Based in Paris, BNP Paribas' Economic Research Department is composed of economists and statisticians:
The Economic Research department’s mission is to cater to the economic research needs of the clients, business lines and functions of BNP Paribas. Our team of economists and statisticians covers a large number of advanced, developing and emerging countries, the real economy, financial markets and banking. As we foster the sharing of our research output with anyone who is interested in the economic situation or who needs insight into specific economic issues, this website presents our analysis, videos and podcasts.
+ 33 1 55 77 71 89 guillaume.a.derrien@bnpparibas.com
Although our barometer generally improved in March, economic growth is set to remain weak in the first quarter of 2021. New car sales were still 40% lower in February 2021 than in February 2020, although the data can be volatile from a month to another...
Looking beyond the short-term economic shock, the Covid-19 pandemic and the exceptional health protection measures introduced to contain the virus raise many questions as to the lasting consequences of the crisis. The issue of zombie firms, which is far from new, has taken on a whole new dimension, as their weight in developed economies has progressively increased since the 1980s. Massive public interventions to tackle the effects of the pandemic, whether by governments – debt moratoriums, cancellations of employer social security contributions, widespread use of short-time working schemes, etc. – or by central banks – increase and prolongation of asset purchases schemes – could result in keeping non-viable companies afloat, raising fears of a zombification of economies.
As shown in our barometer, manufacturing activity has continued to strengthen at the beginning of the year. The manufacturing PMI index reached 55.1 in January, the best reading since March 2018. Italian industry is probably benefiting from activity in the US, which is stronger than in Europe...
Elections polls point towards a breakthrough by the Socialist Party and the far right to the detriment of the centre-right Ciudadanos party. Although political risks continue to persist in Catalonia today, the economic downturn caused by the Covid-19 crisis could weaken the momentum for the pro-independence movement and increase support for the Central Government. The Covid-19 crisis has accentuated Catalonia’s dependence on the Central Administration and Europe more broadly.
Italy is one of the rare European countries whose propagation of the epidemic is still under control at the end of January, although the situation is still very delicate. On top of these health uncertainties, political risk is also on the rise again.
Spain’s health situation is still alarming. The pandemic continues to spread, forcing the public authorities to tighten restrictive measures, notably in the Madrid and Valencia regions. Yet the most recent confidence indicators have shown a certain resilience in January, notably the European Commission economic sentiment index.
Strong fiscal support is currently key to limit the impact of the coronavirus shock on growth and employment. But in the long term, the question of public finances control will be asked. In its November forecast, the European Commission predicts that Spain’s structural public deficit will widen to 7.2% of GDP in 2022. This would be the biggest deficit since 2010 – 2009 being a record high – and the largest within the Eurozone. Spain will not stabilise its primary structural deficit, which could surpass 5% of GDP by 2022. Nevertheless, the impact on public expenditures will be softened by low sovereign rates
Forecasts made at the start of the year will probably turn out to be accurate. Spain is set to be the Eurozone’s economy hardest hit by the Covid-19 epidemic. We forecast GDP to shrink by 11.8% in 2020 before rebounding by 7.0% in 2021. The social situation has worsened again this year, forcing the government to introduce new large-scale welfare benefits (e.g. minimum living income), which will be reinforced in 2021. Spain’s huge €140 billion stimulus plan will support the recovery, should raise the country’s potential growth and create jobs. But the structural budget deficit is widening
Greece’s economic recovery will be fraught with uncertainty in 2021. The Covid-19 hit to activity could last longer in the tourism industry – a key sector for the country – than in other sectors. The decline in tourist inflows in summer 2020 has limited significantly the rebound in Q3 GDP, which was much weaker than in other European countries. Some confidence indicators, particularly regarding the unemployment outlook, have worsened during the autumn. The conservative government plans to use the large amounts of money allocated by the European recovery fund to finance its stimulus plan, details of which will be finalised early next year. Despite that, public debt is likely to remain above 200% of GDP by the end of 2021, which is very worrying from a long-run perspective.
Although the second wave of the epidemic appears to have peaked in mid-November, the economic outlook, particularly for the labour market, is worrying in Greece as it is in other countries. The consumer unemployment expectations index, published by the European Commission, is deteriorating again, and posted in November its worst reading since August 2013. The hard unemployment data from the Greek statistical service are traditionally lagging: the latest data are for August. Despite managing relatively well the epidemic, the Greek economy has taken a sizeable hit due to the steep decline in tourism, a slowdown that could extend beyond the epidemic phase and hold back the recovery in 2021
Spain, Greece, Italy and Portugal have been hit hard economically by the Covid-19 epidemic. These countries have also suffered for many years from sluggish potential growth, which is among the lowest in Europe. The main obstacles are more or less the same: a low level of investment and productivity, and a slowing - or even declining - demographics which weigh on the workforce. How have these different factors evolved? What may be the impact of the current economic crisis on structural growth? Which levers to operate?
