212 5699 [email protected]

Weishen Deng +852 2101 7162 [email protected]

Christiaan Tuntono +852 2101 7409 [email protected]

Michael Wan +65 6212 3418 [email protected]

JAPAN ECONOMICS

Hiromichi Shirakawa Head of Japan Economics +81 3 4550 7117 [email protected]

Takashi Shiono +81 3 4550 7189 [email protected]

Page 31: Global Economics Quarterly - Credit Suisse

Disclosure Appendix

Analyst Certification The analysts identified in this report each certify, with respect to the companies or securities that the individual analyzes, that (1) the views expressed in this report accurately reflect his or her personal views about all of the subject companies and securities and (2) no part of his or her compensation was, is or will be directly or indirectly related to the specific recommendations or views expressed in this report.

Important Global Disclosures Credit Suisse’s research reports are made available to clients through our proprietary research portal on CS PLUS. Credit Suisse research products may also be made available through third-party vendors or alternate electronic means as a convenience. Certain research products are only made available through CS PLUS. The services provided by Credit Suisse’s analysts to clients may depend on a specific client’s preferences regarding the frequency and manner of receiving communications, the client’s risk profile and investment, the size and scope of the overall client relationship with the Firm, as well as legal and regulatory constraints. To access all of Credit Suisse’s research that you are entitled to receive in the most timely manner, please contact your sales representative or go to https://plus.credit-suisse.com .

This report is produced by subsidiaries and affiliates of Credit Suisse operating under its Global Markets Division. For more information on our structure, please use the following link: https://www.credit-suisse.com/who-we-are This report may contain material that is not directed to, or intended for distribution to or use by, any person or entity who is a citizen or resident of or located in any locality, state, country or other jurisdiction where such distribution, publication, availability or use would be contrary to law or regulation or which would subject Credit Suisse or its affiliates ("CS") to any registration or licensing requirement within such jurisdiction. All material presented in this report, unless specifically indicated otherwise, is under copyright to CS. None of the material, nor its content, nor any copy of it, may be altered in any way, transmitted to, copied or distributed to any other party, without the prior express written permission of CS. All trademarks, service marks and logos used in this report are trademarks or service marks or registered trademarks or service marks of CS or its affiliates.The information, tools and material presented in this report are provided to you for information purposes only and are not to be used or considered as an offer or the solicitation of an offer to sell or to buy or subscribe for securities or other financial instruments. CS may not have taken any steps to ensure that the securities referred to in this report are suitable for any particular investor. CS will not treat recipients of this report as its customers by virtue of their receiving this report. The investments and services contained or referred to in this report may not be suitable for you and it is recommended that you consult an independent investment advisor if you are in doubt about such investments or investment services. Nothing in this report constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a representation that any investment or strategy is suitable or appropriate to your individual circumstances, or otherwise constitutes a personal recommendation to you. CS does not advise on the tax consequences of investments and you are advised to contact an independent tax adviser. Please note in particular that the bases and levels of taxation may change. Information and opinions presented in this report have been obtained or derived from sources believed by CS to be reliable, but CS makes no representation as to their accuracy or completeness. CS accepts no liability for loss arising from the use of the material presented in this report, except that this exclusion of liability does not apply to the extent that such liability arises under specific statutes or regulations applicable to CS. This report is not to be relied upon in substitution for the exercise of independent judgment. CS may have issued, and may in the future issue, other communications that are inconsistent with, and reach different conclusions from, the information presented in this report. Those communications reflect the different assumptions, views and analytical methods of the analysts who prepared them and CS is under no obligation to ensure that such other communications are brought to the attention of any recipient of this report. Some investments referred to in this report will be offered solely by a single entity and in the case of some investments solely by CS, or an associate of CS or CS may be the only market maker in such investments. Past performance should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of future performance, and no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made regarding future performance. Information, opinions and estimates contained in this report reflect a judgment at its original date of publication by CS and are subject to change without notice. The price, value of and income from any of the securities or financial instruments mentioned in this report can fall as well as rise. The value of securities and financial instruments is subject to exchange rate fluctuation that may have a positive or adverse effect on the price or income of such securities or financial instruments. Investors in securities such as ADR's, the values of which are influenced by currency volatility, effectively assume this risk. Structured securities are complex instruments, typically involve a high degree of risk and are intended for sale only to sophisticated investors who are capable of understanding and assuming the risks involved. The market value of any structured security may be affected by changes in economic, financial and political factors (including, but not limited to, spot and forward interest and exchange rates), time to maturity, market conditions and volatility, and the credit quality of any issuer or reference issuer. Any investor interested in purchasing a structured product should conduct their own investigation and analysis of the product and consult with their own professional advisers as to the risks involved in making such a purchase. Some investments discussed in this report may have a high level of volatility. High volatility investments may experience sudden and large falls in their value causing losses when that investment is realised. Those losses may equal your original investment. Indeed, in the case of some investments the potential losses may exceed the amount of initial investment and, in such circumstances, you may be required to pay more money to support those losses. Income yields from investments may fluctuate and, in consequence, initial capital paid to make the investment may be used as part of that income yield. Some investments may not be readily realisable and it may be difficult to sell or realise those investments, similarly it may prove difficult for you to obtain reliable information about the value, or risks, to which such an investment is exposed. This report may provide the addresses of, or contain hyperlinks to, websites. Except to the extent to which the report refers to website material of CS, CS has not reviewed any such site and takes no responsibility for the content contained therein. Such address or hyperlink (including addresses or hyperlinks to CS's own website material) is provided solely for your convenience and information and the content of any such website does not in any way form part of this document. Accessing such website or following such link through this report or CS's website shall be at your own risk.

