By David Page, Research & Investment Strategy 5 April 2017 Brexit begins – how do economic agents respond? Quantifying the impact of increased uncertainty Key points Brexit began in earnest last week. The triggering of Article 50, started a two-year negotiation phase as the UK attempts to agree separation and future trade access with the EU. Is Brexit uncertainty dampening activity ? Exhibit 1 Investment intentions remain subdued for now BoE Agent Surveys: Investment intentions 4 BoE manu invest Index BoE servs invest These negotiations are likely to prove difficult and the timetable is tight. A transition deal may also prove difficult, leading to the risk of a "cliffedge" exit. This uncertainty is likely to impact the UK economy. However, it is unclear to what extent it will dampen consumption, investment and export growth. 2 0 -2 -4 Jan 97 Jan 00 Jan 03 Jan 06 Jan 09 Jan 12 Jan 15 Source: BoE We provide a range of indicators (Appendix A) to track the impact of Brexit uncertainty dampening economic activity. The Bank of England (BoE) has formally acknowledged greater uncertainty in its GDP projections. This uncertainty will likely affect monetary policy decision-making. We suggest it will focus attention on shorter-term economic developments and increase policy inertia. We maintain our central forecast for Bank Rate to remain on hold into 2019. However, we consider the case and provide tools to monitor a risk case that could see tighter policy before year end. Exhibit 2 Export orders are rising, but meeting little response so far UK - Export growth and survey 40 Export vol EU (ex-oil) [Lhs] Export vol Non-EU (ex-oil) [Lhs] CBI export orders' index [Rhs] % 3m yoy 10 0 20 -10 -20 -30 0 -40 -50 -20 Jan 04 -60 Jan 07 Jan 10 Jan 13 Jan 16 Source: National Statistics, CBI and AXA IM Research Exhibit 3 BoE unsettled if growth continues above forecast UK GDP growth outlook This will determine the sterling outlook. An expected softening in UK rate markets and initial negotiations are likely to put downward pressure on GBPEUR. 20 % qoq Historic 0.7 BoE (Feb 17) 0.6 AXA IM 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.0 Q1 2015 Q2 2016 Q3 2017 Source: National Statistics, AXA IM Research Q4 2018 The Brexit process officially begins Nine months after the UK voted in favour of leaving the European Union, the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, triggered Article 50. This initiates a two-year period of intense negotiations after which the UK will formally leave the EU. But there is much uncertainty surrounding the outlook for these negotiations and the shape of the final Brexit arrangements. In this note we discuss the likely timeline of the next two years now that the Brexit process is formally underway. We also consider some of the possible difficulties that will arise and look at the implications for the UK economy. Activity has to date proved resilient, with official data showing an acceleration in activity in H2 2016. We forecast a deceleration starting in Q1 2017. However, we recognise there is uncertainty over the way economic agents will respond to Brexit. Such uncertainty has impacted the Bank of England (BoE), which recently reported “differing degrees of confidence” across the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) for its central view. Our central forecast is for Bank Rate to remain on hold until 2019, but we discuss the risks around that outlook. We look at the implications this will have for interest rates and for sterling. In addition, we include tools for tracking how the economy evolves, with regards to this uncertainty in particular. Brexit begins, but where does it end ? Exhibit provides a stylised overview of the Brexit negotiation phase. European Council President Donald Tusk provided “Brexit guidelines” within 48 hours of receiving notification of Article 50. He added that an EU Summit will be arranged for 29 April (in between the two rounds of the French Presidential Elections) where these guidelines would be formalised. The guidelines would then be drawn up into formal negotiating conditions, which would subsequently need to be agreed at a final Council meeting. This process is expected to be completed by late-May/June. After this, Michel Barnier, the European Chief Negotiator for Brexit, will begin negotiations with the UK. There are likely to be several difficult issues to discuss and even the sequencing of those discussions is likely to prove controversial. The EU wants to first settle the UK’s separation process (and costs) before moving on to other issues. Estimates vary for the UK’s eventual separation bill, but the EU suggests a figure of around €60bn. Britain is likely to contest such a figure, with the UK’s Brexit Minister David Davis saying last week that it was “nothing like” that figure. Europe’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, believes that this phase could be concluded by year-end. The UK will be keen to focus on the future trading arrangements between it and the EU. The UK would like to address this issue in parallel with separation, arguing that the one may influence the other. Whether discussion of trading arrangements begins in June or next January, the timeframe to achieve an “ambitious” trade agreement is tight. With Britain’s starting position precluding Single Market access, as it prioritises migration control and moving outside the direct jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the UK is seeking a free trade deal with the EU and a compromise Customs Union that maintains free borders for exports/imports but also allows the UK to strike free trade agreements with third parties. As a point of reference, Canada’s free trade deal took seven years to complete although some have argued that a UK deal could prove easier given that it starts from a position of ‘perfect alignment’ on trading standards as an existing EU member. The timeframe is made all the harder with Barnier tasked to complete negotiations in Q4 2018 to allow time for ratification by the European and individual member parliaments. This allows a maximum 17-months to complete these negotiations. Despite bland assurances by UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson that there will be “plenty of time”, concerns over timing was in part behind Sir Ivan Roger’s decision to stand down as UK Ambassador to the EU at the start of the year. If 17-months proves too demanding a timeframe to accomplish the scale of agreement required, negotiations may also attempt to put in place a transition deal. This Exhibit 4 Path to Brexit – the Timeline Mar 2017 Sep 2017 Mar 2018 Sep 2018 Mar 2019 Leave EU ( Mar 19) UK “Great Repeal” Bill becomes effective UK Parliamentary vote Trigger Art 50 Key period for UK to ( 29 Mar 17) influence EU mandate Fr elections rd I & II Ge elections (23 Apr/7 May17) (24 Sept) NEGOTIATION PHASE (From May/Jun 17 to Q4 2018 Citizens rights Tusk issues “draft guidelines” (48 hrs) EU separation settlement (negotiated in parallel) ? Future trading relationship Transition deal ?( Mar 19 - ?) EU Summit finalise guidelines (29 Apr 17) Guidelines to Council Directives to EU leaders = mandate (May/Jun 17) Source : AXA IM Research 2 AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS - INVESTMENT RESEARCH - 05/04/2017 EU Parliamentary vote to approve deal (Q4 2018) EU Parliamentary elections (Jun 2019) would be designed to cushion the process of separation and it would have historic precedent - when the UK joined the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973, it did so with a seven-year transition deal. and corporates, are likely to follow the tone of these negotiations and could adjust behaviour accordingly. Judging the scale of any future shifts in behaviour will be difficult. Yet a transition arrangement would be far from easy to negotiate. PM May faces a General Election in May 2020. She has promised to deliver Brexit by this time. Insofar as the UK will have officially left the EU by then, this should be achievable. However, if the UK were still facing uncontrolled migration and under the legal authority of the ECJ, some may question what she had actually achieved. From an EU perspective, while it would likely be keen for a definitive end-date for a transition deal, it would still be paramount not to offer a better deal to a country leaving the EU than to existing members. The EU looks highly unlikely to offer ongoing trade access, even on a transitory basis, if key EU principles are breached. To that extent the debate around any transition deal may prove to be a microcosm of the broader, difficult exit debate. Exhibit 5 Projected tax cut boost to corporate profitability This suggests a very real possibility that the UK may leave the EU without any deal, unable to finalise future trading agreements or a transition deal. Exhibit 5 illustrates the rise in our GDP forecast error since the referendum. Some of the UK’s H2 2016 outperformance appears to have been driven by temporary factors that should subsequently unwind, rather than by factors that suggest persistent resilience. For example, our 0.2% forecast error in Q3 (consensus forecast error 0.2%, BoE 0.4%) was entirely accounted for by an erratic 2.7% quarterly rise in the transport, storage and communication services sub-sector (versus an average 0.9% rise