The $1.1475-$1.1550 is an important area for the euro. Many bulls see a rounded bottom being carved and a break above it would be embraced as a confirmation. The lower-end corresponds to the 100-day moving average. Such a bottom pattern, if confirmed, would project toward $1.1800 the high in H2 18. On the downside, the low from H2 18 was near $1.1200. This is just above a key (61.8%) retracement of the January...
Read More »Week Winding Down on Firm Note, but Wild Ride may Not Be Over
Overview: The biggest reversal in the S&P 500 since 2010, allowing it to string the biggest two-day rally in three years helped lift Asian and European shares today. All the Asia-Pacific equity markets advanced today but Japan, where the strength of the yen saw the Nikkei and Topix buck the move. European equities. The 1.4% rally in the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 near midday in Europe retraces 2/3 of this...
Read More »Some Thoughts on What is Happening
People do not just disagree on what should and will happen, but they disagree on what has happened. As William Faulkner instructed: “The past is not dead. Actually, it’s not even past. This is clear in the narratives about the sharp drop in equity markets. It seems that the most common explanation places the onus on the Federal Reserve. Fed Chair Powell’s was seemingly hawkishness in early October (during a time when...
Read More »Forex Forensics: The Case of the Yen
Over the past five sessions, the yen is the strongest of the major currencies, appreciating about 1.7% against the US dollar, eclipsing the Swedish krona, which rallied strongly today after the Riksbank’s surprise rate hike. Given the sell-off in equities and the decline in markets, the yen’s strength is not surprising. What was surprising though was the dollar’s resilience against the yen earlier this month as equities...
Read More »FX Daily, December 21: Markets Stumble into the Weekend
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.04% at 1.1308 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, December 21(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: There is little reprieve from the equity meltdown ahead of the weekend. Major markets in the Asia-Pacific region, including Japan, China, India, and Australia pushed lower. The MSCI index of the region is near 15-month lows. The Dow...
Read More »FX Daily, December 20: Stocks Slump and the Dollar Slides as Market Concludes Fed is Mistaken
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.20% at 1.1334 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, December 20(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Once again the US equity market failed to hold on to even minimal upticks. The sharply lower close spurred follow-through selling in global equities. Few have been spared the wrath of investors who apparently were disappointed with the...
Read More »FX Daily, December 19: The Fed’s Paws may Still Unsettle Investors
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.43% at 1.1325 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, December 19(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The failure of the S&P 500 to sustain even modest upside momentum yesterday is keeping traders on edge today, though another attempt on the upside is likely. Asian equities were mixed, with Chinese and Japanese shares lower. The...
Read More »FX Daily, December 18: Stock Rout Deepens, Casts Shadow over Holiday Spirit
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.12% at 1.1277 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, December 18(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The 2% slide in the S&P 500 to new lows for the year yesterday hit Asian and European equities today. Bond yields are lower, and the dollar is softer against most major currencies. The dramatic equity losses and some disappointing...
Read More »FX Daily, December 17: Markets Quiet to Start Fed Week
Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.20% at 1.1258 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, December 17(see more posts on EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Activity in the global capital markets is subdued as investors move to the sidelines as the year-end approaches. The Federal Reserve headlines the holiday week that also features a Bank of England a Bank of Japan meeting. Only...
Read More »FX Weekly Preview: FOMC Dominates Week Ahead Calendar
The last FOMC meeting of 2018 is at hand. After hiking rates three times in 2017, the Fed signaled that four hikes were likely this year and with a widely expected move on December 20, it would have fully delivered, though many steps along the way, skeptical investors had to be led by the nose, as it were, to minimize the element of surprise. The famous dot plot of the Summary of Economic Projections has long shown that...
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