This report is issued and distributed in European Union (except Switzerland): by Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited, One Cabot Square, London E14 4QJ, England, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Germany: Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited Niederlassung Frankfurt am Main regulated by the Bundesanstalt fuer Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht ("BaFin"). United States and Canada: Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC; Switzerland: Credit Suisse AG; Brazil: Banco de Investimentos Credit Suisse (Brasil) S.A or its affiliates; Mexico: Banco Credit Suisse (México), S.A. (transactions related to the securities mentioned in this report will only be effected in compliance with applicable regulation); Japan: by Credit Suisse Securities (Japan) Limited, Financial Instruments Firm, Director-General of Kanto Local Finance Bureau ( Kinsho) No. 66, a member of Japan Securities Dealers Association, The Financial Futures Association of Japan, Japan Investment Advisers Association, Type II Financial Instruments Firms Association; Hong Kong: Credit Suisse (Hong Kong) Limited; Australia: Credit Suisse Equities (Australia) Limited; Thailand: Credit Suisse Securities (Thailand) Limited, regulated by the Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Thailand, having registered address at 990 Abdulrahim Place, 27th Floor, Unit 2701, Rama IV Road, Silom, Bangrak, Bangkok10500, Thailand, Tel. +66 2614 6000; Malaysia: Credit Suisse Securities (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd; Singapore: Credit Suisse AG, Singapore Branch; India: Credit Suisse Securities (India) Private Limited (CIN no.U67120MH1996PTC104392) regulated by the Securities and Exchange Board of India as Research Analyst (registration no. INH 000001030) and as Stock Broker (registration no. INB230970637; INF230970637; INB010970631; INF010970631), having registered address at 9th Floor, Ceejay House, Dr.A.B. Road, Worli, Mumbai - 18, India, T- +91-22 6777 3777; South