over the preceding 10 quarters). Q4 was flattered by a surge in retail sales, which may have reflected a persistent boost to retail tourism, but may also be a temporary effect of consumers drawing forward future consumption in anticipation of future price rises, or an unrelated shift in spending patterns towards Black Friday from January sales. These last two explanations suggest the possibility of an unwind of this surge, which appears to have occurred over the Christmas shopping months. For trade, leaving without a deal would result in the UK relying on World Trade Organisation (WTO) mostfavoured-nation status with the EU (and other large trading partners). Even this would not be straightforward. In practice, the UK would likely mirror the EU’s WTO tariff structure initially (tariffs that average around 5% over a broad range of goods, but have important variations, including a near 10% tariff on cars). However, while the UK is a member of the WTO in its own right its current membership terms are bundled with the EU’s. The UK can only determine its own schedules (a list of terms of tariffs, quotas and subsidy limits) with a corresponding adjustment of the EU’s. This suggests an additional layer of EU negotiations. Moreover, the UK schedules would then have to be agreed (‘certified’) with other WTO members, which could result in subsequent disputes. In that respect, it is both instructive and troublesome that the EU has not certified its own schedules since enlargement in 2004. But if the UK left the EU without any deal, the situation would have broader ramifications. Barnier mentioned in a recent speech that this could affect border controls, citizens living abroad, air traffic and even nuclear fuel shipments. This form of exit from the EU is widely regarded as the worst likely outcome for the UK. When HM Treasury made its long-term assessment of the impact of Brexit on the economy, it estimated the likely economic cost to the UK in the case of a negotiated bilateral deal to be 4.67.8% of GDP. However, if the UK adopted a WTO trading relationship with the EU it estimated the cost to rise to 5.4-9.5% of GDP. UK - GDP quarter ahead growth forecast vs actual 0.8 % qoq Pre-Brexit vote Post-Brexit vote 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 Aug-15 Jan-16 Jun-16 Qtr ahead forecast ONS initial estimate Nov-16 Apr-17 ONS current estimate Source: National Statistics and AXA IM Research Yet some of this error reflects undue pessimism on our behalf, which we are wary of repeating - a task made more difficult by the uncertainty of agent’s behavioural reactions. In each key component of UK growth consumption, investment and exports - we argue that conditions exist that could see ongoing resilient expansion, in a large part driven by a more stimulative level of sterling. However, in each case, Brexit uncertainty could also dampen such stimulus. Consumer slowdown The uncertainty impact on the economy The impending real income squeeze on consumers is the primary reason for anticipating broader economic deceleration. We expect CPI inflation to continue to rise above 2% to reach around 2.75% by mid-year and peak at 3% in early 2018. Household nominal income growth is likely to be at best flat. Accordingly, we forecast a deceleration in real income, which has historically slowed spending. These negotiations are also likely to matter for the UK economy in the short run. Economic agents, households Yet households can cushion the impact of falling income by drawing down on savings. Exhibit 6 shows a model AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS - INVESTMENT RESEARCH - 05/04/2017 3 explaining the level of the household saving ratio as a function of real income growth, unemployment and net worth. It suggests households should be saving less, largely as a result of the rise in net worth seen since sterling’s sharp fall. We additionally highlight that the BoE forecasts an even steeper decline. Such a drawdown in saving would mute any slowdown in consumer spending. Yet during downturns, precautionary savings have lifted savings ratios above levels suggested by fundamentals (highlighted below). Such a gap appears to have emerged in recent quarters (although these figures can be heavily revised). It is possible that an uncertain (and publicly acrimonious) negotiation could see households choose to bolster precautionary savings, reducing the cushioning effect from falling incomes. Exhibit 6 How far will reduced saving cushion spending? UK saving rate (unadj) and model % yoy 18 Forecast 16 14 12 10 8 Saving rate 2 0 Q2 1988 Exports UK export growth could also pick-up. UK trade-weighted foreign GDP growth