Tag Archives: Featured

Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.11% to 1.1968 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, April 19(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates A light news stream and less trade rhetoric lend the equity markets a positive impulse amid a strong US earnings season while leaving the dollar narrowly mixed. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.5% and is up 1% for the week with one...

See the introduction and the video for the terms gold basis, co-basis, backwardation and contango. The Lighthouse Moves Picture, if you will, a brick slowly falling off a cliff. The brick is printed with green ink, and engraved on it are the words “Federal Reserve Note” (FRN). A camera is mounted to the brick. The camera shows lots of things moving up. The cliff face is whizzing upwards at a blur. A black painted brick...

Last month Chinese trade statistics left us with several key questions. Export growth was a clear outlier, with outbound trade rising nearly 45% year-over-year in February 2018. There were the usual Golden Week distortions to consider, made more disruptive by the timing of it this year as different from last year. And then we have to consider possible effects of tariffs and restrictions at the start of what is called a...

The U.S. Department of Treasury has just published its semi-annual report on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies. It comes at a time when the US Administration remains deeply concerned by the significant trade imbalances in the global economy. The report only focuses on the US’s 12 largest trading partners, which collectively account for more than 70% of the US’s trade in goods. Although Switzerland is...

Philomena Colatrella, the CEO of Swiss insurer CSS Insurance, has stirred the lively debate around Switzerland’s rising cost of health insurance by proposing deductibles of CHF 5,000 and CHF 10,000 – deductibles set the amount people pay out of their own pockets before their insurance kicks in. - Click to enlarge Colatrella discussed the idea in an interview with Blick. The response to her comments was widely...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.11% to 1.1962 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, April 18(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates The US dollar is enjoying a firmer tone against major and most emerging market currencies. Sterling, which has become a market darling, hit an air pocket after softer than expected CPI. Sterling had reached its highest level since the 2016...

– EU and euro face growing risks including trade wars, energy independence and war with Russia in Middle East – Middle East war involving Russia may badly impact energy dependent & fragile EU – Trade and actual wars on European doorstep show the strategic weakness of the EU– Toxic combination due to growing anti-EU and anti-Euro sentiment in many EU nations– Investors should diversify to hedge investment, currency...

There is no change to the risk budget this month. For the moderate risk investor, the allocation to bonds is 50%, risk assets 45% and cash 5%. Stocks continued their erratic ways since the last update with another test of the February lows that are holding – for now. While we believe growth expectations are moderating somewhat (see the Bi-Weekly Economic Review) the change isn’t sufficient to warrant an asset...

The Royal Penthouse Suite at Geneva's President Wilson Hotel is reputedly the most expensive holiday room in the world. (Keystone) - Click to enlarge Staying in a hotel in Geneva costs more than anywhere else in Europe, according to an international survey. The €242.90 (CHF288 or $300) average charge per night puts Geneva ahead of Paris (€232.30), while Zurich is listed as the third most expensive...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.29% to 1.1914 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, April 17(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates After the retreating in the North American session yesterday, despite a rebound in retail sales after three-months of declines, the greenback has been sold further in Europe and Asia. The euro edged through last week’s high near $1.24, and...