Japan struggles to get a grip on its currency November 15, 2011 THE Japanese central bank, the Bank of Japan (BoJ), has been locked in a seemingly futile battle to weaken its currency, the yen. A strong yen is seen as damaging to Japanese exporters by reducing their competitiveness overseas and eroding the value of repatriated earnings. But despite its past failures, it is likely that the [...]
ECB NEEDS TO COMMIT TO SWISS PLAN November 15, 2011 DESPITE new technocratic governments taking the helm in Greece and Italy, financial markets remain on edge regarding the future of Europe’s monetary union. Serious fiscal reform is unlikely to quickly take hold and may face very stiff opposition from populations already suffering from serious economic hardship. Meanwhile, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) bailout fund [...]
THE TIPSTER November 15, 2011 TRADERS are extremely cautious over the fate of the euro. Despite governmental changes in the Eurozone, sentiment hasn’t appeared to pick up. After Merkel’s comments that the Eurozone is in its worst state since WWII, we should still expect short-term bearishness over the euro and strength in relatively more safe haven currencies such as the [...]
FOREX ANALYST PICKS November 15, 2011 FOREX STRATEGIST JOHN KICKLIGHTER My pick: Short sterling-dollar; long dollar-yen; short euro-yen Expertise: Fundamental analysis with risk management Average time frame of trades: 1 day to 1 week The short setup for dollar-yen below ¥78 from last week worked well enough, but follow through will be troublesome. Now, I’m looking for an intervention reaction should [...]
Accountants can be counted upon to face challenge of climate change November 15, 2011 HEAD OF ACCA UK LATER this month, thousands of climate change experts, government negotiators, campaigners, and business people will be gathering in Durban, South Africa for the seventeenth annual meeting of the signatories to the UN Framework Convention for Climate Change. Or, more simply, COP17. The ultimate objective of each COP (Conference of the Parties) [...]
FTSE falls as Italy’s bond sale reduces investor confidence November 14, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares fell yesterday as the latest Italian bond auction dented investor confidence in the ability of new governments in Italy and Greece to tackle Europe’s debt crisis. An Italian five-year government bond auction delivered an early market view on former European Commissioner Mario Monti’s leadership after he was installed as Prime Minister of [...]
US stocks dented by Europe worries November 14, 2011 US stocks fell yesterday as rising bond yields in Italy and other Eurozone countries reminded investors that despite changes in governments, the region’s debt crisis could still spin out of control. Banks posted the largest losses, but overall volume was unusually weak. The KBW bank index dropped 2.5 per cent, with Bank of New York [...]
No more bunga bunga, but bonds are still high November 14, 2011 THE European political machine flexed its muscles last week, first in Greece and then, more significantly, in Italy. A nudge from its European benefactors was enough for Greece to topple its prime minister George Papandreou after months of pressure and confidence votes. The Greek parliament moved to appoint a man who ticked all the European [...]
BERLUSCONI, OIL AND A LOAD OF EUROS November 14, 2011 LAST Wednesday, global stock indices took a dive as Italian bond yields soared. Having waved off George Papandreou as Greek Prime Minister, bondholders turned their attention to Italy. Investors began to panic as the yield on Italy’s 10-year BTPs flew above 7 per cent – a level which saw Greece, Ireland and Portugal require emergency [...]
Ask the experts: what’s to come November 14, 2011 ALPARI JAMES HUGHES Now gold has finished its relentless march higher, traders have almost started to take stock of the wreckage of all other asset classes. It was inevitable after the huge surge in prices that, once the end came, the profit takers would be out in force moving prices significantly lower again. However, while [...]