is forecast to remain steady over the coming years, thanks in the main to our forecast for modestly softer GDP growth in the euro area. Moreover, global trade appears to be recovering somewhat from relatively depressed growth rates in recent years. Both factors should result in a modest lift to UK export growth over the coming two years. The steep fall in sterling should bolster UK competitiveness and could deliver marked gains for UK exports. Exhibit 8 tracks the over/underperformance of UK export growth relative to trade-weighted overseas GDP growth and changes in sterling. It shows a marked and persistent rise in exports after the UK currency left the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM) in September 1992. A sharp fall in sterling failed to precipitate a similar rise in exports in 2008, reflecting the material drop in global demand at that time. Exhibit 8 Will sterling super-charge export growth? 6 4 illustrates, rising gross operating surpluses are usually associated with rising investment. Although we argue that Brexit uncertainty will subdue investment, this would be against a background where business profits would otherwise suggest a material pick-up. Modelled F(unemp,net worth,RDI) UK - Sterling impact on export growth BoE forecasts % pts Q1 1997 Q4 2005 Q3 2014 Source: National Statistics and AXA IM Research 8 Business investment Exhibit 7 Accelerating corporate profits versus uncertainty UK Business investment and corporate profits 20 % yoy Business investment [Lhs] 25 Forecast Gross operating surplus [Rhs] 20 Model (GDP, ULC, £, CPI-PPI, Oil) [Rhs] 15 10 10 5 0 0 -10 -5 -10 -20 -15 -30 Q1 1988 -20 Q4 1996 Q3 2005 Q2 2014 Source: National Statistics and AXA IM Research However, on our forecasts, UK gross operating surpluses are set to receive a significant boost over the coming quarters, driven in part by the fall in sterling. As Exhibit 7 4 -20 -10 4 A similar uncertainty hangs over business investment. At present, survey evidence is mixed but BoE Agents’ surveys suggest that investment spending is just above its weakest level since the financial crisis. We assume investment remains subdued and consider some downside risks associated with a risk of firms enacting Brexit contingency plans and relocating business overseas. % yoy 30 %yoy Residual of demand model [Lhs] Change in £TW [Rhs], inv scale, 1Y lead Forecast Exports exceed model 0 0 -4 10 -8 Exports falls short of model 20 -12 1981 1987 1993 1999 2005 2011 2017 Source: National Statistics and AXA IM Research We doubt that sterling will deliver a 1992-style rebound. Firstly, the UK export industry is structurally very different to what it was in 1992, with many price-sensitive exporters squeezed out over the past 25 years. Secondly, many UK exporters are part of a global supply chain. The fall in sterling will have lowered the sterling export price but raised component import costs, which could well be passed on, eroding any competitiveness boost. Finally, echoing our views on business investment, although some exporters will enjoy a competitive boost, the specific uncertainty that Brexit poses over future trading arrangements may deter firms exploiting these opportunities. Exporters may be more likely to allow rising profit margins rather than pursue market share gains by increasing capacity to boost volume growth. As such, we forecast UK export growth to modestly accelerate to average 1.25% over the coming three AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS - INVESTMENT RESEARCH - 05/04/2017 years, faster than the 0.9% averaged over the past seven years but far short of a post-ERM rebound. Household spending slows, without a sufficient offset by other components of demand. BoE forecasts see greater uncertainty Monitoring these judgments will help the MPC determine whether the economy is adhering to its key forecasts. In Appendix A, we include a set of charts that monitor developments in the context of these key variables. They show inflation is rising but so far, not obviously in excess of BoE forecasts (we forecast inflation rising to peak at around 3%, but consider this “broadly in line” with BoE views); inflation expectations have been stable; pay growth remains modest; and the outlook for consumer spending has slowed. The BoE forecasts GDP growth of 2.0% in 2017, 1.6% in 2017 and 1.7% in 2019, firmer than our own 1.7%, 1.2% and 1.6%. Yet in recent quarters the BoE has also been caught off guard by the pace of UK activity, forecasting GDP growth of just 0.1% in Q3 2016. The BoE acknowledges the increased uncertainty surrounding its UK outlook. Exhibit 9 records the BoE’s assessment of uncertainty, which