China

We’ve recently added the ANZ China Commodity Indices dataset. The headline index tracks Chinese domestic prices for 22 commodities, weighted according to consumption. Sub-indices are also available. 

In the chart below, we looked at the performance of the headline index and its sub-indices since January 2020. 

World: Global Food Security Index

We are continuously expanding our ESG data coverage. This week, we’ve added the Global Food Security Index, provided by the Economist. The dataset contains an overall index as well as four components: 

• Affordability
• Availability
• Natural Resources & Resilience
• Quality & Safety

In the chart below, we focused on the Quality & Safety Index, and measured its change since 2019 (displayed as bars) to compare it with the CPI weight for the category “Food & non-alcoholic beverages”. 

Generally speaking, a low score on the Quality & Safety Index goes hand in hand with a heavy weighting for food in the CPI measure. What is also alarming is that most countries with a low score have seen that score degrade since 2019, highlighting the impact the pandemic has had on the global food chain. 

World: ECB New Composite Indicator of Systemic Stress (CISS)

Two weeks ago, we added the new Composite Indicator of Systemic Stress (CISS) for the euro area. We’ve now also added CISS for 11 individual nations that use the euro, plus China, the United Kingdom and the United States. 

CISS is calculated by the ECB. It includes 15 mainly market-based financial stress measures, split into five categories: financial intermediaries, money markets, equity markets, bond markets and foreign exchange.

In the chart below, we used CISS from 11 eurozone nations to graph a high and low score and a 25-75 percentile stripe. We then added the Euro Area CISS index, plus CISS for China and the US. 

The chart highlights a strong divergence this year between high-stress Europe and lower-stress China and the US, likely due to the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent regional energy crisis. This contrasts with a stress spike that was more or less in tandem across nations in the early days of the pandemic.

Vietnam

For Vietnam, we’ve added early indicators of the monthly foreign trade balance, sourced from the General Department of Customs. Users can now access the Vietnamese trade balance, per “half-month.” 

In the chart below, we display first-half and second-half trade balances, graphing them against the monthly trade balance series. The chart shows an interesting pattern: the first half of a month generally has a negative trade balance (i.e., higher imports than exports), while a positive balance appears in the second half.