Tag Archives: Federal Reserve

The week ahead is arguably the most important here at the start of 2020. The Federal Reserve and the Bank of England meet. The US and the eurozone report initial estimates of Q4 19 GDP. The eurozone also reports its preliminary estimate of January CPI. China returns from the extended Lunar New Year celebration and reports its official PMI. Japan will report December retail sales and industrial production. These data points will provide insight into the state of the...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.06% to 1.0745 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, January 17(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Helped by new record highs in the US, global stocks are moving higher today. Nearly all the markets in the Asia Pacific region advanced and the seventh consecutive weekly rally is the longest in a couple of years. Europe’s Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is at new record highs and appears set to...

The US-China trade conflict and then US-Iran confrontation distracted investors from the macroeconomic drivers of the capital markets.   It is not that there is really much closure with the exogenous issues, but they are in a less challenging place, at least on the surface. A Chinese delegation, led by the Vice-Premier Liu He, who spearheaded the negotiations, will participate in the signing ceremony on January 15.. While China has agreed to buy $200 bln more of US...

Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.27% to 1.079 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, January 8(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The Iranian retaliatory missile strike on Iraqi-bases housing US forces initially sparked a dramatic risk-off response throughout the capital markets. The muted response by the US coupled with signals from Tehran that it had “concluded” its proportionate measures saw the markets...

Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.10% to 1.0837 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, January 3(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has threatened “severe retaliation” for the US attacked that killed an important head of a force within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard. At the same time, reports indicate that North Korea’s Kim Jong Un is no longer pledging to halt its nuclear weapons...

The year is winding down quietly, and the last week of 2019 is likely to be more of the same. The general mood of the market is quite different than a year ago. Then investors had marked down equities dramatically amid fears of what was perceived as a synchronized downturn. Now with additional monetary easing in the pipeline and renewed expansion of the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank’s balance sheets, risk appetites have been stoked. Previously, the notion...

Dear Mr. Taft: I eagerly read your piece Warriors for Opportunity on Wednesday, as I often do about pieces that argue that capitalism is not working today. You begin by saying: “Financial capitalism – free markets powered by a robust financial system – is the dominant economic model in the world today. Yet many who have benefited from the system agree it’s not working the way it ought to.” Leaving aside that our financial system is not robust—the interest rate is...

Just in time for more discussions about repo, the Federal Reserve delivers. Not in terms of the repo market, mind you, despite what you hear bandied about in the financial media the Fed doesn’t actually go there. Its repo operations are more RINO’s – repo in name only. No, what the US central bank actually contributes is more helpful data. Since our goal is to use that data to produce the best possible, most accurate interpretation of the facts, the depth and...

After last week’s flurry of events, market activity is set to slow over the next three weeks. But what a flurry of events it was. A new NAFTA apparently has been agreed, and it is set to be approved by the US House of Representatives next week and the Senate early next year. The US and China struck an agreement that will get rid of the immediate tariff threat and unwind half of the punitive tariffs in exchange for a commitment to buy twice the amount of agriculture...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.21% to 1.0964 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, December 13(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The combination of a US-China trade deal and exit polls showing the Tories securing a majority in the House of Commons boosted risk assets, sent sterling flying, and the euro sharply higher.  Separately, the Fed stepped up its efforts to make as smooth as possible funding over the...