Buck gets cold-shoulder August 31, 2010 THE dollar is at a cross roads. At the peak of the financial crisis it was firmly in the set of “safe haven” currencies and was bought in favour of the euro, the pound and most emerging market currencies. However, as threats of a double-dip recession grip the markets, the greenback has been given the [...]
JAPAN ISSUES CAN’T STOP YEN STRENGTH August 31, 2010 DIRECTOR OF CURRENCY RESEARCH, GFT ONE of the inviolable rules of speculative markets such as foreign exchange is that traders will push prices beyond all rhyme and reason as long as momentum remains on their side. Witness the price movements in the yen as markets opened for trade at the start of this week. The [...]
Cross-border bids will affect the FX markets August 31, 2010 DRAGONS and tigers are known for their voracious appetites. China and India, it appears, are no exception – these Asian powerhouses’ demand for raw materials has proved unrelenting despite the subdued global backdrop. The outlook for sustained commodities’ demand has spurred the natural resources sector into action. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity has stepped up [...]
FOREX ANALYST PICKS August 31, 2010 FOREX STRATEGIST JOHN KICKLIGHTER My pick: Short sterling-dollar from $1.5500 and short sterling-Aussie below A$1.7175 Expertise: Combining fundamental and technical analysis Market conditions are highly volatile and generally lacking in conviction about the future direction of markets. This creates a situation where we need to reduce the time frame and objectives of our trades. I [...]
THE TIPSTER August 31, 2010 MUTTERINGS of further intervention by the Bank of Japan are being put to the test by the market, which is betting on the central bank being unable to stem the tide of yen appreciation. There was a temporary weakening back towards the ¥84.60 level against the US dollar following the better-than-expected consumer confidence numbers. However, [...]
Firms’ sanctions compliance must be tightened up August 31, 2010 FINANCIAL regulation reform is all the rage. Last week, President Nicolas Sarkozy unveiled his programme of “action and ambition” for France’s forthcoming presidency of the G20. It puts global reform of financial markets and systems at the very top of the agenda. The US has already passed sweeping reform legislation and the coalition government has [...]
New rules will make reverse takeovers easier August 31, 2010 FIELD FISHER WATERHOUSE IT might have gone under most people’s radar, but new guidance from the UK Listing Authority (UKLA) will have a serious effect on reverse takeovers. Under the Listing Rules, an issuer’s equity shares are generally suspended on the announcement or leak of a reverse takeover unless or until the UKLA is satisfied [...]
Currency intervention is back on the cards for the Bank of Japan August 30, 2010 THE world of foreign exchange tends to get very tricky when central bankers start getting worried about the strength or weakness of their currency. This is the position in which the Bank of Japan (BOJ) now finds itself after the yen surged to multi-year highs of ¥84 to the dollar. It has to decide whether [...]
ECONOMIC WEEK HEAD August 30, 2010 IT IS a busy week for the markets crammed with the usual start-of-the month economic data releases. The most eagerly awaited of these will be from the US. Manufacturing data out on Wednesday and Friday’s US non-farm payrolls figures are crucial pieces of the jig saw of US growth. Fears about the economy stepped up [...]
FTSE to dip after bank holiday break August 30, 2010 WITH the UK stock market closed yesterday for the bank holiday, a fairly weak start is forecast for the open this morning, following a negative cue from US shares yesterday. GFT is quoting the FTSE 100 index to open down 22 points from Friday’s close, at a level of 5,179, despite the index managing to [...]