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Quarterly Bulletin Q3 2013

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53<br />

Developments in the International<br />

and Euro Area Economy<br />

Overview<br />

Accommodative policies continue to support growth in the global economy<br />

which has been slower than anticipated, fragile and diverse across economic<br />

regions. Emerging economies are continuing to underpin the improvement in<br />

global economic conditions with activity in the US and Japan also gathering<br />

pace. Total debt levels in these key advanced economies remain elevated<br />

despite progress in the rebalancing of private sector indebtedness. On<br />

the other hand, activity has remained hesitant in the euro area, with some<br />

Member States continuing to record a contraction in activity and very high<br />

unemployment rates. Survey indicators have been signalling a stabilisation in<br />

business sentiment and risk perception. Chinese data warrant monitoring for<br />

downside risks to growth, especially given the strong contribution of Chinese<br />

investment to global GDP. Following a period of sustained improvement, global<br />

financial market conditions have weakened somewhat. Euro area inflation<br />

rates have drifted downwards and remain low while inflation expectations are<br />

generally well-anchored.<br />

The global economy is moving forward, but<br />

divergence between regions and countries<br />

reflects the uneven progress made towards a<br />

recovery from the economic crisis. Latest data<br />

suggest that global trade momentum<br />

moderated during the first quarter of <strong>2013</strong>,<br />

followed by some pick up in April, with<br />

advanced economies in particular contributing<br />

to the weaker-than-expected dynamics.<br />

Despite a strengthening of Chinese import<br />

growth in the first quarter of <strong>2013</strong>, elsewhere,<br />

a more general deceleration in import growth<br />

cut across both high-income and emerging<br />

regions. In the near term, weak confidence<br />

and high uncertainty, particularly in Europe, are<br />

likely to remain significant headwinds to global<br />

growth and the demand for durable and<br />

investment goods – items with high import<br />

content – could restrain the pace of the global<br />

trade recovery. Surveys, in particular an upturn<br />

in new export orders, are indicating an<br />

expansion in global trade, albeit gradual. As<br />

such, global growth indicators continue to<br />

signal moderate growth in the second half of<br />

the year.<br />

Financial market sentiment improved over the<br />

last year principally due to policy actions,<br />

particularly in a number of advanced<br />

economies. Risk perceptions including the<br />

threat of a euro area break-up and a sharp<br />

fiscal contraction in the US associated with the<br />

full fiscal cliff, appear to have diminished.<br />

However, since late May, market sentiment<br />

weakened primarily due to weak economic<br />

data from China and the euro area, as well as<br />

discussions of the possible tapering of the US<br />

Federal Reserve’s asset purchasing<br />

programme. According to the latest OECD<br />

projections, real GDP in the euro area is<br />

expected to decline by 0.6 per cent this year<br />

and rebound only by 1.1 per cent in 2014<br />

(Table 1). In the US, private demand and<br />

growth prospects look to be somewhat<br />

stronger with activity projected to rise by 1.9<br />

per cent this year and close to 3.0 per cent in<br />

2014. Moreover, Japanese real GDP is<br />

expected to grow by between 1.4 and 1.6 per<br />

cent both this year and next.<br />

Downside risks to the advanced economy<br />

growth outlook have reduced, but remain<br />

significant. Adverse interactions between<br />

fragile banking systems, government finances<br />

and the real economy remain a risk in the euro<br />

area. Fiscal concerns will feature in both the

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