December marked another month of rising economic activity indicator for the euro area. Eurocoin, a leading growth indicator published by Banca d’Italia and CEPR notched up to 0.59 from 0.45 in November, implying annualised growth rate of 2.38 percent - the strongest growth signal in 67 months. It is worth remembering that in 2Q and 3Q 2016, real GDP growth slumped from 0.5% q/q recorded in 4Q 2015 - 1Q 2016 to 0.3% in Q2-Q3 2016. Latest 4Q 2016 reading for Eurocoin implies growth rate of around 0.47 percent, slightly below 1Q 2016 levels, but above the 0.31% average for the current expansionary cycle (from 2Q 2013 on).
Charts below illustrate these dynamics
Cyclical trends in growth rates currently imply ECB policy rate mispricing of around 2.0-2.5 percentage points (see chart below).
Meanwhile, inflationary dynamics, based on 12mo MA, suggest current monetary policy environment providing only a weak support to the upside.
The growth dynamics over the last 12 months are not exactly convincing. Even at currently above 2Q and 3Q forecast for 4Q 2016, FY 2016 growth is coming in at 1.58% annualised, against FY2015-2016 growth of 1.65%. Overall, this environment is unlikely to drive significant changes in ECB policy forward, as Frankfurt will continue to attempt supporting growth even if inflation ticks up to 0.4-0.5% q/q range for 12 months moving average basis.
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