The marked improvement in the barometer shows that the rebound in economic activity was encouraging up to mid-October, before the epidemic picked up speed again. As in other countries, the pick-up in activity was concentrated in the industrial sector. The manufacturing PMI reached 53.8 in October (its highest level since March 2018), driven by a marked improvement in the new export orders component (+4.5 points to 55.8). Conversely, the services sector PMI fell by 2.1 points to 46.7...
The barometer provides a perfect illustration of the diverging trend observed between manufacturing and services activities. On average over the past three months, the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) index has moved above its long-term average, while the indicator for services remains well below this trend...
The economic recovery slowed down in September. That said, and as clearly shown on our barometer, the 3-month trend has continued to improve for most indicators – a logical process with the catching-up effect during the summer period...
After keeping the epidemic at bay for most of the summer, Italy is now facing a strong resurgence in the number of Covid-19 cases. Last Tuesday (October 13), the government decided to tighten health restrictions, including the closure of restaurants, cafes, and nightclubs at midnight...
The Spanish economy registered a record contraction of 22.7% in the first half of 2020. With the public deficit likely to rise above 10% of GDP this year, the government faces some difficult decisions, notably on the terms and conditions of its temporary layoff scheme (ERTE). The recovery in industrial production since the easing in lockdown restrictions in May is encouraging. However, this only partially compensate for the slow pick-up in activity in other sectors. The final quarter of 2020 will be a pivotal moment. A substantial programme of support for employment and investment (under the recovery package announced this autumn) is needed, while narrowing down support more specifically towards the sectors lastingly affected by the crisis.
Despite managing well the epidemic, Portugal has experienced a severe economic shock in Q2. Real GDP plunged by 13.9%, pulled down by sharp falls in goods and services exports (-36.1% q/q) and private sector consumption (-14.0% q/q). Investment dropped (8.9% q/q). The country has been heavily impacted by the collapse in tourism inflows and foreign activity, particularly in Spain. External factors could also hamper the recovery, particularly given the surge in new Covid-19 cases in Spain. Nevertheless, the improvement in public finances operated in recent years should translate into a government deficit for 2020 smaller than in other European countries – around 7.0% of GDP according to government estimates. This provides relatively more leeway to support the recovery.
The economic recovery has been stronger in the industrial sector than in services, the former benefitting from a sharp rebound in consumer goods spending, particularly durables. Moreover, the impact of health measures on industrial activity is lower than for services...
This week’s Eurostat report confirmed that Spain has been Eurozone’s worst impacted country by the coronavirus. The resurgence of the epidemic and the implementation of new restrictions will hold back the economic recovery this semester, at least...
The Q2 GDP figures – released next week – should confirm that Spain has been one of the European economies hit hardest by the health crisis...
Italian economic activity started to recover in May, in line with the easing in lockdown restrictions. Our barometer should therefore steadily improved over the summer, although it remains downbeat. Real retail sales rose 25.4% m/m in May, but the 3-month moving average continued to decline, hitting a new all-time low. Industrial production followed a similar trend. The improvement in the survey data was also mixed in June. The composite purchasing managers index (PMI) rose strongly (+13.7 points), but it remains in contraction territory. The European Commission’s economic sentiment indicator (for Italy) continues to hover near the lows reported during the 2008-09 financial crisis...
The unprecedented economic contraction in H1 2020 raises serious doubts about the upcoming recovery. Although the reopening phase has proceeded smoothly so far, the recovery in employment was very small in June. Tourism remains under the threat of a resurgence of the Covid-19 epidemics in Europe. The swelling public deficit will force Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to design a tight recovery package that balances between short-term emergency measures and long-term investments. This difficult equilibrium is likely to heighten the tensions in the governing coalition between Podemos and the socialist party. Subsidies allocated as part of the European Recovery Plan would give Spain some fiscal leeway, but the final terms and amount of the funds are yet to be finalised.
Despite successfully managing the Covid-19 pandemic, Greece will not avoid a severe recession in 2020. The tourism industry – which accounts for nearly 20% of the country’s GDP – offers no guarantee for a solid recovery. The prospect of a resurgence in contamination in Europe will weigh on the tourism sector in the coming months. The Greek banking system will further weaken, and public debt will rise sharply. That said, the European Central Bank (ECB) has launched the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme (PEPP) in March, which allows the ECB to purchase Greek sovereign debt. This has kept a lid on sovereign rates. This difficult context may entice the government to draw a recovery plan that targets strategic sectors less linked to the tourism industry.
The barometer for Spain has begun to improve with the introduction of post-lockdown data, but it continues to fluctuate around historically-low averages [...]
The European Commission has recently published the 2020 Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI). DESI is a weighted average of five indicators: connectivity, citizens’ digital skills, use of internet, integration of digital technology in businesses, and digital public services. Scandinavian countries perform the best, with Finland, Sweden and Denmark at the top of the ranking. Italy is only 25th, while France (16th), Germany (12th) and Spain (11th) are close to the EU average. The Covid-19 crisis and the lockdown have led to a greater use of digital technology