determines the range of its growth forecasts in its quarterly fan chart projections. It currently assesses uncertainty to be more elevated (persistently) than during the financial crisis. In February 2017 the BoE envisaged a 60% chance that growth is within a 3.25% point range (0-3.25%) in three years’ time compared with a 2.6% range (0.9-3.5%) in May 2016. Exhibit 9 Will sterling super-charge export growth? BoE assessment of uncertainty 2.0 We also monitor generic GDP indicators. Beyond Q1 2016, the BoE forecasts UK GDP growth of 0.4% per quarter from Q2 2016 for the next twelve quarters. This is broadly in line with it’s assessment of trend growth. In the short term, we suggest that a persistent and significant deviation in growth from this projection, shifting the MPC’s assessment of the economy’s expected spare capacity, is likely to lead the MPC to consider changing monetary policy. % 1.5 1.0 Q3 2007 In addition, Appendix A includes charts that will help us determine to what extent Brexit uncertainty is dampening activity in key sectors of the economy. Specifically, we look at forward-looking indicators for investment to judge whether businesses appear to be acting in a restrained manner and measures of export trends. This echoes the BoE’s caution that other components of demand offset the expected consumer slowdown. Q1 2010 Q3 2012 Q1 2015 Q3 2017 Source: BoE This increased uncertainty makes setting monetary policy difficult. March’s MPC minutes recorded that the expectation of economic slowdown “in line with the February forecast…was held with differing degrees of confidence across the Committee”. This directly reflects the increased uncertainty, although the accompanying more hawkish tone was likely also a reaction to the BoE’s upward revised ‘nowcast’ for Q1 2017 GDP growth to 0.6% (from 0.5%), suggesting ongoing resilience. The BoE’s assessment of increased uncertainty is likely to lead the MPC to err on the side of caution in terms of policy changes. While we acknowledge that certain developments exist that would prompt immediate monetary policy action, for example a marked rise in inflation expectations, in other cases monetary policy is likely to inhibit greater inertia. Second, greater uncertainty is also likely to see the MPC place more emphasis on short-term developments as it attempts to confirm its longer-term hypotheses. In February’s Inflation Report, the MPC set out three main “judgments” that its forecasts and policy prescriptions were founded upon: Sterling’s impact on inflation is broadly as expected and has no adverse impact on medium-term inflation expectations. Pay growth remains modest. As such, on our central forecast that economic activity slows across 2017 to 0.4% in Q1 and sequentially to 0.2% by Q4, we maintain our forecast that the MPC leaves policy unchanged throughout 2017. We also forecast growth only slowly rising back towards 0.4% by the end of 2018. Accordingly, with inflation expectations by end-2018 likely to be envisaging a return below target over the next two years, we think the MPC will choose to keep monetary policy stable in the quarters immediately before Brexit and that Bank Rate will remain at 0.25% into 2019. However, if the UK records growth of 0.6% in Q1 (data released 28 April), the MPC is likely to adopt a more hawkish tone in the May Inflation Report and could tighten policy (reverse August’s Bank Rate cut) in H2 2016, if the economy showed no subsequent signs of slowing. Indeed, in an upside scenario, with little adverse impact of Brexit uncertainty, we suggest UK GDP growth could rise by more than the BoE’s assessment of trend growth in 2017, 2018 and 2019 (our mean forecast in this scenario being 2.0%, 1.8% and 2.2%). In this scenario we would forecast the MPC tightening monetary policy to 1.00-1.25% over the coming years (likely from H2 2017 to mid-2018) – although we would still expect the Bank to act with caution in the quarters around the UK’s actual exit from the EU in Mar 2019. By contrast, we argue that the bar for further easing is probably higher. We forecast growth slowing to 0.2% by end-year. Only if growth looks set to slow persistently AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS - INVESTMENT RESEARCH - 05/04/2017 5 below 0.2% do we think the MPC would begin to consider the need for additional stimulus. The impact on sterling The outlook for monetary policy is also impacting sterling. Exhibit 10 shows the relationship between euro:sterling and the difference in two-year interest rates (UK-German) encapsulating the market view of monetary policy developments over the coming years. Following the marked depreciation of sterling