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Geopolitical Events
USMCA – NAFTA 2.0
The fourth quarter kicked off with some good news on trade with a last-minute agreement between US-Mexico- Canada just before the deadline. "America first" is the slogan by Trump and he managed to do just that at least when renaming NAFTA to USMCA. The new agreement came with rules for cars and trucks, labour, IP protections and dairy products....
Italy’s “First Budget” By the Populist Government
The newly-elected populist government in Italy will deliver its very first budget which will be pivotal to the Eurozone area. Italy has the second largest public government debt pile in Europe after the Greeks. The debt to equity ratio in Italy currently stands at 131.81% of its GDP, and market participants are questioning whether Italy will be a...
Greece’s Bailout Comes to an End – A Goodbye to the Troika
After eight long years of crisis whereby Greece endured stringent budget austerity programs, the country’s bailout will finally come to an end. Greece will therefore have to finance itself by borrowing on international bond markets. Before the bailout Greece was battling massive debt, loss of investment and huge unemployment. Nearly €300b...
NAFTA Update – Have US Negotiations Progressed?
It’s been one year since the trade renegotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between Canada, the United States and Mexico began. Since then we have seen tough rhetoric on how the agreement should look like moving forward from each country, especially the United States. But are we finally getting closer to an agreement? Ab...
China Taking Stock Of US Trade Deficit Figures
The US official trade deficit number with China is $375.2bn in 2017. But According to China Customs General Administration, this number should be $275.8bn. Notice there is a vast gap between the versions from two sides. So, which version is closer to the facts? Firstly, let’s start this debate by looking at the US perspective. Previously in the...
Time Ticking for Brexit
Time Ticking for Brexit By Klavs Valters In just over a year – on 29th March 2019 to be exact – Britain is scheduled to leave the European Union. It has been nearly a year since Theresa May triggered Article 50 and began the two-year process to negotiate an exit deal. As we know, the negotiations so far can’t be classed as successful. Even ...
US Trade vs the World
US Trade vs the World Since Donald Trump became the President of the United States in 2016, we have heard him say a lot about the "unbelievably bad" trade agreements the world’s largest economy has with some countries around the world. We have already seen Trump attempt to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which...
City of London Feeling the Brexit Effect
City of London Feeling the Brexit Effect Not a day goes by without Brexit being mentioned and we can expect more of this to continue for some time, even after Britain leaves the European Union next year. With the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cutting its economic growth forecast for Britain for the coming years, are we also starting to see the...
UK Trade vs The World
UK Trade vs The World With the UK leaving the European Union next year, its trading arrangements with the bloc will change. How they will change will be determined over the coming months when both parties start the second phase of the negotiations. This will shine a light on what the agreement will look like and how it will impact the world’s fi...
UK Making Post-Brexit Plans
UK Making Post-Brexit Plans 2018 is shaping up to be a defining year for the relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union. After making sufficient progress in the first phase of negotiations, talks will now begin on the trade arrangements after the UK leaves the EU. Even though the UK cannot agree on any trade arrangements...
Brexit Breakthrough
Brexit Breakthrough After months of discussions and nearly a year and a half after the Brexit referendum took place, there has been a breakthrough in the Brexit talks. Both sides have now agreed on major key issues which was vital before moving onto the trade talks, which are estimated to begin in February of next year. Overview of the deal...
New sanctions imposed on North Korea
New sanctions imposed on North Korea by United Nations (UN) Security Council North Korea has been slapped with new sanctions after the detonation of a hydrogen bomb, an even more powerful nuclear weapon than the atomic bomb. The new resolutions widely adopted by the international community show the urgency of restricting North Korea’s ability to ...
NAFTA Negotiations Begin
16th August 2017 marked the beginning of renegotiations between the United States, Canada and Mexico on the North American Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The leaders from each country will meet up over the next few months to begin discussions on the agreement which has been in place since 1994. American view The United States have got a tou...
Jackson Hole Economic Symposium
The annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City has been held since 1978. From 1978-1981 it was held at different locations but since 1981 it has been held in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and this year is no exception. From 24th – 26th August 2017, the most influential central bankers, finance ministers, a...
War of Words US and North Korea Tensions
Markets are rattled by US- North Korea tensions as Trump vows to respond to North Korea nuclear threats with “fire and furry”. The senior administration officials and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson tried to find different ways to explain the President’s comments and play down the tough talk. Trump reinforced his threats stating “they shou...