ING Economic and Financial Analysis

The year 2018, which started off with expectations of the best growth performance since 2011, ended with a big stinker.According to the first official estimate of fourth quarter GDP growth, the German...

Your daily roundup of commodity news and ING viewsEnergyOPEC and U.S. supply OPEC released its monthly oil market report yesterday, which showed that OPEC output totaled 30.81MMbbls/d over January,...

Your daily roundup of commodity news and ING viewsEnergyU.S. crude oil inventories: The API is set to release its weekly inventory numbers later today, and expectations are that U.S. crude oil...

Within the next few weeks, we should know whether the trade truce between the US and China will give way to renewed conflict, peace or drawn out simmering tension. The result will determine in large...

We'll be watching Eurozone industrial figures with caution next week hoping to gain some insight into the length and depth of the economic slowdown. Otherwise, it'll all be about the British PM's...

The Chinese economy is weakening on several fronts and not just because of the US-China trade war. In response, the government is looking for ways to boost consumption. Tax cuts may not be enough to...

There’s plenty of short-term negativity in the Bank of England’s latest predictions, but there is still the subtlest of hints that they’d still like to tighten policy further if they...

German industrial orders took another nosedive, indicating that any rebound in industrial activity will be slow and sluggishNew industrial orders dropped by 1.6% month-on-month in December, from 0.2%...

It's back to the Brexit drawing board for Theresa May next week as she heads to Europe for more talks. But with the EU standing firm, is there any chance for a deal that parliament can agree on?...

This was not surprising, on the back of available evidence. As chances of a swift exit from recession in 1Q19 now look slim, we revise our forecast for average 2019 Italian GDP growth to 0.2%Domestic...

GDP growth of just 0.2% quarter-on-quarter in the final quarter of 2018 confirms the slow-growth environment that the eurozone has slipped into and there does not seem to be an easy way out as...

Rain or shine, the labor market remains a stronghold of the German economy, putting a clear floor under any recession fearsGerman unemployment increased by 196,000 in January (not seasonally...

German headline inflation slows to the lowest level since February 2018 on the back of lower energy prices, and a further softening is in the offing. With consumer confidence close to all-time-highs,...

The economic sentiment indicator of the European Commission fell further in January. While forward-looking indicators don’t point to much improvement in Q1, consumers are offering a glimmer of...

Inflation is well below the Reserve Bank of Australia's 2-3% target range mid-point, and heading in the wrong direction. Rate cuts still seem highly improbable, but by the same token, hikes are way...

The US has imposed sanctions on Venezuelan state-owned oil company PDVSA, effectively bringing US purchases of Venezuelan oil to an end. The announcement has had little impact on price, with...