It’s not easy to price in the actions of dictators November 23, 2010 YEONPYEONG island was obscured by smoke yesterday after North Korea launched an shell attack on the South Korean island, marking the greatest escalation of violence between the countries for decades. This is a dismal reminder that the line drawn between the two countries is still mired in dispute. It also caused the line on the [...]
CONTAGION IS STILL A RISK FOR THE EURO November 23, 2010 BORIS SCHLOSSBERG DIRECTOR OF CURRENCY RESEARCH, GFT AFter several weeks of tense negotiations and turbulence in the credit markets, Ireland accepted a financial aid package from EU and the IMF. Although the size of the deal will not be known for days, analysts put the total at about €100bn – 40 per cent of the [...]
Fear and loathing on the edges of Europe November 23, 2010 SOMETIMES it seems as though the foreign exchange markets can only deal with one news story at a time. Whereas a month ago, the dollar was being attacked for quantitative easing, now the euro is the point of focus. Given the depth of the fiscal problems in Ireland and Portugal and even potentially Spain or [...]
THE TIPSTER November 23, 2010 THE long sterling-New Zealand dollar position has already proven to be profitable, and it looks as though we could start to see an acceleration of gains following the latest surge beyond NZ$2.0700. The fundamentals have certainly been supportive, with a dovish central bank, problems with local fruit, and a ratings downgrade all helping to strengthen [...]
FOREX ANALYST PICKS November 23, 2010 FOREX STRATEGIST JOEL KRUGER My pick: Long sterling-New Zealand dollar at NZ$2.0500 Expertise: Technical analysis Average time frame of trades: 1 month-12 months A couple of weeks back we recommended buying this cross with the market trading at cyclical lows and looking poised for some major upside. The trade has proven to be profitable and [...]
Low correlations and high liquidity ensure currency’s continued appeal November 23, 2010 FOR about a decade before the crisis, institutional investors were happy to accept that the currency markets were an area where active fund managers could add value. But they lost their faith in the asset class during 2008 when many currency managers lost money. Some of those managers who were running quantitative strategies and who [...]
FUND MANAGEMENT NEWS November 23, 2010 IMA ANNOUNCES NEW CHINA SECTORS The Investment Management Association (IMA) yesterday announced the creation of the China/Greater China sector and the new definition of the Global sector. Both changes will come into effect from 1 January 2011. The former will be defined as funds investing at least 80 per cent of their assets in equities [...]
After-the-event insurance is an option for City litigants November 23, 2010 TROUBLED economic times are typically marked by a surge in litigation, even as companies’ budgets and their ability to fund litigation remain constrained. Given the imperative to continue delivering shareholder value in the face of uncertain market conditions and an increasingly litigious environment, it is hardly unexpected that litigation costs are fast rising to the [...]
Get ready for changes in bank sector November 23, 2010 CUSTOMER confidence in the banks is low. You would therefore think that the time was ripe for new entrants to the banking market. There was a time when scarcely a week went by without somebody saying they were about to become a bank. Tesco, Virgin and Metro Bank are lining up to offer the full [...]
BRIEFS | LEGAL NEWS November 23, 2010 CAMERONS OUTSOURCING DEAL CMS Cameron McKenna is to become the first major law firm to outsource its entire backroom operation, Legal Week has reported. Outsourcing company Integreon promises that it can save the top 20 firm 10-15 per cent on its backroom costs. Camerons has been in talks with Integreon since May, but a partner [...]