Investors braced for emerging markets chaos January 27, 2014 INVESTORS are bracing themselves for yet another day of volatility in the financial markets, as political problems in Argentina, Turkey and Ukraine, concerns about slower growth in China and reduced support from US monetary policy spook traders. A full-scale flight from emerging markets accelerated last Friday as shares in major economies were dumped in favour [...]
Wall St The Week Ahead: Apple, Google and Facebook earnings due January 26, 2014 US stocks could be set for another selloff this week as the Federal Reserve is expected to announce it will keep withdrawing its economic stimulus, further pressuring equities already roiled by a flight from emerging markets. Investor sentiment turned strongly bearish last week as emerging markets were hit by both country-specific problems and the realisation [...]
The Bank must at least discuss a rate rise: Its credibility is now on the line January 22, 2014 THE BANK of England must give serious consideration to raising interest rates. This doesn’t mean it should hike rates immediately. But the conditions under which rates would rise need to be clarified urgently. Forward guidance is being used to avoid this conversation. Ideally, guidance should be employed to reduce the discretion of policymakers over monetary [...]
DailyFX Tips & Picks: Analyst picks January 20, 2014 CHIEF STRATEGIST JOHN KICKLIGHTER My pick: Short sterling-dollar, long Aussie-yen and euro-sterling Expertise: Fundamental and technical analysis Average time frame of trades: 1 day to 1 week Full-scale risk aversion is a scenario that constantly circles the borders of the financial markets, but positioning for catastrophe is a game fraught with false starts. Until we [...]
Why it’s time to stop feeding our addiction to ultra loose monetary policy January 20, 2014 WITH GDP still 2 per cent below its pre-crisis peak and consumer price index inflation falling back to its 2 per cent target, many argue that Britain should stick with extraordinarily loose monetary policy for longer. Just yesterday, the EY Item club urged the Bank of England to bolster its forward guidance policy, and to [...]
Slipping US consumer confidence misses by most in 8 years January 17, 2014 Positive US consumer sentiment fell slightly at the beginning of the year, missing expectations by the biggest margin in eight years and marking the fourth miss in five months. The Reuters/Michigan survey of consumers in dropped to 80.4 in January, after expectations of an increase to 83.5, up from 82.5 in December. There's not [...]
US inflation jumps to six-month high January 16, 2014 US inflation jumped, as expected, to 1.5 per cent in December year-on-year – the highest it's been since June – from 1.2 per cent in November 2012 to November 2013. Item prices increased across the board, although they remained modest, with the jump attributed to a temporary rise in energy over the month. This is [...]
What you need to know before the open – 16/01 January 16, 2014 European markets are expected to open a shade higher this morning, after yesterday's five-and-a-half-year high. US inflation numbers are out later today and are predicted to show that prices rose in December – following in the footsteps of yesterday's increased PPI figures. Yesterday's Beige Book survey also reinforced a continued pick up in the economy. [...]
What you need to know before the open – 15/01 January 15, 2014 European bourses are expected higher this morning, after a US rebound on positive retail sales. In Wednesday trading the Nikkei climbed 2.5 per cent – its best one-day gain in four months. The World Bank upped its growth forecast for the first time in three years yesterday, as leading economies continue to pick up pace. [...]
Here’s why Japanese stocks have seen their worst day in five months January 14, 2014 Asian shares were in the wars today. The Nikkei 225 average tumbled 3.1 per cent in Tuesday trading – taking it to a one-month low and marking the biggest one-day drop in five months. The broader Topix dropped 2.3 per cent, and Asian ex-Japan shares were down 0.8 per cent. The shift into the red [...]