after the Brexit vote, sterling’s value to the euro has been buffeted by changes in the relative rate outlook. However, other factors remain important. Historically, global conditions including oil prices and risk appetite have influenced sterling. Moreover, in recent times sterling has additionally been driven by political developments, including when PM May discussed a hard Brexit at the Conservative Party Conference in October last year. Exhibit 10 Interest rate differentials not sole driver of sterling Euro and interest rate differential UK-GE 2yr EURGBP EURGBP [Lhs] 0.92 0.55 2yr i/r diff [Rhs] 0.90 Looking ahead, we think political and monetary policy forecasts will dominate the outlook for sterling in the short term. In that respect, we anticipate heightened anxiety associated with the early stages of Brexit negotiations to weigh on sterling over the coming months. Additionally, we note that OIS spreads currently place a more than 50-50% chance of a Bank rate hike within 12-months. Our own view is that this probability is too high. Signs of economic deceleration emerging over the coming months should be reflected in market rates, narrowing the UK – EU interest rate differential and adding to downward pressure on sterling. If political concerns ease across Europe, particularly in France, over the coming months, the combination of factors could send sterling back towards £0.90 to the euro. However, acknowledging the risk of tighter policy, sterling could rise materially from current levels. In tradeweighted terms sterling fell in excess of 10% after the Brexit vote as the BoE eased monetary policy aggressively in August. In part this reflected an adjustment in a currency that had been partially expecting tighter monetary policy over the coming quarters, to one that witnessed a cut in rates. If the MPC delivered three to four 0.25% rate hikes over the coming years, we would expect trade-weighted sterling to rise from current levels by a similar order of magnitude. 0.65 0.88 0.86 0.75 0.84 0.85 Conservative Party Conference: Hard Brexit discussed 0.82 0.80 Jul 16 0.95 Sep 16 Nov 16 Jan 17 Mar 17 Source: Datastream and AXA IM Research 6 AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS - INVESTMENT RESEARCH - 05/04/2017 APPENDIX A – Assessing BoE “judgements” Exhibit 11 Inflation "broadly in line" with Feb. inflation projections UK inflation projections % yoy 6 UK market inflation expectations 5 Historic/BoE Nov 16 AXA-IM BoE forecast (Feb 2017) 4 Exhibit 12 No adverse consequences for inflation expectations % 5y/5y BE inflation 5y/5y inflation swap 4 Index-linked swap 3 2 2 0 -2 Q1 2012 Q3 2013 Q1 2015 Q3 2016 Q1 2018 1 Jan-00 Q3 2019 Sep-02 Jun-05 Mar-08 Dec-10 Source: BoE inflation Report, Feb 2017 and AXA IM Research Source: Bloomberg and AXA IM Research Exhibit 13 Regular pay growth remains modest Exhibit 14 Household spending growth slows UK Average earnings growth 8 1.5 % yoy % yoy Earnings (ex bonus) 6 Jun-16 UK consumption and retail sales volumes Earnings (inc bonus) % yoy Sep-13 BoE forecasts (Feb 17) 1.0 4 2 2.5 1.5 0.5 0.5 0 0.0 -2 -6 Jan 01 -0.5 -0.5 -4 Jan 04 Jan 07 Jan 10 Jan 13 Jan 16 -1.0 Jan-11 Jan 19 Consumption Retail sales (3m/3m) Jan-13 Source: National Statistics Exhibit 15 Other demand components - investment Exhibit 16 Other demand components - exports BoE Agent Surveys: Investment intentions UK - Export growth and survey 4 BoE manu invest Index 40 -1.5 Jan-15 Source: National Statistics Jan-17 Export vol EU (ex-oil) [Lhs] Export vol Non-EU (ex-oil) [Lhs] CBI export orders' index [Rhs] % 3m yoy BoE servs invest 2 20 10 0 20 -10 0 -20 -30 0 -2 -40 -50 -4 Jan 97 Jan 00 Jan 03 Jan 06 Jan 09 Jan 12 -20 Jan 04 Jan 15 -60 Jan 07 Jan 10 Jan 13 Jan 16 Source: BoE Source: National Statistics, CBI and AXA IM Research Exhibit 17 Short run GDP growth indicators Exhibit 18 BoE unsettled if growth continues above forecast UK - GDP and PMI indices 2 GDP % qoq UK GDP growth outlook PMI index % qoq 60 BoE (Feb 17) 1 55 0.6 AXA IM 0.5 0 50 -1 45 GDP [Lhs] -2 Historic 0.7 0.4 0.3 0.2 Manu PMI [Lhs] 40 Servs PMI [Rhs] -3 35 Jan-97 Jul-99 Jan-02 Jul-04 Jan-07 Jul-09 Jan-12 Jul-14 Jan-17 0.1 Source: National Statistics, Markit Source: National Statistics, AXA IM Research 0.0 Q1 2015 Q2 2016 Q3 2017 Q4 2018 AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS - INVESTMENT RESEARCH - 05/04/2017 7 Our Research is available on line: http://www.axa-im.com/en/research DISCLAIMER This document is for informational purposes only and does not constitute, on AXA Investment Managers part, an offer to buy or sell, solicitation or investment advice. 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