Korea: Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited, Seoul Branch; Taiwan: Credit Suisse AG Taipei Securities Branch; Indonesia: PT Credit Suisse Securities Indonesia; Philippines:Credit Suisse Securities (Philippines ) Inc., and elsewhere in the world by the relevant authorised affiliate of the above. Additional Regional Disclaimers Hong Kong: Credit Suisse (Hong Kong) Limited ("CSHK") is licensed and regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong under the laws of Hong Kong, which differ from Australian laws. CSHKL does not hold an Australian financial services licence (AFSL) and is exempt from the requirement to hold an AFSL under the Corporations Act 2001 (the Act) under Class Order 03/1103 published by the ASIC in respect of financial services provided to Australian wholesale clients (within the meaning of section 761G of the Act). Research on Taiwanese securities produced by Credit Suisse AG, Taipei Securities Branch has been prepared by a registered Senior Business Person. Australia (to the extent services are offered in Australia): Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited (“CSSEL”) and Credit Suisse International (“CSI”) are authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) and the Prudential Regulation Authority under UK laws, which differ from Australian Laws. CSSEL and CSI do not hold an Australian Financial Services Licence (“AFSL”) and are exempt from the requirement to hold an AFSL under the Corporations Act (Cth) 2001 (“Corporations Act”) under Class Order 03/1099 published by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (“ASIC”), in respect of the financial services provided to Australian wholesale clients (within the meaning of section 761G of the Corporations Act). This material is not for distribution to retail clients and is directed exclusively at Credit Suisse's professional clients and eligible counterparties as defined by the FCA, and wholesale clients as defined under section 761G of the Corporations Act. Credit Suisse (Hong Kong) Limited (“CSHK”) is licensed and regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong under the laws of Hong Kong, which differ from Australian laws. CSHKL does not hold an AFSL and is exempt from the requirement to hold an AFSL under the Corporations Act under Class Order 03/1103 published by the ASIC in respect of financial services provided to Australian wholesale clients (within the meaning of section 761G of the Corporations Act). Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC (CSSU) and Credit Suisse Asset Management LLC (CSAM LLC) are licensed and regulated by the Securities Exchange Commission of the United States under the laws of the United States, which differ from Australian laws. CSSU and CSAM LLC do not hold an AFSL and is exempt from the requirement to hold an AFSL under the Corporations Act under Class Order 03/1100 published by the ASIC in respect of financial services provided to Australian wholesale clients (within the meaning of section 761G of the Corporations Act). Malaysia: Research provided to residents of Malaysia is authorised by the Head of Research for Credit Suisse Securities (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, to whom they should direct any queries on +603 2723 2020. Singapore: This report has been prepared and issued for distribution in Singapore to institutional investors, accredited investors and expert investors (each as defined under the Financial Advisers Regulations) only, and is also distributed by Credit Suisse AG, Singapore Branch to overseas investors (as defined under the Financial Advisers Regulations). Credit Suisse AG, Singapore Branch may distribute reports produced by its foreign entities or affiliates pursuant to an arrangement under Regulation 32C of the Financial Advisers Regulations. Singapore recipients should contact Credit Suisse AG, Singapore Branch at +65-6212-2000 for matters arising from, or in connection with, this report. By virtue of your status as an institutional investor, accredited investor, expert investor or overseas investor, Credit Suisse AG, Singapore Branch is exempted from complying with certain compliance requirements under the Financial Advisers Act, Chapter 110 of Singapore (the “FAA”), the Financial Advisers Regulations and the relevant Notices and Guidelines issued thereunder, in respect of any financial advisory service which Credit Suisse AG, Singapore Branch may provide to you. UAE: This information is being distributed by Credit Suisse AG (DIFC Branch), duly licensed and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (“DFSA”). Related financial services or products are only made available to Professional Clients or Market Counterparties, as defined by the DFSA, and are not intended for any other persons. Credit Suisse AG (DIFC Branch) is located on Level 9 East, The Gate Building, DIFC, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. EU: This report has been produced by subsidiaries and affiliates of Credit Suisse operating under its Global Markets Division In jurisdictions where CS is not already registered or licensed to trade in securities, transactions will only be effected in accordance with applicable securities legislation, which will vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and may require that the trade be made in accordance with applicable exemptions from registration or licensing requirements. Non-US customers wishing to effect a transaction should contact a CS entity in their local jurisdiction unless governing law permits otherwise. US customers wishing to effect a transaction should do so only by contacting a representative at Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC in the US. Please note that this research was originally prepared and issued by CS for distribution to their market professional and institutional investor customers. Recipients who are not market professional or institutional investor customers of CS should seek the advice of their independent financial advisor prior to taking any investment decision based on this report or for any necessary explanation of its contents. This research may relate to investments or services of a person outside of the UK or to other matters which are not authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority or in respect of which the protections of the Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority for private customers and/or the UK compensation scheme may not be available, and further details as to where this may be the case are available upon request in respect of this report. CS may provide various services to US municipal entities or obligated persons ("municipalities"), including suggesting individual transactions or trades and entering into such transactions. Any services CS provides to municipalities are not viewed as "advice" within the meaning of Section 975 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. CS is providing any such services and related information solely on an arm's length basis and not as an advisor or fiduciary to the municipality. In connection with the provision of the any such services, there is no agreement, direct or indirect, between any municipality (including the officials,management, employees or agents thereof) and CS for CS to provide advice to the municipality. Municipalities should consult with their financial, accounting and legal advisors regarding any such services provided by CS. In addition, CS is not acting for direct or indirect compensation to solicit the municipality on behalf of an unaffiliated broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, or investment adviser for the purpose of obtaining or retaining an engagement by the municipality for or in connection with Municipal Financial Products, the issuance of municipal securities, or of an investment adviser to provide investment advisory services to or on behalf of the municipality. If this report is being distributed by a financial institution other than Credit Suisse AG, or its affiliates, that financial institution is solely responsible for distribution. Clients of that institution should contact that institution to effect a transaction in the securities mentioned in this report or require further information. This report does not constitute investment advice by Credit Suisse to the clients of the distributing financial institution, and neither Credit Suisse AG, its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors and employees accept any liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss arising from their use of this report or its content. Principal is not guaranteed. Commission is the commission rate or the amount agreed with a customer when setting up an account or at any time after that. Copyright © 2017 CREDIT SUISSE AG and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.

Investment principal on bonds can be eroded depending on sale price or market price. In addition, there are bonds on which investment principal can be eroded due to changes in redemption amounts. Care is required when investing in such instruments. When you purchase non-listed Japanese fixed income securities (Japanese government bonds, Japanese municipal bonds, Japanese government guaranteed bonds, Japanese corporate bonds) from CS as a seller, you will be requested to pay the purchase price only.