In an international environment that is still as anxiety-provoking as ever, uncertainties remain, numerous and multifaceted. Nevertheless, hoping that those emanating from US economic policy will calm down (and that at least tariffs will stabilise), the scenario is staying the course. It is characterised by a slowdown without recession in the US, followed by an acceleration in 2026, a continued recovery...

Chinese growth is slowing down and consensus remains sceptical about the government's official targets (5% in 2025). Far from the promises of rebalancing, the economy is increasingly shifting towards an export-driven industrial model rather than domestic consumption. Deflation, a consequence of structural imbalances (demographics, overcapacity, real estate crisis), is weakening corporate profitability...

There were already many risks, both economic and geopolitical, influencing our scenario, both in terms of cyclical inflections and structural aspects. Compounding these risks, Israel’s attack on Iran on 13 June constitutes an unprecedented escalation in terms of its scale and its severity. This act marks a strategic turning point for the region.

Our scenario, already rocked by recently fickle...

We expect GDP growth of 0.3% quarter-on-quarter in the first quarter of 2025 after +0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2024. But the recently released monthly GDP data for February suggest upside risks to our forecast. Growth in the first quarter could be close to 0.6% in quarterly variation.

Activity is expected to slow down in the second quarter. We expect growth of around 0.2% quarter-on-quarter due to...

Stupefaction was the reaction to Donald Trump's “Liberation Day” tariff announcements. Firstly, because the tariffs – which Trump claims are sucking the life out of the US economy – are perplexing when compared with those applied. Secondly, because the tariffs announced (including the strangely calculated reciprocal tariffs) exceed what had been anticipated and are likely to be further tightened. Finally...

China has released fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 growth figures and announced that its 5% target has been met. The consensus of economists, who were not expecting such a performance, found these numbers – even thought they were positive – "surprising".

While China achieving its growth target is nothing new, the slowdown in a number of sectors (e.g. real estate and consumer goods) and the deflationary...

More than ever, the outlook depends on the turn taken by US geopolitical and economic policy. Assumptions about the scale and timing of the measures to be taken by the new administration mean that, in the US, the economy is likely to remain resilient, but there will also be renewed inflation, modest monetary easing and upward pressure on long-term interest rates. Moreover, these measures are only one...

Against an extremely tense international backdrop, drawing up an economic and financial scenario is rather fraught task. There are many sources of potential disruption on the short term, including the US election, the Middle East conflict and the war in Ukraine, where tensions are at a peak. In particular, the risk that Middle East tensions will spread is sowing uncertainty on the oil market. Moreover...

It may seem odd to stick an ‘extension without disruption’ label on an economic and financial scenario beset by political uncertainties of varying intensity, which will be removed either sooner (legislative elections in France) or later (US presidential election). Whereas the second event is likely to significantly structure/alter a scenario’s major plot points, the first is less likely to wipe out the...

Real estate crisis, demographic problems, trade tensions with the United States, concerning debt levels: multiple comparisons can be drawn between China today and 1980s Japan, sparking fears of a "Japanification" scenario for the Chinese economy. Such a scenario is characterised by a slowdown in economic activity caused by a drop in private consumption, the advent of a negative, deflation-fuelling price...