
In today’s briefing:
- The Hubbub Surrounding January CPI Inflation
- Understanding LLM Biases in Quantitative Research: From Lunch Conversation to Framework
- CX Daily: Falling Yields Pile Pressure on China’s Insurers
- Actinver Research – AC 4Q24: Stunning close of the year (Quick View)
- Poor OEM Tire Sales, Robust Replacement In The EU In 2024
- [ETP 2025/07] Rising U.S. Crude Inventories Weigh on WTI, Henry Hub Soars on Frosty Forecasts
- Walker’s Weekly: Dr. Jim’s Summary of Key Global Macro Developments – 14 Feb 2025
- Philippines: Policy Rate Held At 5.75% (Consensus 5.5%) in Feb-25
- Preview: Due February 14 – U.S. January Retail Sales
- UK: GDP Rebounds From Statistical Low

The Hubbub Surrounding January CPI Inflation
- The higher than expected headline and core CPI data in January raised concerns regarding the inflation backdrop
- But my analysis suggests that the upside CPI surprises were mainly driven by the least persistent categories of inflation
- For now, the more persistent categories of CPI inflation imply that the improvements in trend inflation are likely to stall
Understanding LLM Biases in Quantitative Research: From Lunch Conversation to Framework
- A fascinating lunch discussion with LLM engineer sparked an investigation into how AI models process information through vector spaces – revealing parallel but mechanistically different biases compared to human analysts
- Built comprehensive framework mapping traditional financial biases against their LLM counterparts – showing how things like confirmation bias manifest differently (emotional investment vs statistical pattern reinforcement)
- Result: Effective quant research requires understanding both human AND machine biases – can’t just apply traditional risk controls to LLMs. Need tailored mitigations for how biases uniquely manifest in #AI.
CX Daily: Falling Yields Pile Pressure on China’s Insurers
- Insurers / In Depth: Falling yields pile pressure on China’s insurers
- Malaysia /Interview: Malaysia ideally placed for high-tech development, economy minister says
- AI /: Boost inference to follow in DeepSeek’s footsteps, AI veteran tells Chinese firms
Actinver Research – AC 4Q24: Stunning close of the year (Quick View)
- Sales grew almost 30% YoY to P$65bn, well above our estimates and consensus, on the back of solid pricing as volume grew 3.5% YoY –volumes were positive across most of the categories, and sales in local currency grew 12.7% YoY–.
- Profitability expanded solidly starting at the gross profit.
- Gross margin of 48.2% was slightly below our estimates yet expanded YoY and QoQ.
Poor OEM Tire Sales, Robust Replacement In The EU In 2024
- Sharp decline in heavy OEM commercial vehicle tire production in 2024
- China PCLT tire import volume into EU up 50% since 2019
- EU extends tariffs on Chinese truck and bus tires
[ETP 2025/07] Rising U.S. Crude Inventories Weigh on WTI, Henry Hub Soars on Frosty Forecasts
- For the week ending 07/Feb, US crude inventories increased by 4.1m barrels, exceeding expectations of a 2.4m barrel build. Gasoline stockpiles surprisingly fell, while distillate stocks unexpectedly rose.
- US natural gas inventories fell by 100 Bcf for the week ending 07/Feb, beating analyst expectations of a 90 Bcf drawdown. Inventories are 2.8% below the 5-year seasonal average.
- BP’s Q4 net profit fell 48.5% QoQ and missed estimates by 2.5% due to weak refining margins. Chevron plans to trim workforce by 20% to cut costs.
Walker’s Weekly: Dr. Jim’s Summary of Key Global Macro Developments – 14 Feb 2025
U.S. government spending inefficiencies under scrutiny, but political resistance remains strong.
Inflation remains high, delaying expected interest rate cuts and fueling public frustration.
India’s CPI drop hints at potential RBI rate cuts; Philippines keeps rates steady amid peso concerns.
Philippines: Policy Rate Held At 5.75% (Consensus 5.5%) in Feb-25
- The BSP held its key rate at 5.75%, contradicting market expectations of a 25bp cut, citing persistent global economic uncertainties and a stable inflation outlook.
- Inflation risks for 2025 and 2026 are balanced, though upside pressures from utilities and downside risks from lower rice tariffs remain.
- The BSP signalled a cautious, data-dependent approach to easing, with future rate cuts contingent on further clarity regarding inflation trends and global economic developments.
Preview: Due February 14 – U.S. January Retail Sales
- We expect US retail sales to fall by 1.0% in January with declines of 0.2% both ex autos and ex autos and gasoline.
- The monthly weakness is likely to be largely due to bad weather with potential for a correction from Q4 strength adding to downside risk.
- January retail sales are sensitive to weather with January 2023 producing a strong rise that was subsequently corrected, and a harsh January 2024 seeing a decline that was subsequently reversed.
UK: GDP Rebounds From Statistical Low
- GDP defied dovish expectations by surging 0.4% m-o-m, flipping the expected sign on Q4 to grow by 0.1% q-o-q amid broadly positive performances across industry and services.
- We called November the statistical bottom amid residual seasonality, which is turning higher into what should be a more resilient H1 again. That call remains on track.
- Statistical noise misled dovish rate views into seeing a spurious fundamental weakness. A lack of follow-through should allow cuts to end after a final one in May.