Times are tough, but lawyers aren’t giving up their wine cellars quite yet July 14, 2009 JUST after the collapse of Lehman Brothers last year, at a lavish Clifford Chance party held at Goldsmith’s Hall, a French lawyer told me glumly: “London used to be such a good place to make money.” The champagne and canapes might have been flowing at the time, but the words did capture the feeling that [...]
Traders seek to lock in prices as they fight volatile market July 14, 2009 RECORD volatility and unpredictability in the foreign exchange markets during the financial crisis may have seen volumes soar and day traders profit handsomely, but if you are a longer-term positional trader dipping into the forex markets or looking to hedge your trading, whether it be in the currency markets or another asset class, then volatility [...]
SWISSIE WILL STAY STRONG DESPITE SNB July 14, 2009 BORIS SCHLOSSBERGDIRECTOR OF CURRENCY RESEARCH, GFT INTERVENTION is always a subject of controversy and conversation in the currency market. Typically, traders focus on the Bank of Japan (BoJ), which at one time spent nearly $250bn trying to drive down the value of the yen. However, while the BoJ receives the lion’s share of attention, the [...]
It’s more vital than ever to reassess risk July 14, 2009 RISK appetite is one of those phrases that traders tend to bandy about. In these uncertain times, the words are in the news more than ever. A cursory glance over the research notes, market commentaries and news reports of the past few weeks would have you confused. One day a research note claims that risk [...]
Miners, banks and oil groups emerge as stars of the index July 14, 2009 LONDON’S top share index closed up 0.9 per cent yesterday, led by miners, banks and oil producers as impressive corporate data from the United States outweighed mixed economic figures. The FTSE ended 35.55 points higher at 4,237.68, extending Monday’s 1.8 per cent gains. The index has risen more than 23 per cent since hitting a [...]
WALKER WILL PUT ONUS ON REGULATORS July 14, 2009 PETER SNOWDONPARTNER, NORTON ROSE LLP WE can expect the Walker Review, due tomorrow, to highlight shortcomings in banks’ corporate governance that allowed excessive risk-taking to go unchecked, leading to the financial crisis. The report is likely to recommend strengthening banks” risk assessment arrangements and possibly suggest separate risk committees, reflecting the sector’s perceived failure to [...]
Corporate earnings boost Wall Street July 14, 2009 US stocks managed modest gains yesterday, as better-than-expected corporate profits overshadowed concerns about weak consumer demand. Positive surprises on the earnings front could boost markets again today as chip maker Intel reported results after the bell that surpassed expectations, driving stock index futures sharply higher. Intel also gave a forecast for current-quarter revenue that beat [...]
Japan offers the contrarian trader a wealth of opportunity July 13, 2009 GIVEN how badly export-oriented Japan has suffered from the financial crisis and the subsequent drop off in global demand, you might think that investing in Japanese equities would be one of the least successful trading strategies around right now. But in fact, a number of analysts have started turning bullish on the Japanese stock index [...]
Bullish comments boost US markets July 13, 2009 US stocks rallied more than 2 per cent yesterday as bullish comments on financial sector performance from analyst Meredith Whitney lifted hopes that banks’ quarterly results may be stronger than expected. Light volumes made it easier for stocks to post such a big move, analysts said. The Dow industrials and S&P 500 had their best [...]
SENTIMENT TAKES A NOSEDIVE, DAMPENS RECOVERY PROSPECT July 13, 2009 MARTIN SLANEYHEAD OF DERIVATIVES, GFTCONSUMER confidence is fundamental to market mood, and even more so when the prospect of economic recovery has been touted but not yet assured. Confidence is the building block of spending, which is critical to recovery. And right now confidence is taking a big dip. The bimonthly Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary [...]