POUND-EURO PARITY COMES EVER CLOSER September 23, 2009 JANE FOLEYRESEARCH DIRECTOR, FOREX.COM ALMOST a year after the pound touched parity with the euro, the recent rapid drop in the value of the pound has raised speculation that euro-sterling could see parity again in the not too distant future. Sterling-dollar – cable – is also at risk of even more losses now that it [...]
Dollar’s days as the world’s only reserve currency could be numbered September 23, 2009 OVER the next two days, world leaders gathered at the G20 summit in Pittsburgh will attempt to address the issue of the persistent global imbalances that have been cited as a long-term cause of the recent economic downturn. Integral to this debate has been the long-standing issue of the US dollar’s hegemonic status as the [...]
The return of risk appetite boosts nuclear, natural gas and coal ETFs September 23, 2009 WITH the UN climate change summit and the G20 meeting later this week, countries’ energy policy is expected to be a hot topic this autumn in the build up to the UN climate change conference being held in Copenhagen in December. Pressure is building on advanced economies to reduce their carbon emissions and develop cleaner [...]
ETPS HAVE BEEN BOOSTED BY CRISIS September 23, 2009 NIZAM HAMIDHEAD OF SALES STRATEGY, ISHARES EUROPE WHILE trading volumes on equities have fallen by 46 per cent during the financial crisis, volumes in exchange-traded products (ETPs) have been comparatively healthy. Over the past year trading volumes in ETPs rose to €54bn from €37bn and as a proportion of trading, they have risen from about [...]
THE LONDON REPORT September 23, 2009 THE leading share index closed lower yesterday as falling commodity prices stung oil firms and miners while investors stayed cautious ahead of the conclusion of a US Federal Reserve policy meeting. The FTSE 100 ended 0.1 per cent, or 3.23 points, lower at 5,139.37, erasing gains from earlier in the session as shares on Wall [...]
Making too many impulsive trades? It’s all the fault of your hormones September 23, 2009 WALK onto any trading floor from the Square Mile to Wall Street and you will notice the sheer amount of testosterone in the atmosphere. Trading floors are filled with young men shouting either into a telephone or at their multitude of screens, intent on striking lucky and making their fortune. The male bias of many [...]
UNCERTAINTY MAKES FOR EDGY TRADERS September 23, 2009 GEORGE TCHETVERTAKOVHEAD OF MARKET RESEARCH, ALPARI UK Over the past few weeks, market participants have been quick to price in monetary policy tightening in response to resurgent stock markets, buoyant macroeconomic indicators and strong sentiment across the developed world. Policy divergence or even policy “desynchronisation” whereby policy tightening is carried out at different rates, could [...]
TRADING OTHER GENDER STUDIES September 23, 2009 &9679; Researchers Paola Sapienza, Luigi Zingales and Dario Maestripieri found that female MBA students with higher testosterone levels are more likely to feel comfortable taking financial chances and to choose risky careers like investment banking or trading. &9679; But Swedish researchers found earlier this year that women given testosterone for a month were no more [...]
NEW YORK REPORT September 23, 2009 US stocks fell yesterday as investors worried the Federal Reserve is closer to pulling back on extraordinary measures to inject funding to shore up the economy. The Fed’s policy-setters met and kept interest rates unchanged, as expected, but they also said the US central bank would slow its programme of purchasing mortgage debt to its [...]
Lawyers lobby G20 over emissions September 22, 2009 EARLIER this month UK lawyers issued a “communiqué” calling on the G20 to implement more effective regulation ahead of the Pittsburgh summit which begins tomorrow, and the UN climate-change convention in Copenhagen in December which is expected to produce a successor to the Kyoto agreement. So, why should world leaders listen to a bunch of [...]