A good start for the sector

Since the beginning of the year the global stock exchanges have been buoyed by the more optimistic mood generated by the acceleration of vaccination programmes, fuelling the hope that economies will themselves will eventually be able to shake off Covid-19. Even if things have to get worse before they get better, the restrictions imposed due to the pandemic should start being lifted in the second and third quarters. According to the IMF, the global economy is expected to grow by 5.5 pct this year after having contracted by 3.5 pct in 2020, thus reversing the previous projections of continued economic decline. It is also predicted that the US economy will recover more quickly – as will emerging markets. The return to normality, however, is expected to be slower for the euro zone. The one scratch on the prediction lens remains inflation – the economic bounce-back could lead to less activity from central banks (which have partly been responsible for the boom on the financial ma