According to the Census Bureau, US companies have been importing foreign goods at a relentless pace. In estimates released last week, seasonally-adjusted US imports jumped to $204 billion in November 2017. That’s a record high finally surpassing the $200 billion mark for the first time, as well as the peaks for both 2014 and 2007. US Trade Balance, Jan 2014 - 2018(see more posts on U.S. Trade Balance, ) - Click to...
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La Banque nationale suisse s’attend à un bénéfice de 54 milliards de francs pour l’exercice 2017. Celui-ci résulte de: Un gain de 49 milliards de francs sur ses positions en monnaies étrangères. D’une plus-value de 3 milliards de francs sur l’or. D’un bénéfice de 2 milliards de francs sur ses positions en franc. Nous attendrons les chiffres définitifs à fin 2017 avant de nous lancer dans une analyse. Mais nous pouvons...
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Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.45% to 1.1735 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, January 11(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates As market participants were just getting their sea legs back after the start of the year, it was hit by a one-two punch of ideas that BOJ policy was turning less accommodative and that Chinese officials were wary of adding to their Treasury...
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- Click to enlarge I joined Alix Steel and David Westin on the Bloomberg set earlier today. Click here for the link. In the roughly 2.5 minute clip, we talk about the US and and the monetary cycle in Europe. In the US, Q4 was another quarter of above trend growth. The Atlanta Fed says the economy is tracking 2.7%, while the NY Fed puts it at 4.0%. To my way of thinking about the situation, many observers seem to be...
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There were more vacancies advertised at the unemployment office than the year before (Keystone) The Swiss unemployment rate fell from 3.3% in 2016 to 3.2% in 2017, according to figures released by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) on Tuesday. In terms of actual numbers, 143,142 people were registered as unemployed, a decrease of 6,175 compared with the year before. The fall was particularly marked in the...
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– Gold prices rise to $1,326/oz on concerns China may slow U.S. Treasury buying – Equities fell sharply on the report as did Treasurys and the U.S. dollar – Chinese officials think U.S. debt is becoming less attractive compared to other assets – Trade tensions could provide a reason to slow down or halt U.S. debt purchases – U.S. dollar vulnerable as China remains biggest buyer of U.S. sovereign debt – Currency wars to...
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This is how our entire status quo maintains the illusion of normalcy: by avoiding a full accounting of the costs. The economy’s going great–but at what cost? “Normalcy” has been restored, but at what cost? Profits are soaring, but at what cost? Our pain is being reduced–but at what cost? The status quo delights in celebrating gains, but the costs required to generate those gains are ignored for one simple reason: the...
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- Click to enlarge Axel Weber hat zwei Seelen in seiner Brust: eine als Ex-Notenbanker, eine als UBS-Präsident. Als Präsident der Deutschen Bundesbank hatte der Deutsche Weber gesagt, es gäbe keine Einlösungsverpflichtung der Deutschen Bundesbank für eine Banknote. „Wirtschaftlich gesehen sind unsere Banknoten eine Verbindlichkeit des Eurosystems. Dabei handelt es sich aber eher um eine abstrakte Verpflichtung. Wer...
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Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.31% to 1.1725 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, January 10(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Sparked by fears that the BOJ took a step toward the monetary exit by reducing the amount of long-term bonds it is buying, there is an apparent scramble to cover previously sold yen positions. The dollar finished last week near JPY113.00....
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Employees should also benefit from increased productivity, say trade unions. Pictured here is the dishwasher assembly line at the V-ZUG factory in Zug, Switzerland. (© KEYSTONE / GAETAN BALLY) The Swiss Trade Union Federation is demanding shorter work weeks, compensation for pension losses and enforcement of equal pay for men and women. At its annual media conference in Bern on Thursday, the Swiss Trade Union...
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SNB & CHF
